3 Things the new Baylor AD should accomplish now
The Baylor Bears have a new athletic director. With previous working experience with the school’s athletic department in various roles, Doug McNamee takes over for Mack Rhoades and will have to hit the ground running. Here are three things that McNamee should address now.
The Dave Aranda situation
Yes, Dr. Linda Livingstone, President of Baylor University, gave Dave Aranda a vote of confidence in early November and stated publicly that he would be retained as head football coach for the 2026 season. But this situation deserves further scrutiny and evaluation.
Aranda became the Bears head coach in the 2020 season (COVID year). In six seasons in Waco, Aranda has posted just two winning seasons. In 2021, Aranda led Baylor to a 12-win season, a Big 12 title and a No. 5 final ranking in the Associated Press (AP) Top 25 Poll. Last season, Baylor posted an 8-5 record after losing to LSU in the Texas Bowl.
For his tenure, Aranda has recorded a 36-37 record, a .493 winning percentage. In addition, Aranda has coached and developed just one All-American selection, Jalen Pitre, in 2021.
Baylor has experienced success on the gridiron before, and Baylor football fans desperately want to experience that success again.
NIL
McNamee must ensure that Baylor athletics is aligned with the current landscape of collegiate sports. That includes Name, Image and Likeness (NIL). For Baylor to be competitive, Baylor must have the funding in place not only for roster building but for roster retention. It is the cost of doing business and is the world of college sports we as fans and the media now live in. But for that to happen, Baylor needs the continued buy-in and support of the school, the fans and alumni donors.
So, McNamee will need to re-engage these very important supporters, while at the same time commit to putting a winning product on the field and the court, and all that entails.
Build up baseball
The Baylor Baseball Bears have produced some talented players on the diamond, with 15 players getting their name called in the Major League Baseball Draft since 2019. But the Bears have posted just three winning seasons in the last six. Mitch Thompson is in his second stint with the Bears and has been the head coach since the 2023 season.
The Bears baseball program has won nine conference titles, with 21 regional appearances, four super regionals and three College World Series appearances in program history. With the right marketing, promotion and internal and external support, Baylor baseball could thrive once again. McNamee could help immensely in that endeavor.
Bearing down on excellence
When one sport is more successful than others, a school tends to be defined by that sport, a “football school” or a “baseball school.” Baylor has enjoyed success in basketball, a national title in the 2021-22 season, 11 Top 25 finishes and (16) 20-win seasons all under coach Scott Drew. Baylor can enjoy success in football and baseball again too, with the help of a fresh set of eyes and perspective from the new athletic director. Welcome back, Doug McNamee.
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Tony comes to On SI with six years of experience writing about sports online. His work has been published on such sites as The Gridiron News, Mike Farrell Sports, YardBarker, Athlon Sports and College Football Backers. Tony is a U.S. Air Force veteran and is a member of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA).