The Good, The Bad & The Ugly From the Start of Baylor's Offseason

The offseason is off and running in Waco, with a new OC hire, more staff shakeups, and a bevy of player declarations for 2024. 

Here's a look at The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly from the past week for Baylor Football. 

THE GOOD 

Roster Decisions: Over the past several days, in connection with GXG, we've seen dozens of Baylor players declaring their intention to return for 2024. Some notable decisions to run it back for the Bears includes WR Monaray Baldwin & Ketron Jackson, RB Richard Reese & Dawson Pendergrass, and QB Sawyer Robertson. In somewhat surprising news, defenders Garmon Randolph and Matt Jones are returning for sixth years. Much of the young secondary, headlined by Caden Jenkins, is slated to be back, too. As of press time, the program has over half the roster now set to return in spring, but some final decisions await as the portal opens on Monday for all-comers. For Baylor, that includes the likes of Blake Shapen. Aranda is running it back with many familiar faces and hoping this year's experience, along with a staff shakeup and some hits in the transfer portal, will be the magical formula. As of now, they've at least secured a foundation to work from. This offseason was never going to see Deion at Colorado levels of roster turnover, but it's understandable if some also wonder how much is too much coming back from 3-9. 

New OC: Jake Spavital is the Bears' new play-caller as he returns to Texas, and the program returns to more of a spread attack. The Bears are moving on from their RVO identity under Jeff Grimes, which was glorious when well-equipped in 2021 but a real slog this past season and for some time. I'm looking forward to seeing how the personnel fits around his plan of attack. Something needed to change, and offense sells tickets. But how does Baylor's unit stand out from the pack in a state and landscape flooded with flashy offenses? That's one of many challenges ahead. We learned Spavital will take over QBs, and Shawn Bell will remain on staff, moving back to TE coach, which is excellent. So, now all eyes move toward RB and OL assistants. 

CFP Money: I would have preferred any of the other 13 teams in the conference to get the job done, but Texas's run to the CFP will bank a nice payout on their way out for the Big 12. 

Aranda Convo: Getting Aranda to join us at our SicEm 365 studio last Friday was terrific, so check it out if you haven't already. I think it was a good PR and transparency move for the program and healthy for all involved. We'll also hear more from Aranda and the Bears' new OC at Jake Spavital's introductory press conference today (Monday). 

Big 12 Awards: This is more like' The Meh' between good and bad. Unsurprisingly, a 3-9 team doesn't have robust all-conference representation. And there are also four extra teams with players competing for spots. But the Bears only landed honorable mentions on this year's all-conference team. Still, the seven honorees included Monaray Baldwin, Drake Dabney, TJ Franklin, Gabe Hall, Caden Jenkins, Matt Jones, and Dawson Pendergrass. Three of those players are now expected back next season, although, in this era, there should always be a "card subject to change" disclaimer attached until the opening kickoff. 

Ben Sims: Congrats to the former Baylor tight end on his big moment in a big win for Green Bay. 

THE BAD 

Dabney Decision: Tight end Drake Dabney announced his intention to enter the transfer portal, which isn't a complete shocker. The NFL Draft was a possibility, but instead, he'll finish his college career elsewhere. Perhaps he remains in the Big 12, but that's life in this era of CFB, and Baylor also hopes to benefit from the same system over the coming weeks and months. I'm intrigued to see where Dabney lands, but it's a definite loss from a production and talent standpoint. 

CFP/NY6 Money: The Longhorns will bring in $6 million as a CFP participant, but the Big 12 missed out on an extra $4 million thanks to the New Year's Six snub of SEC-bound Oklahoma. Moving forward, it's up to the remaining Big 12 to return to those games. But easier said than done, as we saw firsthand this weekend. 

Moving On: In all seriousness, AJ Steward, we hardly knew ye. And thanks for the fond memories, Eric Mateos. Steward's next landing spot remains to be seen, but Mateos has already landed on Sam Pittman's staff at Arkansas after three seasons at the helm of Baylor's offensive line. Staff moves are expected following a new coordinator hire—best of luck to both men. 

2024 Decommit: While the roster gets worked over, there's one less high school addition for 2024 as Utah LB Bo Tate decommitted this weekend. Apparently, he's pretty hot towards Stanford now. It was expected to be a smaller class, but Tate's exit leaves the class at just 13 commits. 

Too Many?: The Bears have seen over half the roster announce their return. But that still leaves 30-40 spots uncertain as of press time. The recruiting class will take some of that up, although that number fluctuates, as seen above. We'll know more in a couple of weeks when the early signing period takes place. But Aranda and company have secured a large percentage of this year's production. Is that good news or bad news coming off 3-9? I can see both sides now, but there's much more in store. 

THE UGLY 

Mission Failed: You had ten chances, Big 12 teams, to knock off the Longhorns, and only SEC-bound OU held up their end of the bargain. Saturday's conference title outcome is what I feared, as nothing pointed toward the Cowboys having a good crack at wrangling the Longhorns. As a result, Texas ends its Big 12 run with eternal conference bragging rights and gets to play for a National Championship. It was a disappointing showing by the league in their final attempts at the last laugh. 

Playoff Mess: "More playoff teams will diminish the importance of our precious regular season," some pundits say. Nothing was more of a middle finger to the importance of the regular season than the CFP committee's decision to leave out unbeaten FSU. At one time, all you could do was win every game in front of you. And now they've finally shown that it doesn't always matter either. The masks are off, and another potentially transformational offseason becomes even more heated.