Underrated Performer for Baylor against No. 22 BYU: Elinus Noel III

Saturday was, unfortunately, much of the same for Baylor (2-3, 0-2) as it fell to No. 22 BYU (5-0, 2-0) 34-28 at McLane Stadium. The Bears got off to another slow start and looked disengaged throughout the first half as the Cougars dominated them.

Like they’ve done all season, the defense finally came to life in the second half and gave Baylor a pulse as they completely shut down BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff (Jr.). After putting up 286 yards of offense on Baylor in the first half, BYU could only muster up 81 total yards in the second half.

It’s a trend that Baylor has maintained all season, as opponents are averaging 107.6 yards of total offense in the second half compared to 185.4 in the first half. You would like to find some consistency, but at this point, this is just who Baylor is under Dave Aranda.

It also didn’t help that Baylor was without a significant portion of their roster due to injuries and disciplinary reasons against BYU. One player who took advantage of those circumstances was defensive lineman Elinus Noel III (Sr.).

The Bears desperately need someone to become a disrupter in the middle of their defensive line, and Noel delivered on Saturday. His highlight of the game was the interception of Retzlaff off a tipped pass, but I’m still a little baffled by his decision to try and pitch it to linebacker Keaton Thomas (RSo.). 

Noel’s interception marked the first of his career, and he finished the game with three tackles, including his first TFL of the season. Baylor will need all hands on deck this week to help avoid an 0-3 start to Big 12 play as they head to Ames on Saturday to face No.16 Iowa State (4-0, 1-0).