The Underrated Performer for Baylor against Long Island

It wasn’t pretty by any means, but at least Baylor (1-2) was able to finally end their six-game skid that spanned back to the 2022 season against Long Island (0-3) on Saturday 30-7.

The glaring bright spot from Saturday was freshman running back Dawson Pendergrass actually being able to run with some aggression and become the first Baylor back this season to eclipse the century mark on the ground. Despite Pendergrass, it was still a pretty bland performance against a program Baylor should have been able to dominate.

This week’s “Underrated Performer” goes to another fellow freshman, Carl Williams IV. The cornerback was able to record the first TFL and INT of his career on Saturday against the Sharks. While the upperclassmen continue to disappoint, the young group of freshmen for Baylor have consistently shown a glimmer of hope for the future.

Baylor has to be able to generate more turnovers and find ways on defense and special teams to find the end zone to help their struggling offense. The injury to Blake Shapen should be a blessing in disguise for the Bears, as his being unavailable has left the Baylor offense one-dimensional.

I’m not going to hype him up like a Heisman candidate or a top-tier quarterback in the nation of Big 12, but he’s definitely Baylor’s best option at quarterback for better or worse. Once Shapen can return, hopefully, guys like Williams IV will continue to develop and provide Shapen with more opportunities to make plays down the stretch and hopefully make a bowl game.

The Bears are gearing up for their biggest game of the season and arguably one of the biggest in program history, as No. 3 Texas (3-0) rolls into McLane Stadium for likely the final time ever on Saturday night at 6:30 p.m.