How Close is Baylor to National Championship Contender Status?
Last season the Baylor Bears were able to bring an end to the Oklahoma Sooners reign atop the Big 12, as they knocked off the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the Big 12 championship.
Now they enter this season as the favorites to win the Big 12 due to returning talent and other teams in the conference not quite closing that gap. However, while the Bears may very well win the Big 12, that likely is not all they are hoping for.
No, the Bears will have much bigger hopes than solely repeating as Big 12 champions. Rather, they aim to find themselves in the College Football Playoffs contending for a national championship.
Just how close the Bears are to being a national championship contender will vary on whose opinion it is. For Bill Connelly of ESPN.com, he listed the four "ifs" that need to go right in his eyes for the Bears to take the next step and consider themselves true championship contenders.
If ... the thinned-out secondary holds up. Nickelback Jalen Pitre took part in 20 tackles for loss; safeties JT Woods, Christian Morgan and Jairon McVea combined for 24 passes defensed (and a title-winning tackle); and Kalon Barnes and Raleigh Texada tackled better than any cornerback duo in FBS.
Of those, only Morgan returns in 2022. Senior Al Walcott could see a star turn, but the Bears lost so many magnificent players from a magnificent unit.
If ... a brand-new skill corps has some stars. Backs Abram Smith and Trestan Ebner and leading receivers Tyquan Thornton, R.J. Sneed and Drew Estrada are all gone. Veteran tight end Ben Sims is solid, and Taye McWilliams was dynamite in a tiny, 17-carry sample (10.7 yards per carry), but quarterback Blake Shapen will be working with a green supporting cast.
If ... the Shapen gamble pays off. Shapen took over for injured starter Gerry Bohanon late in 2021 and thrived. Following spring practice, head coach Dave Aranda named Shapen as the starter despite almost assuredly knowing that Bohanon would transfer as a result. (He did.) Shapen better be awesome!
If ... the god of close games continues to smile on Dave Aranda. The Bears played in 10 games that were within one score in the fourth quarter and won eight of them. That's hard to do, and even harder to do twice.
The Bears are in good shape to win the Big 12 for the second straight year if they take care of business. However, being a true national championship contender is another big leap. They have the talent to get there and should all these questions find themselves answered, then the Bears may very well make their first College Football Playoff appearance.
You can find Connor Zimmerlee on Twitter @Connorjz98
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