Baylor gets its first real crack at an upset Saturday, and the setup is as intriguing as it is difficult. No. 10 BYU comes in favored for the Big 12 matchup, but the Cougars have stumbled through their last few games, while the Bears have shown they can travel.
That road success matters here. Outside of Dave Aranda’s final game against Kansas, Baylor has been strong away from home this season, with convincing wins over UCF, which beat BYU, and Arizona State.
The most obvious path for Baylor starts on defense. After allowing a season-high 31 points to Iowa State, that unit should have a chance to reset against a BYU offense that has been turnover-prone and uneven.
The Cougars sit 11th in the conference in yards per game and are second in interceptions with nine, and that gives Baylor a real opening to create a game-changing play. A pick of Bear Bachmeier feels like the kind of swing that could tilt the night.
Baylor’s slow starts are the other big hurdle. The Bears have opened sluggishly in almost every game this season, and going into a hostile BYU environment is not the place to expect that problem to disappear. If Baylor is going to pull this off, the defense may have to hold the line early while the offense settles in.
That’s why a comeback script makes sense. More often than not, it has been the defense - and more recently special teams - that has sparked the Baylor offense. If the Bears stay patient, trust punter Palmer Williams to pin the Cougars deep, and keep leaning on the defense, they can hang around long enough to make a second-half push.
There’s also a bigger confidence shift around this team. Baylor fans spent years watching solid Aranda teams come up short against ranked opponents, with just one win in his last 13 chances.
This version, though, has looked more energetic, cleaner, and more confident under Klandermans’ “galvanized” team label. DJ Lagway has been playing free, and the offense has clearly followed suit.
Baylor does not need a flawless night to win. The defense has been dominant on the road, and if the Lagway side of the ball can reach the end zone three times, the Bears have a real shot to leave Utah with a victory.
And the timing helps. BYU has looked pitiful since its marquee win, with two losses and a one-score home win over Arizona State.
In Other News...
Baylor Coaching Search Just Turned Into A Debate Fans Will Feel
Baylors coaching search has taken a turn that few around the program could have missed. The school is expected to interview Robert Griffin III for its vacant head football coach job after parting ways with Dave Aranda, bringing back one of the most recognizable names in program history as it looks for a new direction.
Griffin is a former Baylor quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner who now works as a college football analyst, and he has also coached a seven-on-seven team. He does not have collegiate coaching experience, which is exactly why this conversation is likely to stir debate among Baylor fans as the university works toward a hiring decision by late November. [Read more 🡒]
Baylors Coaching Search Just Got More Complicated At The Worst Time
Baylors late-season surge has only made the coaching search more delicate. With Joe Klanderman guiding the team on an interim basis after Dave Arandas firing, the Bears have won their last two games and are still alive in the Big 12 Championship race, a run that has kept the focus on the field even as the administration works through its next move. Klanderman has said he wants the permanent job, but he has also made clear he is not pushing his case in the middle of the season.
Now the search is getting even more attention, with reports that Baylor is expected to interview Robert Griffin III for the opening. He is one of several names in the mix, alongside Jeff Traylor and Zach Kittley, and the timing only adds to the intrigue for a program trying to balance immediate momentum with a major decision that could shape its future. [Read more 🡒]
Baylor Volleyball Just Delivered The Kind Of Win Fans Remember
No. 23 Baylor volleyball got the kind of result that can change the feel of a season, knocking off No. 7 BYU in four sets and handing the Cougars their first Big 12 loss of the year. The win pushed Baylor to 15-8 overall and 7-6 in conference play, and it came with a little extra weight attached, too, as the Bears delivered their highest-ranked home win since 2021.
Ksenia Rakhmanchik kept driving the offense with her seventh straight match of 20 or more kills, giving Baylor a reliable edge in a match that carried plenty of league implications. It also evened the all-time series with BYU at 3-3, a small but meaningful marker for a program that will take confidence from the way it handled one of the conferences top teams. [Read more 🡒]