Baylor’s fall camp has made one thing clear: Dave Aranda wants this team to look and feel different.
That message came through in his own words when he talked about the gap between last season and this one. “Football's fun” Aranda said, before pointing to the conditions around practice. “It's hot,” he said as he brushed some sweat off his forehead adding, “We've been out here a minute,” but reassuring that “the guys were having fun...where in the past you couldn't say that.”
That sense of looseness showed up again in the way players described the defense. Safety Micah Gifford didn’t hesitate when asked to grade it. “Crazy good” were the first words Gifford said without missing a beat and with a smile on his face, a look of enthusiasm and high spirits.
Gifford also said, “it feels like a brotherhood,” and “everyone's just having fun, really.” He is expected to play and contribute this season, though he isn't likely going to be the starter.
Kyler Jordan gave a similar read on where the group stands mentally. “I feel like my mental process is the most dialed in it's ever been. And that's kudos to Aranda and what he's preached to us, you know, and I think that stuff can help us win.”
There’s also a noticeable shift in how Baylor is trying to build its roster and its identity. Strength coach Vic Viloria has moved away from high-weight work and toward high-repetition training and explosiveness, with speed now the clear priority. The idea is to boost overall team speed and make conditioning show up not just early, but late too, especially in the third and fourth quarter.
That change could point to a faster pace once the season starts, but that remains something to watch until week one gives a real sample.
The roster turnover is impossible to ignore. Baylor has had 32 players enter the transfer portal, a number that puts it tied for 9th most in the country with Kentucky and California, well above the league average of about 15 per team.
Between graduation departures such as Sawyer Robertson and Michael Trigg and transfers like Bryson Washington to Auburn, this year’s starting group will look very different from last season’s version.
Aranda is also clearly aware of the pressure around him and the talk about being on the hot seat. The changes in culture, the emphasis on person-over-player, and the decision to let Joe Klanderman handle the lion’s share of defensive calls and decisions all point in the same direction: Baylor is trying to stabilize, reset, and get back to being a contender in the Big XII Conference.
In Other News...
Baylors Auburn Opener May Hinge On One Unsettled Offense Problem
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Kaden Sieracki is the lone holdover, while the rest of the front is expected to be pieced together from transfers and new starters, with Koltin Sieracki stepping in at center. For Baylor, the line is more than a position group to sort out in September - it is the hinge point for how quickly the offense can settle in, and whether the opener becomes a chance to show it has found answers or a reminder that the biggest problem is still waiting to be solved. [Read more 🡒]
Baylor Soccer Faces A Fresh Test Before The Schedule Turns Tough
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Pepperdine brings a different kind of challenge, and Baylor will want to keep sharpening details before the schedule tightens up in a hurry. LSU, Oral Roberts and Marquette are all still ahead, and Big 12 play is waiting after that, so the Bears do not have long to settle into one rhythm before the tests get steeper. [Read more 🡒]
Baylor Opened Hawaii Trip Showing The Late-Set Nerve Fans Want
Baylor opened its Hawaii trip with the kind of straight-set win that still felt like it demanded every ounce of late-set composure, knocking off San Diego at Bankoh Arena in a match that never really drifted out of reach for either side. Ksenia Rakhmanchik paced the Bears with 18 kills, while freshman Nadiya Johnson made an immediate impression in her debut with 11 kills, giving Baylor another option at the net as it tried to keep San Diego from turning any extended rally into momentum.
The result evened the all-time series between the programs at 2-2 and offered a useful early test in a trip that will only get more demanding from here. Baylor now turns to Hawaii, and after showing it could handle a tight finish on the road, the Bears will be looking to carry that same poise into a matchup that figures to ask even more of them. [Read more 🡒]