52 Days till Kickoff: Baylor’s Defense held opponents to 5.2 yards per play in 2021

As always, keep track of both the stats and roster countdowns in the Offseason Hub!

Baylor’s defense held opponents to 5.2 yards per play in 2021, good for 27th in the nation and 3rd in the Big 12 behind Oklahoma State and Iowa State. They allowed 227.5 passing yds/g and 120.5 rushing yds/g on average. 

According to Football Outsiders, Baylor had the ninth-best defense in the nation when you factor in defensive efficiency, touchdown rate, busted drive rate, etc. 

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Baylor had the ninth-best defense in the nation in 2021, according to Football Outsiders.

The Bears held some of the best players in the country to their worst games of the year. Bijan Robinson, who averaged 112.7 rushing yards, 29.5 receiving yards, and 5.8 yards per carry struggled mightily against Baylor. 

BU’s defense kept him in check to 43 rushing yards on 17 carries, good for an average of 2.5 yards per carry, which was 3.3. yards under his usual average. It was the first time on the season that Robinson was held to under 50 yards in a game.

Caleb Williams met the same fate when he traveled down to Waco. A few weeks prior, Williams had rejuvenated the Sooners team and led them to a comeback victory over Texas. He was the darling of the media and the apple of Lincoln Reiley’s eye, only before and after he had to play Dave Aranda, however. 

The Bears' defense held Williams to 9-of-18 passing for only 142 yards and no touchdowns; 62 of those yards came in the last three minutes. They picked the five-star freshman off twice and sacked him five times as well. It was his only start in 2021, in which he threw for more than one interception and did not throw a touchdown.

The defense struggled in the games against TCU and Texas Tech but finished the season on a high note completely shutting down Oklahoma State and Ole Miss on offense. Holding both the Pokes and Rebels to under 4 yards per play. 

Yards per Play in Each Game:

SicEm365

Caleb Williams was held to under 150 passing yards and no touchdowns against Baylor. 

• Texas State: 235 yards/67 plays = 3.5 avg
• Texas Southern: 281 yards/62 plays = 4.5 avg
• Kansas: 189 yards/50 plays = 3.8 avg
• No. 14 Iowa State: 479 yards/73 plays = 6.6 avg
• No. 19 Oklahoma State: 401 yards/81 plays = 4.9 avg
• West Virginia: 362 yards/75 plays = 4.8 avg
• No. 19 BYU: 409 yards/55 plays = 7.4 avg
• Texas: 382 yards/611 = 5.7 avg
• TCU: 570 yards/74 plays = 7.7 avg
• No. 8 Oklahoma: 260 yards/53 plays = 4.9 avg
• Kansas State: 263 yards/51 plays = 5.0 avg
• Texas Tech: 386 yards/52 plays = 7.4 avg
• No. 5 Oklahoma State: 333 yards/87 plays = 3.8 avg
• No. 8 Ole Miss: 322 yards/88 plays = 3.7 avg