From 'Underwhelming' to 'One-on-One Wins': Baylor Football's Defense Has Taken a 180

Baylor head coach Dave Aranda fielded a number of questions during his weekly Media Availability on Monday. Normally calm, collected, and stoic in general, there's always a bit more excitement in his voice when Aranda gets to talk about the defense.

And, even though Baylor ended up losing 16-17 to Auburn in the Aflac Kickoff Game this past Saturday, the defense showed up and played very well in the week one matchup. In this article, we'll explore some of the defense-oriented questions asked of Coach Aranda and provide our editorial take on each.

The Baylor Defense was Able to put Pressure on Auburn; Did you Like the Performance, and Can it Become Even Better?

Coach Aranda: "You know, D-line wise, there's a bunch of one-on-one wins. There was the ability to stop the run. I thought on play, action, pass, there was the ability to kind of get knocked back and then recognize his pass and then get into a rush move and get after the quarterback. I thought we had mesh charges off the ends where we weren't playing run, we're playing a direct angle to the mesh and I thought all of those things really affected them and I think it's really just a start.

"I think there's enough depth there where you can roll your twos and your threes and not miss a big beat of what was happening with the ones and I think that's the difference from maybe what we've had before to what we've got now is just the depth and the ability to roll those guys and so I think they're just getting started."

Our Take: Coach Aranda isn't wrong, the defense seemed to have Auburn's number throughout most of the contest. Five sacks and eleven tackles for loss help to illustrate the one-on-one wins that Coach Aranda mentioned. The combination of some of the best defensive minds in college football in Coach Aranda and Defensive Coordinator Joe Klanderman could certainly have Baylor a nightmare for opposing offenses to plan against if the game against Auburn is anything to expect for the remainder of the season.

Byrum Brown (Auburn QB) Threw 3 INTs for the First Time in His Career; Did Baylor's D-Line Help Cause That to Happen?

Coach Aranda: "They did. I thought so. You could see that they were searching for ways to kind of get around and find openings and I thought they were uncomfortable and I thought the rush made them uncomfortable and you know, credit to them for the way they were able to finish the game. I thought that that team had some grit itself and competed to the end but D-line wise, I thought that we're able to win the line of scrimmage and when we do that, that puts us in a position we can win the game."

Our Take: There's little else in the game of football that can disrupt a quarterback's rhythm more than constant and unending pressure. Byrum Brown spent quite a number of plays having to hurry a pass, or simply having to try and scramble for safety. When you add in hurried passes from a quarterback under constant pressure, good things for the defense can begin to snowball. There were sections of the game where Brown never even got the chance to get his feet set as he dropped back into the pocket to pass before the Baylor defense just swarmed him.

Without Redding on the Field Saturday, Did You Like How the Safeties Played?

Coach Aranda: "They communicated really good. I thought that you get Micah in there with Jacob being out, Devin moves up and Micah moves in and I thought that Micah really went in and contributed really well, didn't miss a beat and for the last two years has been arguably the best special teams player in our league and has just continued to develop and get better.

"Micah is somebody where you put a goal in front of him, he's going to scratch and claw and do everything to hit that goal and he wants to play on defense and he's improved to such a degree that he goes in and makes really impactful plays in the game in a big stage and all the things, so way proud of Micah. I think he's set to have a great season. He's put himself in position to where he's set to have a good season."

Our Take: A player like Micah Gifford doesn't come around every day. An unfortunate occurrence for Jacob Redding being out for the season with a torn ACL is an opportunity for Micah Gifford to step into more of the spotlight. Only time will tell just how good Gifford can end up being this season, but he'll certainly have his opportunity to shine.

Jacob Redding out for the Season. Unable to Play, but not Unable to Help.

Coach Aranda: "Yeah, so he was able, he sits in meetings with them. Mike Allen sits in staff meetings with our staff, and so Mike's kind of player-coach, coach-player. And then Jacob was able to do some of that as well. And I roam around practice, and when I'm around the defensive side, I see Jacob there with an ear of one of our safeties or one of our stars, our nickels, constantly coaching guys.

"And so for him, I think whenever you're hurt, it's hard because you're in it, and then when you're hurt, you feel so out of it. Even though you are in it, you feel on the outskirts. And so for him to put himself or give of himself is a way of staying connected. And so he did a great job of that this past week. I expect that to continue."

Our Take: In the same concept that it's unfortunate that Jacob Redding will miss this season due to injury, all hope is not lost as Redding is still able to contribute through team meetings and other various sideline assistance. Along with fellow Safety Michael Allen, Redding could serve a role as an unofficial player-coach and provide his game experience and perspective with fellow players and coaches. It may not be ideal, and is most likely not the way that Redding wanted his season to go, but there are always opportunities to make the best of a situation, and he seems to be making the best of his.

Last Year's Defense and Devonte Tezino (DL) in This Game

Coach Aranda: "I thought last year just so underwhelming defensive line and just so disappointing. For him to be there with that unit, it's difficult, man, because you can move on and you get a new shirt on, you get new colors, you get a new, new, new, new, and it's easier to change when it's that way, to change maybe how you've looked at things or how you act or how you move. I think it's difficult, it's more difficult to change in the same spot with the same clothes, with the same all around.

"And for him to do that speaks really highly of him. I think level of maturity, he's got a family going. I think there's been a fair amount of investment into him in terms of growing up and taking charge of his life, and it's just way cool to see. I think that's what you do it for, and credit goes to him. And I think that's really his start. I saw him down in the training room today, and those types of efforts and those types of performances change that young man's life. So I'm excited to see it."

Our Take: Devonte Tezino had a good showing on Saturday with four total tackles, two sacks and two tackles for loss. Tezino wasn't always getting his name called by the commentary team, but his presence was felt every play that he was on the field. For Coach Aranda to acknowledge how poor the defensive unit played last season (giving up 300+ rushing yards to Auburn in last year's game, for example), shows that a notable change has taken place since last season.

To put it into perspective, Baylor all of last season had 12 total quarterback sacks and 6 interceptions. All season. If Baylor has another two or three outings where they produce the kinds of numbers they were able against Auburn, maybe bowl eligibility won't be so far out of reach this year.

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