Bailey has big goals for 2008

Broken Arrow, Okla., three-star offensive guard Alvin Bailey wants to make history.

Broken Arrow opens the season almost every year against Tulsa power Union, but in the last 22 attempts, BA hasn't beaten the Redskins. That's something Bailey wants to change.

"It would mean a lot to me, to our team and to people in our community," Bailey, the nation's No. 38 offensive guard, said. "We want to change that streak. It's been something like 22 straight. We've got to change that."

Another change is Bailey's frame and build.

He's worked hard this summer to really improve the way he's put together. And while he's a little heavier now than he wants to be when the season starts, he's also much, much stronger.

"My O-line coach, coach Simmons, has been really pushing me hard," Bailey said. "We've been focused on getting my strength up. I've made strides. I went from 290 in the bench press to 390. You can tell the difference when you come off the ball and punch. You can also control people better and that's going to help me a out a lot in the season."

Bailey said recruiting remains something he thinks about quite a bit. With scholarship offers from Arkansas, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Nebraska and Michigan State, he's admits it's something that is always in the back of his head.

"I am thinking about, but I try not to think about it all the time," he said. "But it's still there. I've been calling coaches and e-mailing them and just trying to keep up on everything. While you want to stay focused on your season, you can't help but think about recruiting because it's your future."

Bailey said the two coaches he's built the best relationship with so far are Garrick McGee at Arkansas and James Patton at Oklahoma.

"Coach McGee is a down-to-earth guy," Bailey said. "He also played in Oklahoma, so he and I have something we can relate to with each other. I've also been talking more to coach Patton. When we talk we talk about the process, what he's looking for, and what I want to do. We've been talking a lot more lately. I think they are more interested in me, now.

"I also talk to Tim McCarty up at K-State a lot. He's a really nice coach."

While Bailey isn't ready to go out on a limb and say he's leaning one way or the other, he does admit that Arkansas and Oklahoma hold special spots in his heart.

"An Oklahoma offer would mean a lot," he said.

"Going into the summer of my sophomore year, my coach asked me if I had to pick one school where you want to end up at. I told him it would be Arkansas. I have family that's from there, and I've always liked the program and how it's not too far from home. But now that Oklahoma has started to recruit me more, I think that's changed a little bit. I think it would be great to go to either one of those schools."

But that decision will come in due time. He's got other things on his mind – like making history.