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WACO, Texas -- With a coach named Briles still calling the plays, and Seth Russell throwing touchdown passes, Baylors offense certainly looked very familiar.Russell threw four touchdown passes in less than a half, and the No. 23 Bears beat FCS team Northwestern State 55-7 on Friday night in their first game since the sudden dismissal of coach Art Briles just more than three months ago.It felt like Baylor, said Russell, who took the calls from offensive coordinator Kendal Briles, the former coachs son.Two-time Big 12 Conference champion coach Art Briles lost his job in the wake of a May report from an external investigation into allegations the university mishandled complaints of sexual assault, including some against football players.Acting head coach Jim Grobe retained the rest of the staff, and had no issues with the younger Briles having the initials CAB written on his hand -- presumably for Art Briles.To think about him losing Art as his head coach ... it had to be tougher on KB than anybody, Grobe said. I have no problems with that whatsoever. If you dont love your dad, somethings wrong.Kendal Briles wasnt available for comment since Baylor isnt making assistant coaches available to speak to the media this season.Russell was the top-rated FBS passer when he suffered a season-ending neck injury in the seventh game last year. He completed 14 of 20 passes for 163 yards with TDs to four receivers, including two tight ends. The Bears led 41-0 when he threw his last pass, a 10-yard TD pass to Pooh Stricklin with five minutes left in the first half.All for it, hes who brought me here. He gave me opportunity and I love him for it, Russell said when asked about Kendal Briles tribute. Coach Grobe did a fantastic job of stepping into a risky situation. Hes done a great job of handling it, and hes been staying positive the entire time.THE TAKEAWAYNorthwestern State: Really, the outcome should have been no surprise. Northwestern State had lost its previous four meetings against Baylor by an average margin of 50 points, including 70-6 two years ago. Brooks Haack, the second graduate transfer in a row to start for the Demons, was under constant pressure and completed only 3 of 13 passes for 14 yards, but he did run 3 yards for their only score.Baylor: The Bears, who are down to about 70 scholarship players, got some valuable playing time for true freshman quarterback Zach Smith and plenty of other non-starters, including third-teamers on offense and defense after halftime. Smith went through spring practice after graduating high school early, and was thrust into the role as backup when Jarrett Stidham left Baylor this summer. Smith was 5-of-7 passing for 60 yards and a touchdown, and two other freshmen got into the game as well.The defense was overwhelming, holding Northwestern State to 78 total yards, but it will get a much tougher test against SMU, where Bears defensive coordinator Phil Bennett was once the head coach.POLL IMPLICATIONSBaylor: Dont look for the Bears to make much of a move in the poll. Sure, they could move up a spot or two if other teams ranked above them lose, but a 48-point victory against an FCS team isnt likely to overly impress voters.KEY NUMBERSBaylor had 498 total yards (275 rushing, 223 passing). ... Terence Williams ran a Baylor-high 11 times for 72 yards and two touchdowns. ... Shock Linwood, who ran nine times for 97 yards, is 107 yards shy of becoming Baylors career rushing leader. Walter Abercrombies record of 3,665 yards has stood for 35 years. ... The last time two Baylor tight ends caught TD passes in the same game was Sept. 8, 2007, when Justin Akers had two TDs and Brad Taylor one in a 42-17 win vs. Rice. ... The Bears led 48-0 at the half, when Northwestern State had 3 total yards and eight punts.UP NEXTNorthwestern State: The Demons have never been competitive against Baylor. So they just have to move forward and get ready for their Southland Conference opener at home Sept. 8 against Incarnate Word.Coming out in the second half, offensively, defensively, we were able to do some things, Demons coach Jay Thomas said. Baylor, theyre really good, man.Baylor: After easing into the season against a lower-division opponent, the Bears stay home next week against SMU. It is the first of consecutive games against former Southwest Conference rivals (the Mustangs and Rice) who are still in the field of candidates for possible Big 12 expansion. 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CHICAGO -- Michael Conforto is hoping a short stay in Las Vegas turns into a strong finish with the New York Mets.Conforto rejoined the Mets before the start of a three-game series against the NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs. The 10th overall pick in the 2014 amateur draft was recalled when Brandon Nimmo, another young outfielder, was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas after Sundays 5-0 win at Philadelphia.Also Monday, Mets right-hander Matt Harvey had season-ending thoracic outlet surgery in St. Louis. Harvey finishes the year with a 4-10 record and a 4.86 ERA after going 13-8 with a 2.71 ERA in 2015.The 23-year-old Conforto made his major league debut last year and hit .270 with nine homers and 26 RBI in 56 games, helping the Mets win the NL East and make it all the way to the World Series. He then homered twice in Game 4 against Kansas City.Conforto was expected to be a key contributor this year and got off to a nice start. But he was sent down on June 25 after a prolonged slump.It was a very productive couple of weeks, 16 games or so, Conforto said. I think there was a period of obviously being upset and youve got to go through that. As soon as I turned it into an opportunity to work on some things, to get some things done and take a look at what happened over the course of the prior couple months, I think I really look a couple big steps forward.Conforto hit .344 with three homers in 16 games with Las Vegas, earning a quick return to the majors. He pinch hit in the ninth inning of New Yorks 5-1 loss on Monday night and reached on an opposite-field single to left.I think its a testament to what Ive been working on, he said. Ive been trying to use the whole field like I did last year and earlier in the year. So I think its definitely a product of the things Ive been working on.Manager Terry Collins mentioned Conforto, Juan Lagares aand Curtis Granderson as possible options in center after Yoenis Cespedes told reporters over the weekend he would prefer to stay in left for the rest of the year.dddddddddddd. Cespedes, who leads the team with 21 homers and 52 RBI, has been hampered recently by a strained right quadriceps.Cespedes was in left for the series opener against the Cubs. He cut down Willson Contreras with a perfect throw to the plate in the third, but also committed an ugly error when Albert Almora Jr.s single skipped by him in the eighth.Collins said he thought Cespedes was being cautious in the field and it could affect his plans to play him in center on Tuesday.Im going to certainly talk to him in the morning or when he gets here tomorrow, Collins said.Speaking before the game, Collins made it sound as if he planned to keep Cespedes in left for most of the remaining part of the season.Weve got to keep him in the lineup, Collins said. I think were taxing his body pretty heavily by putting him into center field. We need him to hit and we need him to hit a lot. I just think if hes in left field, where hes comfortable and wheres theres not as much emphasis on the defensive side, that hell go back and do what we hope he can do and thats being a big production guy.Conforto said he thinks his last game in center was in college at Oregon State. But he said he was ready to play wherever Collins puts him.We had a conversation today about that, Conforto said. I know I havent played there in pro ball. But if the team needs me there, Im going to do whatever I can to prepare myself to play as well as I can there.---AP freelance writer Mike Cranston contributed to this report.---Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap ' ' '