Baylor’s trip to Arizona State turned into a showcase night for several Bears with NFL eyes on them, and DJ Lagway headlined the group in a nationally televised game that kicked off at 9:30 PM CT. The Big 12 Player of the Week backed up the award with a big all-around performance, and a few teammates made sure scouts had plenty more to file away.
Lagway was sharp from start to finish against the Sun Devils, finishing 25-of-40 for 306 passing yards and four touchdowns through the air. He also added an 11-yard rushing touchdown. A couple throws got away from him, including a few overthrows that could have turned into touchdowns with a little better timing, but the overall picture was exactly what the preseason buzz had promised: speed, accuracy, and a quarterback who kept Baylor rolling.
On the other side of the ball, Traevon “Slug” Mitchell made life miserable for Arizona State. The Baylor defensive lineman piled up four combined tackles, including two solo stops and two assists, along with 0.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss.
Mitchell was in the backfield all night, disrupting the Sun Devils’ offense and drawing plenty of attention up front. Even with a nickname like “Slug,” he was quick off the line and slippery once he got moving, and his ability to force double-teams keeps showing up.
Jadon Porter also took a clear step forward with his outing against ASU. He was targeted four times, came down with three catches, and scored twice, including a standout tip-toe grab that turned heads. With the size, hands, balance, coordination, and route-running ability he showed, Porter looks like a player who could do damage on Sundays.
Palmer Williams kept doing what he’s been doing all season: flipping the field. The Baylor punter booted three punts against ASU, and each one traveled more than 50 yards.
His long of the night was 72 yards, and he also showed the kind of control that lets him pin opponents deep, including inside their own 10-yard line. For any NFL team looking for a punter, his name belongs near the top of the list.
Gavin Freeman rounded out the group with another productive night. He finished with seven receptions on nine targets for 115 yards, with a long catch of 31 yards.
He also added another hurdle over a defender to his growing highlight reel. For Freeman, production like that is starting to look routine, and he keeps giving scouts reasons to pay attention every week.
In Other News...
Baylor WBB Is Bringing Former Bears Back For A Special Weekend
Baylor women's basketball is turning mid-November into a reunion, bringing former Bears back to Waco for an Alumni Weekend on Nov. 14 and 15. The program is planning a full slate of activities, including time with the coaching staff, a chance to watch practice, facility tours and a dinner, all leading into recognition during the home game against East Texas A&M.
The weekend will wrap with a postgame celebration, giving alums and the current team a chance to connect before the night is over. Registration is already open, and Baylor is also selling season tickets for the 2026-27 season, with single-game tickets set to go on sale later. [Read more 🡒]
Baylor Already Has A Five-Week Standout Fans Need To Debate
Through five games, Baylor has already built a small but lively debate around which player has been the teams most valuable early-season standout. The discussion starts with the obvious production: Gavin Freeman has been one of the most productive receivers in the country, while Nate Bennett made a seamless impact when DJ Lagway was sidelined and helped keep the offense moving until the quarterback returned.
Lagways comeback has only made the evaluation more interesting, since he has answered his injury layoff with strong performances of his own. Even Palmer Williams has forced his way into the conversation with his punting, giving Baylor an unusual mix of highlights across offense and special teams as the Bears try to sort out which name belongs at the top of the early-season list. [Read more 🡒]
Scott Drew's Baylor Reset Is Bringing Back A Big Debate
After a .500 season that ended with a run through the College Basketball Crown Tournament, Baylor is spending the offseason in a familiar place for Scott Drew teams: reworking the roster and trying to answer what kind of ceiling it can reach next. The Bears beat their first opponent at the Crown before falling to Oklahoma, then watched key pieces Cameron Carr and Tounde Yessoufou move on while keeping Isaac Williams in the fold and adding a fresh batch of transfers and recruits, including Dylan Mingo and Elijah Williams.
That kind of turnover is exactly why Baylor keeps drawing the same debate. The Bears were not the team they wanted to be a year ago, but the talent reset has some outside evaluators wondering whether the long view is more interesting than the last record suggests. Andy Katz has already put Baylor in the conversation as a potential dark horse Final Four team for the 2026-27 season, which is a reminder that in Waco, roster churn usually comes with bigger questions about how high the ceiling really is. [Read more 🡒]