Gameday Thread: Baylor Welcomes Auburn to Waco for High-Profile Season Opener

bear2be2 said:

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Smashmouth said:

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For all of us who watched the game. Forget the offensive disasters like not being able to convert on 4th down on the 3 in the 1st quarter. But why do we let Jackson Arnold run all over us all night like he was the 2nd coming of Tim Tebow? He is a terribly inaccurate QB who can only hurt you with his running ability and yet we didn't spy him all night? Unbelievable l

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Great point. Exactly right. We got our asses handed to us up front against a mediocre Auburn team. Sheesh.
When you can't stop the base run game, you're definitely not going to be able to stop the quarterback run game.

Texas ran that same formula to a national title with Vince Young. It's not as easy to defend as some of you seem to believe.

We just got whipped up front. That's all there is to it. You can't scheme your way out of trouble when your D-line is on skates all night.

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Smashmouth said:

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Now he says we have the best team and depth he has had at Baylor and we get our asses handed to us by a mediocre Auburn team. Aranda is not terrible but under him we will be at best-medicire. I hate medicore football teams because no one cares.

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I'm not sure we got "our assess handed to us" tonight. With under 5 minutes left in the game we were down 7 points. It looked like we had a 3rd down stop until the penalty.

We were the chasers most of the night...but i don't think we got our assess kicked.

We really don't know yet if this Auburn team is mediocre or not. If they do turn out to be mediocre then I would say this is a bad loss for where our program should be right now.

boognish_bear said:

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BobbyBoucher said:

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I don't get the CDA hate - he had us in position to take the game back. It's like RG3 said- prime time players make prime time plays… talent won out tonight

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I haven't been hating on CDA...but this game felt like a measuring stick where we came up short.

But....we really don't know what either Auburn or Baylor is right now...other than Auburn looks better than us.

This is year 3 for Coach Freeze at Auburn and they've recruited well. So maybe they are better than middle of the pack SEC this year. We won't really know that for a few months.

If they turn out to be middle of the pack again...then I would say this is a disappointing home loss. If they turn out to be one of the better teams in the SEC then the way we hung in this game looks better.

I still have a lot of hope for this season. It'll be a challenge...but a road win over the Ponies next week would make everything feel a lot better.

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I'm not upset with our guys, who are all doing the best they can with what they've got. That includes the staff IMO.

To me, the takeaway is pretty simple. Baylor -- and the Big 12 as a whole -- is just at an extreme talent disadvantage to those in the Power 2 conferences. And there's really not anything we can do to close that gap short of finding an oil baron who doesn't mind spending indiscriminately on our donor rolls.

This was the ultimate "It is what it is" game. Auburn is just more talented than we are. They didn't play any harder than we did. They just beat us physically.

This was a lot like the LSU game last year in that way. Last year it was speed on the edges as opposed to beef in the trenches tonight. But in both cases, it was obvious minutes into the game we were fighting an uphill battle.

That doesn't mean either game was unwinnable necessarily. We moved the ball well in both games and had our chances to really apply some pressure on both teams. But the talent gap shrunk our margin for error to almost nothing, and we were far from perfect in both games.

That's what talent does. It shrinks your opponent's margin. That's why you have so many "close, but no cigar" near upsets in college football. The underdog has to play a damn near flawless game to overcome the natural disadvantages it has just by stepping on the field.

There was never a doubt about who was winning the game the moment Auburn went up 17-3. We see this every single year. When the defense or ST need to play a play they wilt, rinse repeat. Didn't get our asses kicked but there was zero doubt about which team was better. Expect similar results next week

boognish_bear said:

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Smashmouth said:

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Now he says we have the best team and depth he has had at Baylor and we get our asses handed to us by a mediocre Auburn team. Aranda is not terrible but under him we will be at best-medicire. I hate medicore football teams because no one cares.

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I'm not sure we got "our assess handed to us" tonight. With under 5 minutes left in the game we were down 7 points. It looked like we had a 3rd down stop until the penalty.

We were the chasers most of the night...but i don't think we got our assess kicked.

We really don't know yet if this Auburn team is mediocre or not. If they do turn out to be mediocre then I would say this is a bad loss for where our program should be right now.

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This wasn't a blowout at all. It was just like the LSU game last year. We competed well, had our chances and lost to the more talented team because we couldn't execute at a high enough level to overcome the obvious talent discrepancy.

Those freaking out are being reactionary.

Weren't you saying prior to kick you had no idea why fans were fearing a mid level sec team like Auburn? Quite a 360 for ya

IowaBear said:

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This… Dave won big with a good chunk of the roster being Rhule guys. He's done jack **** with his own players. He's ran out of excuses. His own words this off season were that this was his best roster. His best roster just got handled with ease by a very mid Auburn team

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I'm a Rhule fan...but his resume here did not have any Top 25 wins. Maybe it was coming in '21....but Aranda was here for it.

Rhule was 0-11 vs Top 25 teams while at BU. Lifetime Rhule is 2-22 against Top 25 teams with the 2 wins coming at Temple.

IowaBear said:

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Weren't you saying prior to kick you had no idea why fans were fearing a mid level sec team like Auburn? Quite a 360 for ya

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Are you suggesting opinions shouldn't change with additional evidence? I'd have to be pretty stupid to have the same opinion after that game of that Auburn team that I had before it.

That said, I still don't fear Auburn. And I don't think our team did either. We competed our asses off. We just got beat. It happens ... especially when Big 12 teams play games against Power 2 opponents.

Never said opinions shouldn't change. But the things you're saying now are things some of us were saying prior to the game. Things that you basically called silly. No one feared Auburn. They just saw the writing on the wall.

IowaBear said:

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Never said opinions shouldn't change. But the things you're saying now are things some of us were saying prior to the game. Things that you basically called silly. No one feared Auburn. They just saw the writing on the wall.

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I didn't call anyone silly. In fact, I acknowledged that Auburn would be talented and that they could beat us.

My issue was with those predicting a blowout and suggesting that we didn't belong on the same field. Even after tonight's game, while readily acknowledging the talent gap on display up front, I can point to quite a few plays that -- if made by us or not made by them -- could have made what was already a reasonably competitive game even more so.

I was hoping that our experience would take us farther than it did and that Auburn's lack of roster continuity would lead to the same types of mistakes that have cost them a ton of games the last two years. Unfortunately, those things didn't happen.

IowaBear said:

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There was never a doubt about who was winning the game the moment Auburn went up 17-3. We see this every single year. When the defense or ST need to play a play they wilt, rinse repeat. Didn't get our asses kicked but there was zero doubt about which team was better. Expect similar results next week

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SMU could easily beat us, especially at home, but that game won't look anything like this one IMO.

I suspect we'll run the ball much better next week than we did tonight -- and that we won't get pushed backward on defense the way we did by Auburn's line.

SMU doesn't recruit at that level.

The Mustangs will pose their own set of challenges, but we'll be on much more equal footing talent-wise. I think it will likely be a shootout.

IowaBear said:

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Never said opinions shouldn't change. But the things you're saying now are things some of us were saying prior to the game. Things that you basically called silly. No one feared Auburn. They just saw the writing on the wall.

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A quote from one of the Auburn boards ... " We lose that game 24-20 last year."

This was the team I was hoping and half expecting to see tonight. Props to Auburn for cleaning up most of the things that had really cost them the last two years -- namely turnovers and red zone efficiency.

I don't think this Auburn team is elite by any means, but I do think it's better than it was last year -- maybe by as many as three or four wins.

Sawyer Robertson: "I think we're going to bounce back ... Everything is still out in front of us."

— Craig Smoak (@CraigSmoak) August 30, 2025

High ankle sprain is tough… But I was fearing worse

Dave Aranda says DL Jackie Marshall suffered a high ankle sprain and is considered day-to-day.

"That was a hit for us, he's one of our better players on defense."

— Craig Smoak (@CraigSmoak) August 30, 2025

Unfortunately, Baylor’s DL just doesn’t seem very good, and the LBs seem athletic but more of the types who need to play behind a clean front. No Dillon Doyle types.

— Travis Roeder (@Travis_Roeder) August 30, 2025

Dave trying up to fire up the boys then getting gashed by the same QB read Auburn has run about sums up his 5 years.

— Jordan Feuerbacher (@JFeuerbacher) August 30, 2025

Guitarbiscuit said:

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TinFoilHatPreacherBear said:

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bear2be2 said:

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I'm not too discouraged, honestly.

Getting whipped on the lines sucks, but they recruit a lot better linemen than we do. That part is what it is.

But we moved the ball well pretty much all night without a run game that will wake up once we start playing Big 12 fronts.

This team will be successful in Big 12 play. Need to play well next week in Dallas to avoid an 0-2 start, though.

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Yep, overall we may fare ok in the B12. Don't think we'll be at the top, but I expect a better year than I was expecting.

Still think CDA is a terrible game-day coach but we've got who we got at this point.

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I think we will do ok in the Big 12. But you're right about Aranda not adjusting. No spy at all on Arnold the whole game. It's safe to say he is not good at adjustments. Either he doesn't see them or sees them and thinks it would be better off not adjusting.

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I'm being kind in my wording above on my actual thoughts on CDA as a headcoach. I've likely been one of the longest time critics here. His game time coaching is the most obvious and clearest deficiency. One of the worst I've ever seen at it.

Despite that, and I know it's too early but I'm guessing our talent should put us in the top third of the conference.

bear2be2 said:

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boognish_bear said:

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Smashmouth said:

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Now he says we have the best team and depth he has had at Baylor and we get our asses handed to us by a mediocre Auburn team. Aranda is not terrible but under him we will be at best-medicire. I hate medicore football teams because no one cares.

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I'm not sure we got "our assess handed to us" tonight. With under 5 minutes left in the game we were down 7 points. It looked like we had a 3rd down stop until the penalty.

We were the chasers most of the night...but i don't think we got our assess kicked.

We really don't know yet if this Auburn team is mediocre or not. If they do turn out to be mediocre then I would say this is a bad loss for where our program should be right now.

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This wasn't a blowout at all. It was just like the LSU game last year. We competed well, had our chances and lost to the more talented team because we couldn't execute at a high enough level to overcome the obvious talent discrepancy.

Those freaking out are being reactionary.

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Nearly identical to the Texas Bowl in that both we had 3 major setbacks:

Early miscue that put us in a hole (Pick 6 v LSU, 3 pts on 2 red zone trips in 1Q tonight)
Injury to key player that left a huge hole in our game plan (Bryson v LSU, Marshall tonight)
Momentum-shifting officiating (overturned TD v LSU, defensive holding on a run that was stopped for no gain)

We could have overcome one of those 3, maybe even 2, but not all 3. And we still would have needed to execute one more drive in order to win or get to OT.

bear2be2 said:

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Doc Holliday said:

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bear2be2 said:

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True Grit said:

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All I see is 0-1 and we have line and D issues (again).

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Our line issues (on both sides) are recruiting issues. Those will likely never be fixed to the level necessary to compete with teams that recruit at Auburn's level.

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Then it's pointless to even try to win a national championship.

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We're not winning a national championship. Were you under the impression that was a real possibility?

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No. I'm under the impression that only a handful of teams can win a national championship and it will never change.

Doc Holliday said:

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bear2be2 said:

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Doc Holliday said:

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bear2be2 said:

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True Grit said:

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All I see is 0-1 and we have line and D issues (again).

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Our line issues (on both sides) are recruiting issues. Those will likely never be fixed to the level necessary to compete with teams that recruit at Auburn's level.

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Then it's pointless to even try to win a national championship.

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We're not winning a national championship. Were you under the impression that was a real possibility?

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No. I'm under the impression that only a handful of teams can win a national championship and it will never change.

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Then we're in complete agreement.

My goals for this program are to compete for Big 12 championships and maybe one day win a playoff game.

Unfortunately, you have to recruit at a higher level than we are capable of to win it all. Like you said, there are only a handful of teams in that tier, and we're not one of them.

Safety's were deep. Never saw one come up to be used as a spy or crash the run much except on 3rd or 4th and shorts but we tended to over pursue Singleton in motion and leave the middle wide open

He definitely was bad tonight. No sugar coating it. He needed to do something after halftime to stop Arnold and he did not. It's like expected our d-line to just start winning matchups.

We got our asses kicked in the trenches and that's what decided the game

bear2be2 said:

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Doc Holliday said:

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bear2be2 said:

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Doc Holliday said:

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bear2be2 said:

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True Grit said:

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All I see is 0-1 and we have line and D issues (again).

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Our line issues (on both sides) are recruiting issues. Those will likely never be fixed to the level necessary to compete with teams that recruit at Auburn's level.

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Then it's pointless to even try to win a national championship.

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We're not winning a national championship. Were you under the impression that was a real possibility?

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No. I'm under the impression that only a handful of teams can win a national championship and it will never change.

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Then we're in complete agreement.

My goals for this program are to compete for Big 12 championships and maybe one day win a playoff game.

Unfortunately, you have to recruit at a higher level than we are capable of to win it all. Like you said, there are only a handful of teams in that tier, and we're not one of them.

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I understand what you are saying. However the goal should be to win it all and I'm sure it is and it is for everyone else as well. Whether that is achieved is another issue. Just like prior to 2011 most would say realistically we aren't ever going to recruit a Heisman winner. I personally think if Baylor was not run by idiots in 16, we would have one in our trophy chest already now.

All that to say I really don't think it is impossible for us to win one.

boognish_bear said:

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Sawyer Robertson: "I think we're going to bounce back ... Everything is still out in front of us."

— Craig Smoak (@CraigSmoak) August 30, 2025

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What else would you expect him to say other than maybe the truth. "We should be competitive going forward against lesser talent".

Unfortunately David still isn't very good. It's just the reality. To be clear, I still think this team could win the big 12.

Auburn's defense is legitimately good and once everyone (including the coaching staff) settled in, the offense did pretty well. That's without being willing to let Sawyer run (it was there).

The defense is terrible again. Dave has been terrible coaching defense for years. We don't know if Auburn's offense is any good at all. One thing is certain, they won't be able to have the qb do 1 read and then take off running against pretty much anyone else and win.. embarrassing performance.

If the team can't overcome losing one of our only competent d- linemen, you just aren't that good.

Again, the big 12 talent is such that Auburn's line will be the best we face all year until the bowl. Only Az St has anything close. Smu is close to a must win if you want to build any momentum.

merckywaters said:

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boykin_spaniel said:

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2021 was Aranda as coach with Pitre and Bernard. That defense was why we won the Big12 and Sugar Bowl…. But hasn't been great since

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Weren't those Rhule recruits?

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Pitre was the only Briles recruit that stuck with Baylor despite the fake scandal. He was at the game last night. So was Keyonte George.

boykin_spaniel said:

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Safety's were deep. Never saw one come up to be used as a spy or crash the run much except on 3rd or 4th and shorts but we tended to over pursue Singleton in motion and leave the middle wide open

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Ok, well that explains some of our ability to keep the receiving corp in check. Still, should have mixed it up. Poor game plan.

boognish_bear said:

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Unfortunately, Baylor’s DL just doesn’t seem very good, and the LBs seem athletic but more of the types who need to play behind a clean front. No Dillon Doyle types.

— Travis Roeder (@Travis_Roeder) August 30, 2025

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This. Our DL and LB's are slooooooow and were piss poor at tackling last night.

Too bad I refuse to do Twitter, ain't my thing. Travis needs his own youtube channel. I miss his analysis.

It would be nice to know where we stand NIL wise. Do we just not have the money to bring in a good defensive line?

Offense moved the ball on drives until it really had to, and then it didn't. Stage too big and playing scared IMO.

Could we maybe get Tarleton's coach?

boognish_bear said:

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Sawyer Robertson: "I think we're going to bounce back ... Everything is still out in front of us."

— Craig Smoak (@CraigSmoak) August 30, 2025

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Maybe the team's "everything" is not enough. Just wondering.

The unfortunate truth is there are only so many big men who can move. I'd guess we spent a good chunk of NIL to keep a guy like Jackie Marshall who could've easily taken a big payday had he hit the portal.

We brought dudes in. 2 from Tulane who need to adjust to power conference ball and a backup NT from A&M. Fobbs-White had a sack but needs to pack on some more weight to be a run anchor and not just a pass rusher.

Baylor is in a position where it needs to recruit and develop more Jackie Marshalls. It'll always be tough for us to get in an NIL battle vs Ohio State. I will give the staff credit for keeping Marshall, Sawyer, Washington, and Cameron.

We keep embarrassing ourselves on National TV like last night, NIL will BE NIL…

Right now none of them worth a nickel. So's Aranda. Spitontheball as an OC is even questionable.