Ground game pushes No. 17 Bears past Texas State, 42-7

WACO, Texas – The No. 17 Bears (2-1) racked up 293 yards and five touchdowns on the ground to push past the Texas State Bobcats (1-2) in a 42-7 victory on Saturday afternoon at McLane Stadium.

Richard Reese, a true freshman running back, was fantastic, leading the team in rushing yards (156) and touchdowns (3). Craig “Sqwirl” Williams also contributed 56 yards on the ground and added a 30-yard TD of his own midway through the first quarter.

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Craig “Sqwirl” Williams had 56 yards on eight carries.

Coming off of a 2OT loss to No. 11 BYU, many hoped the Bears would kick it into a different gear on Saturday, similar to how the team responded after the loss in Stillwater last season. However, that did not appear to be the case early in today’s victory over Texas State.

It wasn’t until Dillon Doyle, who had to miss the first half of this week’s game after receiving a targeting call against BYU, was reinserted into the lineup in the second half that the Bears began to come alive. 

The defense began to live up to their preseason expectations in the second half, forcing a fumble, blocking a field goal, and totaling two sacks.

The game started with Reese rushing for a 14-yard TD, his first of three on the afternoon, to put Baylor up 7-0.

After stopping the Bobcats on fourth down, the BU offense marched down the field, and “Sqwirl” Williams finished the drive with a 30-yard TD up the left sideline.

The majority of the second quarter was Baylor attempting to stop Texas State’s quarterback and wide receiver duo of Layne Hatcher and Ashtyn Hawkins. The two connected on a TD midway through the second quarter to trim the BU lead to 14-7.

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Baylor held Texas State to only 82 total rushing yards.

Blake Shapen, who struggled in the passing game throughout the first half, responded with a critical 35-yard TD run on fourth and one to put the Bears up 21-7 going into the half. 

As the defense began to pick up their play in the second half, so did Shapen. The redshirt sophomore finished the game 15-of-26 for 184 yards and a TD.