Baylor's Dave Aranda Driven By Culture, Not Scheme In Year 3
Baylor coach Dave Aranda treats his approach of coaching players the same way he treats his home life. It's been something he's been trying to craft since his time in college.
Aranda, who enters his third season in Waco, majored in Philosophy at California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. He said one of his influences was Frosty Westering, a Hall of Fame coach who often would preach of making every moment count and celebrating a person's accomplishments rather than a player's achievements.
He also studied religion and sports psychology to better understand a player's personal struggles. In return, it led to a style of coaching most of college football has yet to see work at the highest level.
"This doesn't fit," Aranda said in an interview with The Athletic in April. "I'm going to get some looks here, So I would never say it out loud. I would try to live my life a certain way, but I never felt safe to say it."
When thinking of football coaches, the mainstream media paints a certain persona to describe the traits needed for a winner. They're hard-nosed and brash, often spitting from either corner of the mouth. Their faces often look Beet red from hollering in the summer sun on the way to multiple national titles and conference championships.
That's never been Aranda's mantra. He has always gone for the silent yet strong demeanor with a bit of urgency sprinkled in the play-calling. It worked at Wisconsin. It transitioned down south to LSU.
Two years into his tenure with the Bears, results speak for themselves. Baylor won the Big 12 title for the first time since 2013. With a 21-7 win over No. 7 Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl, the Bears picked up their first 12-win season in program history.
"For me as a coach, when I'm being yell at or whatever else, that's not going to bring the best out of me or give me confidence to put myself out there and assert this or that since I'm not wired like that," Aranda said. "You have to recognize that with other people and remember that you're coaching other people's sons. That all kind of informs the philosophy."
Not everyone will agree with Arnada's style of coaching, nor should they. What works for one play-caller might be a laboratory experiment gone wrong for another. More often than not, those who try to become the next Nick Saban by following his decree fizzle before they fly.
Aranda isn't like other coaches. His calming presence and low tone might be viewed in the public eye as a mechanism for "coddling" players. It's far from it. The technique allows prospects to vent their frustrations early in their careers, thus allowing them to learn from their mistakes before they become uncorrectable.
He describes the frustrations as a pit one must climb out of.
"It’s not about the level of expectation. It’s going to the level that they’re at," Aranda said. "You have to go into the pit with them. And the pit, you can’t fight your way out of it. There has to be vulnerability. You have to find your way out of the pit.”
Much is still unknown about what Arnada brings to the table as a head coach. Defensively, he has things under control as any long-time coordinator would. Offensively, 2022 will provide a more broad look into the future of the program.
In a COVID-19 season, the Bears finished 2-7 with former North Carolina coach Larry Fedora as the offensive coordinator. Aranda admitted while his offense led the Tar Heels to an ACC Coastal in 2015, that wasn't the offense he wanted to run. He really didn't know what offense worked best against his defense in practice.
“That was my mistake,” Aranda said. “To be in a mirror and see that and own up to it, and there are people’s families who have moved and houses being built. All of that is way sad and heartbreaking.”
A year later, new coordinator Jeff Grimes seems to be a better option. Both Gerry Bohanan and Blake Shapen found success in a more run-eccentric offense that relied heavily on zone blocking from the trenches. It worked like a charm for the backfield as running back Abram Smith led the charge with 1,601 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Maybe this is the future of coaching across the globe? Does the new mantra of addressing players work outside of Waco? Would it work among the fan base in Tuscaloosa or Athens?
Could it work in Texas at schools based in Austin or College Station? That's not Aranda's concern. He won't act like it is, either.
Aranda always has attributed his coaching persona to his way of life. The two are in sync, thus creating allowing him to create a certain culture wherever he landed rather than a scheme.
Maybe more will follow suit, looking to be the next Aranda instead of Saban.
“It’s starting to turn a little bit,” said Aranda. “It’ll be interesting to see. Football is easy compared to people.”
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