What Baylor football HC Dave Aranda said ahead of TCU showdown
Baylor is off its bye week and the Bears will now head to Fort Worth for a big game against rival TCU. The Horned Frogs are coming off a bad loss to Kansas State, but TCU will be ready for this matchup.
Ahead of the game, Baylor head coach Dave Aranda addressed multiple things about his team.
Opening statement
It's good to see you guys excited about this week. The bye was good to us. A lot of a lot of energy and practice today. A lot of, you know, respect for the team that we're playing. I've known Sonny for a really long time. I've known Andy for a long time. They're a really good team. They had a tough one on Saturday. They're going to come out firing. It's tough to play at their spot. It's a big challenge for us so excited about the challenge. The guys are too.
Deepest WR group he's had?
Yes. You know, at this stage of the game you invest, you choose where to invest in and we invested pretty heavily in that group and it's paying off.
Health of Omar Aigbedion, Bryson Washington, and Carl Williams
Omar was back with us doing everything that he's supposed to be doing. B-Wash doing everything he's supposed to be doing. Did not see Carl. Have to wait and see with him.
Aranda on TCU
They're explosive on offense. You know, when they don't turn the ball over, they are really effective at making explosive plays. And, you know, they've got receivers that can make contested catches. They've got receivers that can catch the ball, make a guy miss and go the distance.
And its quarterback is really calm and poised. He can beat you with his feet. I think the O-line is improving. I think the running backs, they've got a committee over there, but they're all very good players. And I think defensively they do a lot. They pressure you. There's a game plan of the week that they got and it's going to be a challenge for us to run the ball versus all the movement that they got.
Was YAC something Aranda looked for when finding WRs
Yeah. We tried to find complementary pieces to it. So, there's, you want to spread the field. And so you want to have the attention of more than one on one of ours. And sometimes, you know, that's going to be quick, you know, explosive guys. Other times that's going to be longer speed, contested catches. When it got to that point, it was a, hey, let's take the best player available. But we wanted someone that is going to demand a double team and is going to demand cloud coverage, is going to demand an extra guy so that we could get all of them on the field at one time and, you know, go by the numbers.
Did Baylor 'win the bye'?
We did a lot of self-scout. And so we had our defensive staff do it for our offense and vice versa. And our special teams kind of assistance did for special teams and spent the majority of the week on that. These are the tells that were given up. Here's all the weaknesses. Here's the strengths. Here's some possible places to go. Kind of what you've shown on tape.
Here's a way to kind of complement that look or to remedy the problem, you know. So a lot of time on that. And then the drill work last week corresponded with that. So like, you know, here's the issue. Here's the problem. Here's the solution. Here's how we're going to do it. Let's go rep it. And so the majority of last week was all about us. So transitioning now to this week, it's kind of, hey, this is how it fits into what they do. This is where we can live in this area or in this phase of the game. So we're trying to connect it now.
Same energy as last season coming off the bye?
Well, I think what's similar is that the guys are hungry. You know, I thought, you know, last year was kind of us against the world. It's kind of maybe that way still, you know. But I think it's guys are hungry. Guys want to improve. They're looking for ways. They want to be coached. They want more. They want better. And so when it's like that, it kind of drives you as a coach to give it to them.
On K Connor Hawkins
Yeah, his confidence has been strong. And it's been that way really since the start of camp. I think prior to that, you know, there was good days and bad days. But there's times where, you know, I talk to Mark Scott and I go, you know, I don't know about this distance. And then he gets next to Connor and he goes, hell yeah, we got this distance. And Connor just has those vibes that come off of him when he's in a position to make a big-time kick.
And so that's contagious, as we know.A nd we have a lot of confidence in him moving forward. And it's a big weapon for us.Y ou know, we go for it so much on fourth downs that sometimes all of that kind of gets swept under the rug. But when you need it, you really need it. I'm glad he's with us.
What he seen from self-scouting on the defense
Yeah, you know, we're getting a bunch of just irregular formations and motions and kind of things that fit kind of outside the box. I think you'll think Oklahoma State, but there's just different versions of that. You know, TCU's been in the past a team that can very much do that. But up to this point this year, they haven't done that. And we're fully expecting for them to do that versus us. And so to kind of have that knowledge and then to work on it and spend the time on it gives you the best chance come Saturday morning.
Players playing in the rivalry vs. TCU
Yeah, it is a big recruiting rivalry. We have a bunch of former players that this means a lot to. You know, our guys that are on our team now remember last year. We've got a fair amount of guys that remember a couple years ago when it was a field goal the other way. And so a lot of really tight games, competitive games. It's tough to play there. They're fired up for this one.
Starting fast with an 11 a.m. kick
We talk about that a lot. Talked about it again today. We make a point of starting practice with some type of competition or good versus good. You know, I think it's a mindset that you've got to carry. The start fast thing really is that when you run out to a game and there's smoke and you have to run through the smoke, you don't know what's on the other side of the smoke. Starting fast is running through the smoke.
If it's all clear, you get to know where to go.You're not going to run into somebody. You're not going to be the dude that causes a whole trample situation. But you've got to run through the smoke. You don't know what's on the other side. That's starting fast. Really feeling confident in what the schemes are and what their job responsibilities are. No matter what comes, whatever game plan thing comes our way, we're able to kind of play through it. So that's been the emphasis. We're going to continue to try to get that done.
Is it good to have emotion during a rivalry game
I think it's good to have. If it's always kind of underneath the surface of just real kind of focus and intensity and work and everything else, I think it's good. When it's kind of boiling underneath the surface, it's a good feeling. Because you know it's there. You know it's pushing people. I very much feel that way and I'm sure over there they feel the same way. So this is a big one coming up.
Should Sawyer be in the Heisman race?
I think he's going to continue to win. I think he's going to continue to be in moments where he's going to shine. I think so, yeah. I don't think there's going to be a moment that's going to be too big for him. And I think this team is going to fight for him. And they're not going to let him down. And I think you put him in a situation where there's a chance to win it, he's going to win it. And so I think it's only going to get bigger.
Are there comparisons between Robertson and Joe Burrow?
When Joe was your quarterback, you always felt like you were in it. You always felt, hey, give him a chance. I think Joe had really good weapons. We do, too. I think those two things. I think Joe's a little bit of a different guy. Everyone loves Joe. And so Sawyer and Joe's personality is probably different ends of the spectrum.
But in terms of competitor, in terms of being up here all the time, watching tape and putting time in, and in terms of having weapons and being able to get the ball to him and use them the right way, I think those things are on, right on.
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