Monaray Baldwin is back in the #Baylor mix for 2024. That feels like a win for Aranda, Spavital and crew. https://t.co/WhhY02kl77

— Craig Smoak (@CraigSmoak) December 4, 2023

Baldwin is a number 3 on most teams (solid teams) If we're going to try a run it back with the exact same skill guys Dave won't last until week 5….

IowaBear said:

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Baldwin is a number 3 on most teams (solid teams) If we're going to try a run it back with the exact same skill guys Dave won't last until week 5….

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Baldwin is an excellent slot guy. He's just not a No. 1 receiver.

I think all of our receivers will look better in a more receiver-friendly offense. Skill wasn't our problem this past season. With even a decent line, our offense would have been a middle of the pack unit at worst.

Our success or failure -- at least on the offensive side -- will rest squarely on our ability to block. Our skill players are Big 12 average at worst.

Baylor WR Monaray Baldwin announces that he'll be back in 2024.

Baldwin, a junior from Killeen Shoemaker, has led the Bears in receiving yards the past two seasons. He's the only Baylor player with multiple 500-yard receiving seasons in the Dave Aranda era. #SicEm https://t.co/YeldHtYIDo

— Jackson Posey, Basketball School Attender ✞ (@ByJacksonPosey) December 4, 2023

Will have to agree to disagree on that. These wideouts are average at best and routinely struggle against man coverage. Sure and improved line helps doesn't change the fact that the skill talent on this team isn't very good and needs improved

i'm with you - they struggled all year to get separation. now that's on the OC to run plays with built in picks/confusion to get them space...but they didn't have the talent yet to break free of press coverage.

IowaBear said:

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Will have to agree to disagree on that. These wideouts are average at best and routinely struggle against man coverage. Sure and improved line helps doesn't change the fact that the skill talent on this team isn't very good and needs improved

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I think Grimes' system was notoriously receiver-unfriendly. It made talented outside receivers in particular look much worse than they actually were. If I'm wrong next year, I'll happily admit it, but I think we have the skill talent on campus to run an effective spread.

That doesn't mean I won't take a difference-making outside guy if we can get one. But I don't see that as being particularly high on our list of many needs this offseason.

Bingo…. Playcalling can certainly help but let's be honest here Baldwin is our #1 and that right there should tell everyone who follows cfb and the B12 that we desperately need to upgrade the receiver room. Catalina and the Smoaks echoed this last week

Johnson was brought in solely to be a downfield guy who can make contested catches. He failed miserably at that when healthy outside of the Cincy game. If our goal is too have MAC and Sun Belt talent at the wideout than we absolutely should stand pat and not add anyone

Jackson averaged a team-high 17.5 yards per catch this season and was routinely overthrown with a step downfield.

With a line that gives our quarterback time make a deep drop without being sacked or having to scramble, he'd be a much bigger weapon. He and Baldwin will have big years in a spread.

It is yet to be determined as to how much we do or don't "upgrade". But it is difficult to upgrade when the portal signing isn't even open yet. And pick whatever position you want, you are not going to get a full roster out of the portal. You had better keep the best of what you had from which to "upgrade" or you end up with no depth other than freshmen recruits and filler players when injuries occur to your "upgrades".

IowaBear said:

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Baldwin is a number 3 on most teams (solid teams) If we're going to try a run it back with the exact same skill guys Dave won't last until week 5….

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I'm with you. I don't get these GX4 NIL announcements about players coming back like we're supposed to react like Randy Moss is returning for his fifth season. This is all hype generated by the athletic department to distract from the fact that they're retaining an epic failure of a coach

IowaBear said:

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Will have to agree to disagree on that. These wideouts are average at best and routinely struggle against man coverage. Sure and improved line helps doesn't change the fact that the skill talent on this team isn't very good and needs improved

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It's impossible to replace a 500 yard receiver I guess

blackie said:

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It is yet to be determined as to how much we do or don't "upgrade". But it is difficult to upgrade when the portal signing isn't even open yet. And pick whatever position you want, you are not going to get a full roster out of the portal. You had better keep the best of what you had from which to "upgrade" or you end up with no depth other than freshmen recruits and filler players when injuries occur to your "upgrades".

---

But the fact that these announcements are getting made through our NIL arm is indicative that these guys are getting paid, which leads me to believe that Dave is circling the wagons next year with 'his guys.' I feel that this is not a great recipe for success. we were also promised major overhaul on the coaching staff, and we have basically replaced two coaches

Pretty much! Don't get me wrong here. Getting guys like Pendergrass, Jenkins, Reese back help BU. Getting guys like Bobby and Lemear do zero good. Those are guys that need replaced/upgraded. Especially considering Dave has shown zero ability to develop talent

IowaBear said:

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Pretty much! Don't get me wrong here. Getting guys like Pendergrass, Jenkins, Reese back help BU. Getting guys like Bobby and Lemear do zero good. Those are guys that need replaced/upgraded. Especially considering Dave has shown zero ability to develop talent

---

And it's so frustrating seeing people already buying into the hype machine going into 2024 like it's nothing. All it takes is a couple nice Twitter posts and a couple premium articles and people are already creaming their pants about how a team that lost to Air Force and Texas State secretly has amazing potential under literally the exact same coaching staff minus 2 coaches. And it's funny, because when an actual good player enters the portal i.e. Drake Dabney, people are like "meh no biggie". It's all hype

I'm a show me guy. If Dave improves the team and we win 7-9 games I'll gladly give him credit.
But I'm not holding my breath. Feels like a 3-9 campaign as the schedules much harder.

Half this board fell into deep despair this season because we were getting "left behind" on the NIL front. The program responds by upping the NIL commitment in a highly visible manner, and you guys ***** about the announcement of that fact by complaining that the players we're retaining aren't good enough.

[shrug emoji]

Mitch Henessey said:

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Half this board fell into deep despair this season because we were getting "left behind" on the NIL front. The program responds by upping the NIL commitment in a highly visible manner, and you guys ***** about the announcement of that fact by complaining that the players we're retaining aren't good enough.

\_()_/

---

And others get off on cussing out and complaining about the people that are complaining. On a free message board. For a team that just retained a failure of a coach (which everyone on here nominally agrees was a bad idea). Yeah, I wonder why people aren't going streaking in the street when a 500 yard receiver "recommits" or whatever. \_()_/

NIL isn't this teams biggest issue. It's player development and overall talent.
NIL at ISU, KSU, KU etc aren't anything special yet they field solid programs because their developing the talent they have

You found 3 wins on next year's schedule? You are a lot more generous and optimistic than me.

Will pull off an upset or 2 somewhere

No Quarterback said:

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IowaBear said:

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Pretty much! Don't get me wrong here. Getting guys like Pendergrass, Jenkins, Reese back help BU. Getting guys like Bobby and Lemear do zero good. Those are guys that need replaced/upgraded. Especially considering Dave has shown zero ability to develop talent

---

And it's so frustrating seeing people already buying into the hype machine going into 2024 like it's nothing. All it takes is a couple nice Twitter posts and a couple premium articles and people are already creaming their pants about how a team that lost to Air Force and Texas State secretly has amazing potential under literally the exact same coaching staff minus 2 coaches. And it's funny, because when an actual good player enters the portal i.e. Drake Dabney, people are like "meh no biggie". It's all hype

---

Who is buying in to the hype machine? I haven't seen anyone on the free board talking about expecting to see big improvements next year. I think the vast majority on here are disappointed we didn't get a full staff change and aren't expecting big improvements next year.

No Quarterback said:

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Mitch Henessey said:

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Half this board fell into deep despair this season because we were getting "left behind" on the NIL front. The program responds by upping the NIL commitment in a highly visible manner, and you guys ***** about the announcement of that fact by complaining that the players we're retaining aren't good enough.

\_()_/

---

And others get off on cussing out and complaining about the people that are complaining. On a free message board. For a team that just retained a failure of a coach (which everyone on here nominally agrees was a bad idea). Yeah, I wonder why people aren't going streaking in the street when a 500 yard receiver "recommits" or whatever. \_()_/

---

Saying you're whining about something while using a bit more colorful language is hardly cussing you out.

You're also creating some pretty extraordinary strawmen in this thread. Literally no one thinks that losing Dabney isn't a big deal. There was not one post in the Dabney thread that even implied that. There was some resignation that

1) he's a special talent, and likely is going to get a bigger NIL deal than we can reasonably afford, and
2) this is what happens in this day and age of college football. 11-1 tOSU just lost their starting QB to the portal.

No one is happy about how this season went. Not many are happy that Aranda was retained (myself included). But, he was, and there's nothing any of us can do about it.

If we can't recognize subsequent incremental improvements for what they are, then why even post on this message board? Is it therapeutic for you to scream into the void? If so, carry on, but it seems like you and IowaBear are just working yourselves into a frenzy for no real reason on this one.

This is a big win for us.

boognish_bear said:

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No Quarterback said:

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IowaBear said:

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Pretty much! Don't get me wrong here. Getting guys like Pendergrass, Jenkins, Reese back help BU. Getting guys like Bobby and Lemear do zero good. Those are guys that need replaced/upgraded. Especially considering Dave has shown zero ability to develop talent

---

And it's so frustrating seeing people already buying into the hype machine going into 2024 like it's nothing. All it takes is a couple nice Twitter posts and a couple premium articles and people are already creaming their pants about how a team that lost to Air Force and Texas State secretly has amazing potential under literally the exact same coaching staff minus 2 coaches. And it's funny, because when an actual good player enters the portal i.e. Drake Dabney, people are like "meh no biggie". It's all hype

---

Who is buying in to the hype machine? I haven't seen anyone on the free board talking about expecting to see big improvements next year. I think the vast majority on here are disappointed we didn't get a full staff change and aren't expecting big improvements next year.

---

Exactly. Most of us wanted a new coach/staff this offseason. We didn't get what we wanted. We can either cry about that daily on a message board or talk about what's currently happening in/with our program with the adult understanding that next year truly is make or break for Dave Aranda -- and likely Mack Rhoades as well.

Aranda is either going to win enough games to save his job next season or he's not. And given that that's the case, I'm willing to sit back and see what happens because I have no other choice. Allowing Aranda the rope to either escape the burning building or hang himself is not an endorsement of the job he did last year or has done at Baylor, in general. It's simply the only choice we as fans have at this point.

While he's still our coach, he gets to decide what to do with his staff and roster. Those choices will impact his future much more than they'll impact ours.

bear2be2 said:

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boognish_bear said:

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No Quarterback said:

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IowaBear said:

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Pretty much! Don't get me wrong here. Getting guys like Pendergrass, Jenkins, Reese back help BU. Getting guys like Bobby and Lemear do zero good. Those are guys that need replaced/upgraded. Especially considering Dave has shown zero ability to develop talent

---

And it's so frustrating seeing people already buying into the hype machine going into 2024 like it's nothing. All it takes is a couple nice Twitter posts and a couple premium articles and people are already creaming their pants about how a team that lost to Air Force and Texas State secretly has amazing potential under literally the exact same coaching staff minus 2 coaches. And it's funny, because when an actual good player enters the portal i.e. Drake Dabney, people are like "meh no biggie". It's all hype

---

Who is buying in to the hype machine? I haven't seen anyone on the free board talking about expecting to see big improvements next year. I think the vast majority on here are disappointed we didn't get a full staff change and aren't expecting big improvements next year.

---

Exactly. Most of us wanted a new coach/staff this offseason. We didn't get what we wanted. We can either cry about that daily on a message board or talk about what's currently happening in/with our program with the adult understanding that next year truly is make or break for Dave Aranda -- and likely Mack Rhoades as well.

Aranda is either going to win enough games to save his job next season or he's not. And given that that's the case, I'm willing to sit back and see what happens because I have no other choice. Allowing Aranda the rope to either escape the burning building or hang himself is not an endorsement of the job he did last year or has done at Baylor, in general. It's simply the only choice we as fans have at this point.

While he's still our coach, he gets to decide what to do with his staff and roster. Those choices will impact his future much more than they'll impact ours.

---

Excellent post!

What's the saying:

"You can't teach speed!"

bear2be2 said:

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IowaBear said:

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Baldwin is a number 3 on most teams (solid teams) If we're going to try a run it back with the exact same skill guys Dave won't last until week 5….

---

Baldwin is an excellent slot guy. He's just not a No. 1 receiver.

I think all of our receivers will look better in a more receiver-friendly offense. Skill wasn't our problem this past season. With even a decent line, our offense would have been a middle of the pack unit at worst.

Our success or failure -- at least on the offensive side -- will rest squarely on our ability to block. Our skill players are Big 12 average at worst.

---

Definitely not a number one and I'm not sure why we are trying to put him in that role. He needs the ball in space. Problem is our other WRs can't block so even bubble and tunnel screens to him create a chance for him to get blown up. We really need to be in the market for a try Number 1 WR

ImwithBU said:

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bear2be2 said:

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IowaBear said:

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Baldwin is a number 3 on most teams (solid teams) If we're going to try a run it back with the exact same skill guys Dave won't last until week 5….

---

Baldwin is an excellent slot guy. He's just not a No. 1 receiver.

I think all of our receivers will look better in a more receiver-friendly offense. Skill wasn't our problem this past season. With even a decent line, our offense would have been a middle of the pack unit at worst.

Our success or failure -- at least on the offensive side -- will rest squarely on our ability to block. Our skill players are Big 12 average at worst.

---

Definitely not a number one and I'm not sure why we are trying to put him in that role. He needs the ball in space. Problem is our other WRs can't block so even bubble and tunnel screens to him create a chance for him to get blown up. We really need to be in the market for a try Number 1 WR

---

I think Jackson will surprise people in the new offense. And I think there's a chance Hal Presley makes a big jump as well. Both of those guys are great jump ball guys that we struggled to get into those situations in the wide zone, play-action passing game.

Grimes' offense was really hard on outside receivers because they were rarely running routes off of other players. They were being asked to beat their man 1-on-1 with one other wideout doing the same. You had tight ends and slot guys running crossing routes underneath, but the outside guys were largely on their own. That should change in a spread passing game that will utilize more complementary routes for the outside guys.

.@BUFootball coach Dave Aranda twice said he wanted his offense to be "fun." Jake Spavital said he has about "eight concepts" for getting the ball to his WRs. He is dying to get on the field already. pic.twitter.com/bANp6yuguP

— Matt Mosley (@mattmosley) December 4, 2023

bear2be2 said:

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ImwithBU said:

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bear2be2 said:

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IowaBear said:

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Baldwin is a number 3 on most teams (solid teams) If we're going to try a run it back with the exact same skill guys Dave won't last until week 5….

---

Baldwin is an excellent slot guy. He's just not a No. 1 receiver.

I think all of our receivers will look better in a more receiver-friendly offense. Skill wasn't our problem this past season. With even a decent line, our offense would have been a middle of the pack unit at worst.

Our success or failure -- at least on the offensive side -- will rest squarely on our ability to block. Our skill players are Big 12 average at worst.

---

Definitely not a number one and I'm not sure why we are trying to put him in that role. He needs the ball in space. Problem is our other WRs can't block so even bubble and tunnel screens to him create a chance for him to get blown up. We really need to be in the market for a try Number 1 WR

---

I think Jackson will surprise people in the new offense. And I think there's a chance Hal Presley makes a big jump as well. Both of those guys are great jump ball guys that we struggled to get into those situations in the wide zone, play-action passing game.

Grimes' offense was really hard on outside receivers because they were rarely running routes off of other players. They were being asked to beat their man 1-on-1 with one other wideout doing the same. You had tight ends and slot guys running crossing routes underneath, but the outside guys were largely on their own. That should change in a spread passing game that will utilize more complementary routes for the outside guys.

---

Agree with you about Presley and Jackson both have potential to be really good.

It's crazy how much Puka nacua Tyler algieer and Zach Wilson made grimes offense look spectacular

Wacoraisedbear said:

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bear2be2 said:

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ImwithBU said:

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bear2be2 said:

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IowaBear said:

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Baldwin is a number 3 on most teams (solid teams) If we're going to try a run it back with the exact same skill guys Dave won't last until week 5….

---

Baldwin is an excellent slot guy. He's just not a No. 1 receiver.

I think all of our receivers will look better in a more receiver-friendly offense. Skill wasn't our problem this past season. With even a decent line, our offense would have been a middle of the pack unit at worst.

Our success or failure -- at least on the offensive side -- will rest squarely on our ability to block. Our skill players are Big 12 average at worst.

---

Definitely not a number one and I'm not sure why we are trying to put him in that role. He needs the ball in space. Problem is our other WRs can't block so even bubble and tunnel screens to him create a chance for him to get blown up. We really need to be in the market for a try Number 1 WR

---

I think Jackson will surprise people in the new offense. And I think there's a chance Hal Presley makes a big jump as well. Both of those guys are great jump ball guys that we struggled to get into those situations in the wide zone, play-action passing game.

Grimes' offense was really hard on outside receivers because they were rarely running routes off of other players. They were being asked to beat their man 1-on-1 with one other wideout doing the same. You had tight ends and slot guys running crossing routes underneath, but the outside guys were largely on their own. That should change in a spread passing game that will utilize more complementary routes for the outside guys.

---

Agree with you about Presley and Jackson both have potential to be really good.

It's crazy how much Puka nacua Tyler algieer and Zach Wilson made grimes offense look spectacular

---

Grimes' offense isn't inherently bad. It's just bad for outside receivers. If you're a running back or a lineman, you probably really like it -- this season notwithstanding.

But it is very much a run-based offense. The passing game is predicated on a successful run game, which we never had this year.

I actually enjoyed watching Grimes' offense when we had the talent to execute it. It was pretty brutal when we didn't, though, because there was no change-up off the fastball.

Very impressive for his frame

5️⃣4️⃣5️⃣🤯 @Monaray2x #SicEm pic.twitter.com/egAdJ5439C

— Baylor Football (@BUFootball) March 1, 2024