Auburn Tigers to Face Dangerous, Experienced Baylor Bears

AUBURN, Ala.- Meeting for only the fifth time in program history, the Auburn Tigers are taking a trip to Waco, Texas, to begin the 2025 campaign by facing the Baylor Bears. The game is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CT and will be televised on FOX.

The last time the Tigers faced a non-Power 4 opponent to open the season was 2020, when they faced Kentucky in a conference-only schedule.

Baylor currently leads the all-time series record, being 2-1-1 against the Tigers, with the last matchup being in 1976. The entire landscape of college football has been flipped upside down, to say the least, since the Tigers and Bears met.

Baylor finished fourth in the Big 12 last season, with an overall record of 8-5 and 6-3 in conference play, after closing with six-straight regular-season wins.

Offense

Redshirt senior Sawyer Robertson was commanding the Bears' offense, throwing for 3,071 yards, 28 touchdowns, and eight interceptions in his first season as a full-time starter. Robertson is also not afraid to use his legs when need be, rushing for 230 yards and four scores.

Pressuring Robertson into questionable decisions will be key for the Tigers on Friday night.

Baylor also had a two-headed monster at running back last season in Bryson Washington and Dawson Pendergrass. However, Pendergrass suffered a season-ending injury during fall camp and will miss the entire 2025 season.

Washington was the lead back in the backfield, earning himself second-team Freshman All-American honors. He rushed for 1,028 yards on 175 carries, scoring 12 touchdowns. finding the endzone 12 times. Washington displayed his ability to make big plays, having a run of at least 30 yards in five games.

The receiving game was more balanced in terms of production; the team’s leading receiver, Josh Cameron, led the way with 754 yards and 10 touchdowns. Ashtyn Hawkins and Monaray Balwin both had five receiving touchdowns.

The Bears lost senior Monaray Baldwin, but look to replace him with Alabama transfer Kobe Prentice. Prentice had 129 yards and a touchdown last season for the Crimson Tide.

Baylor returns an experienced offensive line. They return four starters who helped lead the team to No. 20 in total offense in 2024 at 440.1 yards per game. The only newcomer is former South Carolina Gamecock Sidney Fugar, who steps in at left tackle.

Defense

The Baylor defense ranked 87th in total defense last season. They’ve overhauled their linebacker corps and are scheduled to have three new starters in transfers Emar'rion Winston (Oregon), Travion Barnes (FIU), and Matthew Fobbs-White (Tulane).

The Bears do bring back redshirt junior Keaton Thomas, who led the team with 114 tackles in 2024. Barnes had 129 tackles for FIU in 2024 and will be counted on to fill the void left by Matt Jones who was the team’s second leading tackler.

The linebacker unit might be a little undersized on the perimeter with Fobbs-White and Winston both checking in at under 250 pounds, but they make up for it on the defensive line.

In Baylor’s 3-4 alignment, they can roll out Jackie Marshall (306) and Devonte Tezino (294) at the end spots with Adonis Friloux checking in at 346 pounds at nose guard. Samu Taumanupepe waits in the wings behind Friloux at 376 pounds.

The Bears return all of their starters in the secondary, including Devyn Bobby and DJ Coleman at safety, and Tevin Williams and Caden Jenkins at cornerback. Bobby co-led the team with three interceptions in 2024.

Baylor started last season with a 2-4 record before closing strong with six straight wins in the regular season. They have a highly productive offense and a defense that struggled last year but returns a lot of experience, except at linebacker.

The Tigers enter the game as a 2.5-point favorite, but ESPN’s matchup predictor gives the slight edge to the Bears at 51.8%, highlighting the relative unknown for a revamped Auburn Tigers offense.