Baylor’s Gavin Freeman has added another line to a breakout debut in Waco, landing among the 10 semifinalists for the Burlsworth Trophy.
The honor puts Freeman in a group that includes FAU’s Easton Messer, Houston’s Anthony Boswell, Indiana’s Drew Evans, Iowa State’s Aiden Flora, North Carolina’s Xavier Lewis, Notre Dame’s Jordan Faison, Oklahoma State’s Drew Mestemaker, USC’s King Miller and Tennessee’s DeSean Bishop. The Burlsworth Trophy has gone to a player who began his career as a walk-on for 16 straight years, and this year’s semifinalists were chosen from 65 nominees.
Freeman is giving Baylor exactly the kind of production that gets attention. The fifth-year receiver has 69 catches for 852 yards and three touchdowns in his first season with the Bears after starting his college career at Oklahoma from 2022-23 and Oklahoma State in 2024-25. He’s sitting fourth in the nation in receptions per game at 7.67, while also ranking 13th in receiving yards and 14th in receiving yards per game at 94.7.
At 5-foot-9 and 181 pounds, the Heritage Hall High School product from Oklahoma City has already posted five 100-yard receiving games in his first nine Baylor appearances. He’s been a major piece of the Bears’ No. 19 passing offense, and Baylor’s overall attack ranks No. 28 nationally in total offense.
The numbers keep stacking up for Freeman inside the Baylor record book, too. He is already ninth on the school’s single-season receptions list and sits 105 yards away from moving into the top 12 in receiving yards. He is also chasing a milestone that would put him in rare company: becoming the 12th player in program history to top 1,000 receiving yards in a season.
This is the second straight year Baylor has had a player on the Burlsworth Trophy semifinalist list, with Freeman joining Josh Cameron as a 2025 semifinalist.
Baylor, now 6-3 overall and 4-2 in Big 12 play, heads to Provo, Utah, on Saturday to face No. 10 BYU at 2:30 p.m.
CT. The game will air on FOX and the Baylor Sports Media Network as the Bears try to keep their winning streak going and stay in the hunt to return to the Big 12 Championship Game.
In Other News...
Baylors Upset Chances At BYU Come Down To One Lingering Problem
Baylor heads into its first ranked matchup of the season with three regular-season games left, and the timing could hardly be more important. Interim head coach Joe Klanderman and tight end coach Jarrett Anderson have both pointed to the same theme in recent days: the Bears need cleaner offensive execution if they want to give themselves a real shot against No. 10 BYU, especially when drives reach the red zone or when space opens up in the field.
The challenge is bigger than just finishing chances, though. Baylor has to avoid the kind of slow starts and self-inflicted penalties that can tilt a game before it settles in, and the emphasis this week has been on playing with energy while keeping things under control. Against a ranked opponent that can punish mistakes quickly, the Bears know the margin for error is thin, and one lingering issue could decide whether they can turn this into a true upset opportunity. [Read more 🡒]
BYU Faces A Huge Big 12 Test With Its Offense Under Pressure
Baylor heads to Provo on Nov. 14 for a Big 12 game that carries real weight in the conference race, with both teams sitting tied in the standings and the stakes rising for anyone still thinking about a championship path. BYU enters as a 7.5-point favorite at LaVell Edwards Stadium, but the Bears have enough of their own to make this more than a road trip, especially with interim coach Joe Klanderman trying to keep the group steady and quarterback DJ Lagway at the center of it all.
BYUs side of the matchup has its own pressure points, starting with quarterback Bear Bachmeier and the uncertainty around running back LJ Martins health. For Baylor, the opening is obvious: if the Bears can make the Cougars uncomfortable and keep the game from turning into a clean BYU script, they can turn a tough road spot into a meaningful conference statement. [Read more 🡒]
Baylors Season Suddenly Feels Very Different Under Joe Klanderman
With three weeks left in the regular season, Baylors season has suddenly taken on a different shape under interim coach Joe Klanderman. The Bears have won two straight, locked up bowl eligibility and kept themselves alive in the Big 12 championship race, a turnaround that has given the program a much more meaningful finish than it seemed likely to have not long ago.
The league around them only adds to the intrigue. Utah remains unbeaten and on track for the conference title game, while the Big 12s depth is showing in the College Football Playoff rankings, which feature six league teams in the Top 25. There has also been plenty of movement elsewhere, from Drew Mestemakers record-setting day for Oklahoma State against Kansas State to the uncertainty now hanging over TCU, and Baylor is suddenly part of a crowded, volatile race that still has room to shift again. [Read more 🡒]