The Underrated Performer for Baylor against Utah

Baylor looked vastly improved from week one against Utah on Saturday, despite falling to the 12th-ranked Utes 20-13 at McLane Stadium. While most of the attention was focused on the offensive line and the first career start for redshirt sophomore quarterback Sawyer Robertson, the defense had plenty of questions that needed to be addressed as well.

The Bears were able to take advantage of Utah’s lack of quality depth at the quarterback position — until the fourth quarter at least. After having a lackluster performance against Texas State in the season opener, senior linebacker Matt Jones recorded a game-high nine tackles and 2 PBU against the Utes.

Up front, seniors TJ Franklin and Gabe Hall were able to create some pressure and disrupt the pocket while each recorded a sack. It’s been nice to see some of the younger players on defense show flashes as well, but the consistency needs to be a point of emphasis.

One redshirt freshman who made the most of his opportunity against Utah was OLB Kyler Jordan. The Lubbock-Cooper prospect had a career day for Baylor, as he finished with four tackles to go along with his first career interception and TFL making him our “Underrated Performer” for Week 2.

Jordan was one of the Baylor players who met with the media following the loss to Utah and when asked about the outcome, he responded like a leader.

“It’s just brutal. All the work we put in all week, I feel like we came out and played a pretty good game,” said Jordan. “There are definitely some things that we have got to get fixed from an execution standpoint. But yeah, it’s just brutal.”

Jordan and Baylor will have the perfect opportunity for a get-right game this week as they welcome in 0-2 Long Island to McLane Stadium on Saturday at 11:00 a.m.