No. 17 Baylor football regains confidence after 42-7 victory over Texas State – The Baylor Lariat

By AnnaGrace Hale | Sport Author

After a heartbreaking loss to No. 12 BYU in Provo, Utah, No. 17 Baylor football regarded to redeem itself towards Texas State College. The inexperienced and gold claimed a blowout 42-7 victory over the Bobcats on Saturday at McLane Stadium, and regardless of a uneven begin, head coach Dave Aranda’s group discovered its stride within the second half.

Freshman operating again Richard Reese carried the load offensively, posting 156 yards on 19 carries to go along with three touchdowns. Reese performed rather than junior operating again Taye McWilliams, who was out with an damage.

Reese is the primary Bear to say over 100 yards dashing since former Baylor operating again Abram Smith had 172 within the 2022 Allstate Sugar Bowl.

The Bears (2-1) and Bobcats (1-2) met final season in San Marcos, the place Baylor prevailed 29-20. This 12 months’s assembly proved to not be as tightly matched. The inexperienced and gold outworked Texas State by claiming 509 complete yards — nearly double the Bobcats’ 280 yards.

“With the sport, I’m grateful for the 4 quarters,” Aranda mentioned. “I believed there was vitality all through. There was a great edge by the offense and a few violence from the beginning of the play to the top. These are issues that haven’t possibly been there the earlier two video games.”

Within the first quarter, Baylor’s offense didn’t have a tough time getting issues rolling, because it discovered the top zone on the primary drive of the sport. Sophomore quarterback Blake Shapen opened up for a number of brief passes that have been swatted down. Nonetheless, after a handoff from Shapen, Reese slipped via the Bobcats’ protection and into the top zone from 14 yards out.

“That was a lot enjoyable simply to see him,” sixth-year senior vast receiver Gavin Holmes mentioned. “He works so exhausting in the course of the week. We knew he was going to have an enormous position at this time. And he positively stepped up, and it was actually cool to see.”

On the primary play of the second quarter, junior operating again Craig “Sqwirl” Williams broke away and tiptoed alongside the left sideline to seek out Baylor’s second landing, placing the Bears up 14-0.

With two minutes left within the half, Texas State’s offense lastly bought on the board with a 12-yard cross from quarterback Layne Hatcher to Ashtyn Hawkins.

With the rating sitting at 14-7, Baylor put collectively a nine-play 96-yard drive simply earlier than the top of the half. Shapen took issues into his personal fingers, faking out the complete stadium on a 35-yard bootleg.

The Bears led 21-7 however weren’t the place they needed to be strolling into the locker room at halftime, and Aranda mentioned this was attributable to some nervous vitality inside the group.

“I believe a few of what we have been preventing was expectations: ‘it’s speculated to be like this’ or ‘it was once like that,’” Aranda mentioned. “There’s loads of that on this recreation — some gritty, ugly stuff that I believe you must undergo to get to the attractive, clear, polished, shiny stuff.”

Getting via the disagreeable first half, the group exited the locker room and performed a lovely second half, scoring three unanswered touchdowns and blocking a subject purpose. Regardless of traded fumbles, Shapen linked with Holmes in stride for a 28-yard landing, placing the Bears up 28-7 within the third.

“I knew there had been holes in the midst of the sphere the entire recreation,” Holmes mentioned. “I informed Blake to carry it slightly longer and I’m going to sneak via one [of] these holes. And he noticed and I noticed inexperienced, and I simply took it. That was a great play.”

Within the last quarter, Reese mimicked Holmes and secured two extra touchdowns of his personal — one in all them a 52-yard scamper up the center — extending the Bears’ result in 42-7.

Regardless of his first profession interception, Shapen was 15-of-26 for 184 yards and a landing. Aranda mentioned Shapen is snug getting out of the pocket, and Holmes mentioned the slinger is continuous to steer and enhance.

“I believe he’s progressing constantly,” Holmes mentioned. “Final weekend was a tough weekend for the entire group. We simply needed to get that style out of our mouths. Blake was taking quite a bit on himself. We simply rallied round him, telling him ‘we bought you.’”

Hoping to proceed sturdy play, the Bears enter convention play subsequent week as they hit the street to face Iowa State Sept. 24 at Jack Trice Stadium in Ames, Iowa.