Gameday Thread: Baylor faces Texas Tech in regular season finale

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No. 8 Baylor (9-2) will host Texas Tech (6-5) at McLane Stadium on Saturday afternoon in the final regular season for the Bears in 2021. 

Quote of the week...

Dave Aranda: “Defensively, we're just gonna be careful just with our signals. But outside of that it’s the opponent that's right in front of us. It's the things that we put on tape. Offensively, Tech has shown that they're interested in opponent film, and if there's weaknesses, they attack it, and if there's things that have hurt you in the past, they notice it. That's a big part going into this game. I think continuing to block out the noise and keep the outside on the outside and focus on developing the inside and controlling the stuff you can control. That's a further test with all that this week. Our ability to take the next step as the defense is doing that consistently. Right? It’s not relying on externals and so I see that as really being the focus.”

Craig Smoak’s Players to Watch 

Texas Tech — Wide Receiver Erik Ezukanma

Without a doubt, Tech's biggest star and playmaker, especially on offense. Although his team-leading 691 yards and 4 touchdowns receiving aren't eye-popping stats, you have to consider he's played with three different starting quarterbacks and two different head coaches this season. The junior from Fort Worth also has nine carries for 114 yards and two scores over Tech's last six contests. 

Baylor — Quarterback Blake Shapen

I think we're all anticipating Shapen being the starter on Saturday, and if that's the case, he got one heck of a warmup run last week against Kansas State. He shouldn't need to be Superman with the talent around him and the defense he's facing, which ranks middle or towards the bottom in most Big 12 categories. I think we'll see a confident quarterback ready to take advantage of an ample opportunity on Saturday. Protect the football, be your 1/11th, and let the rest take care of itself. 

Pregame Show | Saturday 9:00 a.m. CT