ESPN Ranks Three Baylor Games in College Football's Top 100 Games of the Season
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College football season is over and it is time to reminisce on the season that was. Of course, this year was unlike any other with the Indiana Hoosiers having a historic 16-0 season en route to a national championship victory, the first in its program’s history.
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The Baylor Bears were a bit of a different story on the opposite end of the spectrum
Baylor did not have the season it was hoping for, falling short of a Big 12 conference championship, going 3-6 in conference play and finishing 5-7 on the year.
That meant the Bears were not even bowl eligible, in an age where it’s really difficult to miss bowl season.
That disappointing season puts the Bears squarely under the microscope in Waco, and head coach Dave Aranda is facing a make-or-break type of season as we step into a new era of college football.
That did not mean, however, that 2025 went without its share of memorable games, and ESPN recently went through a ranking of the top-100 games of the college football season.
Indiana’s 27-21 victory over the Miami Hurricanes to win the national championship earned top honors, as it was an instant classic, and gave college football fans one final thrill before moving into the 2026 season.
Between #100 and #1, Baylor was mentioned in three of the top games for the 2025 seaeson.
Here are the three games that were mentioned, and how Baylor fared.
100. Baylor 35 Kansas State 34
The list actually begins with consecutive games by the Baylor Bears, this one ending in a thrilling victory against the Kansas State Wildcats.
This game looked like one that Baylor was going to drop as they fell behind 21-0, and then 31-17 with just nine minutes remaining in the game.
From there, however, Sawyer Robertson took over and reminded the rest of the world of his abilities as the team’s quarterback. Baylor outscored the Wildcats 14-3 in the final nine minutes, on the strength of a pick-six from Jacob Redding to give them a 32-31 lead. The two teams would trade field goals from there, but fortunately for Baylor, it was their kicker, Connor Hawkins who threw the final punch to give the Bears a big conference win.
99. TCU 42 Baylor 36
Two weeks after knocking off Kansas State, Baylor returned home to take on TCU in their annual rivalry game.
Perhaps taking a page out of their own playbook, Baylor fell behind by 21 points with 3:17 left in the game while TCU had the ball.
From there, chaos ensued as Baylor scored two touchdowns to pull within 42-36 late in the fourth quarter.
Chaos did not stop there as the Bears recovered an onside kick and looked poised to complete a miracle comeback for the ages. It was not to be. Robertson, who was instrumental in leading the comeback, threw an interception to Namdi Obiazor with just 17 seconds left in the game, and Baylor fell one play short of a miracle.
34. Baylor 48 SMU 45 (2OT)
Who doesn’t love a good overtime thriller? Baylor found one of those early in the season against SMU. SMU took the lead on the first play from scrimmage when Kevin Jennings hit Romello Brinson for a 75-yard touchdown to knock Baylor back before they could find their footing.
It was nearly a wire-to-wire win for the Mustangs, but true to Baylor’s form for most of the year, they found their way back into the game.
Sawyer Robertson was sensational throwing two touchdown passes, including one to force overtime to Kobe Prentice with just 34 seconds left.
The two teams traded scores in the first overtime, before SMU would miss a field goal on their first possession of double overtime.
That allowed Connor Hawkins to kick the Bears to victory for a thrilling first win of the season.
More from Baylor on SI
- Accomplished Baylor Football Coach Being Targeted by the USC Trojans
- Alarming Stat Could Lead to a Lineup Change for Baylor Basketball
- One Baylor Football Player Lands on 2026 Way-Too-Early All-America Team
- ESPN Touches on Baylor's QB Situation for 2026
- Baylor QB Sawyer Robertson Receives a Boost in Mel Kiper's Draft Rankings
Jacob Westendorf is a contributing writer for Baylor Bears on SI. He is also a writer covering the Green Bay Packers for Packers on SI. Westendorf graduated from University of Wisconsin-Green Bay where he earned a degree in communication with an emphasis in journalism and mass media. He worked in newspapers in Green Bay and Rockford, Illinois. He also interned at Packer Report for Bill Huber while earning his degree. In 2018, he became a staff writer for PackerReport.com, and a regular contributor on Packer Report's "Pack A Day Podcast." In 2020, he founded the media company Game On Wisconsin. In 2023, he rejoined Packer Central, which is part of Sports Illustrated Media Group.