Does Baylor have a home-field disadvantage?
When most people hear the term "home field advantage," some argue that the degree to which it matters varies from sport to sport. However, I would posit that the college football environment a team plays in can be a huge factor when it comes to the outcome of a game. Whether it is the noise from the crowd or the familiarity of the surface you're playing on, any little advantage a team can have matters.
McLane Stadium is no different; being able to hold a capacity of more than 45,000 loud fans makes it quite a difficult place to play, at least you would think. Under head coach Dave Aranda, Baylor is now 4-12 against Power Four when playing under the lights in Waco. Usually, most teams will face their hardest tests when they play on the road, but in the case of Aranda, it seems as though the premise of home-field advantage may be more of a disadvantage.
Baylor is now 4-12 against Power Four schools at home since the start of the 2022 season and 1-9 in big home games during that stretch.
ā Baylor Bears on SicEm365 (@SicEm365) September 22, 2025
What do you make of Baylor's struggles at McLane Stadiumš»š§? pic.twitter.com/zaqv8oHNFY
In order to understand this further, we can look back at those 16 games since 2022 from most recent to least:
- September 20th, 2025 - Arizona State vs Baylor: ASU 27, Baylor 24
- August 29th, 2025 - Auburn vs Baylor: Auburn 38, Baylor 24
- November 30th, 2024 - Kansas vs Baylor - Baylor 45, Kansas 17
- November 2nd, 2024 - TCU vs Baylor - Baylor 37, TCU 34
- October 26th, 2024 - Oklahoma State vs Baylor - Baylor 38, Oklahoma State 28
- September 28th, 2024 - BYU vs Baylor - BYU 34, Baylor 28
- November 30th, 2024 - Kansas vs Baylor - Baylor 45, Kansas 17
- November 2nd, 2024 - TCU vs Baylor - Baylor 37, TCU 34
- October 26th, 2024 - Oklahoma State vs Baylor - Baylor 38, Oklahoma State 28
- September 28th, 2024 - BYU vs Baylor - BYU 34, Baylor 28
- November 25th, 2023 - West Virginia vs Baylor - West Virginia 34, Baylor 31
- November 4th, 2023 - Houston vs Baylor - Houston 25, Baylor 24
- October 28th, 2023 - Iowa State vs Baylor - Iowa State 30, Baylor 18
- October 7th, 2023 - Texas Tech vs Baylor - Texas Tech 39, Baylor 14
- September 23rd, 2023 - Texas vs Baylor - Texas 38, Baylor 6
- September 9, 2023 - Utah vs Baylor - Utah 20, Baylor 13
- November 19th, 2022 - TCU vs Baylor - TCU 29, Baylor 28
- November 12th, 2022 - Kansas State vs Baylor - Kansas State 31, Baylor 3
- October 22nd, 2022 - Kansas vs Baylor - Baylor 35, Kansas 23
- October 1st, 2022 - Oklahoma State vs Baylor - Oklahoma State 36, Baylor 25
In this case, the statistics are misleading. Since the 2024 season, Baylor has been a little more consistent in winning their Power Four matchups at home, and the majority of the losses stem from the 2022 and 2023 seasons. However, the fact remains that for the Bears to compete for a spot in the College Football Playoffs, they need to win at home. Only time will tell if they will be able to turn things around this season at home, but tough Big 12 conference opponents will not make it easy.
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Josh started covering Baylor athletics in July 2025. Prior to Baylor Bears on SI, he worked as an intern for TheMichiganInsider at 247Sports. Josh graduated from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, with a bachelorās degree in economics, where his passion for collegiate athletics continued to grow after attending his first game in The Big House. Combining his analytical background and his affinity for collegiate sports, Josh enjoys providing his unique perspective on the shifting dynamic equilibrium of the collegiate athletics landscape. When not watching sports, Josh enjoys cooking a nice meal, running, and traveling to new places with his friends and family.