Spring Football Spotlight: Baylor's Cornerbacks Embrace Change Under Paul Gonzales

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Following Baylor's first scrimmage of the fall last Saturday, April 5, first-year cornerbacks coach Paul Gonzales spoke with the media and talked highly of his position group, saying, "Right now, it's just about getting comfortable with the schematics, getting comfortable in my coaching style and executing the techniques the way we need them executed at a high level. These guys are taking steps every day in that direction."

Last fall, the secondary was arguably the biggest weakness on head coach Dave Aranda's squad. Shortly after the season ended, Aranda parted ways with cornerback coach Kevin Curtis and hired Gonzales away from rival TCU for the same position.

Gonzales arrived in Waco, offering a "clean slate" to all of the cornerbacks on the roster and wants to give each player the opportunity to "show what they can do" and carve out their roles.

"The group is competing," Gonzales said. "They know, like, 'Hey, every day is going to be a new evaluation and we're going to be comprehensive when we get to the end of spring.' Right now, for me, there are no starters. Everybody's competing for the job, and I think that's a big deal for them to understand that, like, 'Hey, nothing's been set in stone here.' I feel good about where we're headed."

Jack Mackenzie - SicEm365.com

First-year cornerbacks coach Paul Gonzales was hired this offseason away from rival TCU.

Gonzales mentioned that all of the cornerbacks have managed to stay healthy this spring, but the depth is a "work in progress" as they continue to determine where each piece fits.

"We'll get to the 15th practice, reevaluate the room and figure out whether we need to add anything to it or if we're good with what we have and shuffle some guys around on the roster," he said.

As for why Gonzales became the latest Horned Frog to switch allegiances to the Bears, he says it came down to multiple factors, including working with Aranda and the belief that Baylor can take another step as a program.

"The opportunity to learn from Coach Aranda was a big piece of this," he said. "Staying in the state of Texas and being able to recruit kids from this state is a big deal for me as well — that's what I've been able to do for the majority of my career. I'm just excited about what we're building here. This place has the bones and the pedigree to be a championship-level program. They've proven it in the past, and I think we can continue to do that here."

Gonzales was already familiar with the secondary personnel on Baylor's roster due to high school recruiting, but got a better idea when the Horned Frogs lost to the Bears, 37-34, on Nov. 2, 2024.

"We got to play against them, so I saw the product live in person," he said. "I felt like, from a talent standpoint, they had some pieces here. When you're taking a new job, or considering taking a new job, you always have to evaluate the talent on the roster and figure out how that compares to where you're at."

One of those pieces is rising junior cornerback Caden Jenkins. After earning Freshman All-American honors in 2023, Jenkins had an up-and-down 2024 campaign. He hauled in one interception but surrendered the Hail Mary against Colorado and had a 65.1 pass-coverage grade from Pro Football Focus, the sixth-best rating on the team.

Gonzales believes Jenkins has taken a step forward this spring, saying, "Caden has a lot of tools and a lot of upside; I really like his savvy at the position. Probably the biggest thing watching the film coming in was just the eye discipline. If we can get him to stay assignment disciplined and play his one-eleventh, that's going to help and it'll put him in the right position to make the plays that he's capable of making."

The secondary's struggles last season weren't just limited to Jenkins, however. Baylor allowed over 234 passing yards per game — the fourth-highest mark in the Big 12. Under Gonzales' guidance, the cornerback room is using the rough memories of the 2024 season as motivation this spring.

"We had our ups and downs, so our whole MO for this season has just been [being] consistent play by play, doing the same thing over and over," redshirt senior cornerback Tevin Williams III said.

Redshirt sophomore LeVar Thornton added, "We were probably one of the worst defensive coverage units in college football, so I would say this year we just need to stop being so handsy and stop grabbing, stop with all the PIs and all the just easy, free yards that were given to other offenses."

Following last season's struggles, the cornerbacks are embracing the addition of a new coach, with Williams saying, "Coach Gonzalez has been doing a great job with us. There's definitely more attention to detail for our position group, but I feel like overall, it's been a positive change for us. You see a lot of guys taking the coaching better. I'm looking forward to more with him."

Jack Mackenzie - SicEm365.com

Baylor’s secondary is looking to improve after struggling for much of the 2024 season.

Thornton believes the reset was much needed, noting, "Starting fresh is like taking a deep breath. Starting over and having a new guy coming, and let him rebuild you from the ground up. Whatever techniques and stuff like that he wants you to do, you learn it and roll with it."

One of the offseason additions to help bolster the secondary was Ohio State transfer Calvin Simpson-Hunt, a former top-100 prospect and four-star recruit in the 2023 class. Simpson-Hunt redshirted as a freshman in 2023 and was a key member of OSU's special teams unit last fall; he has three years of eligibility left.

After winning a National Championship with the Buckeyes, Simpson-Hunt had a chaotic couple of weeks entering the transfer portal and ultimately enrolling at Baylor a week and a half into the spring semester. The Waxahachie native chose Baylor because of his connections with safeties coach Matthew Powledge and the opportunity to return to the Lone Star State.

"It's close to home, but not too far, but not too close at the same time," Simpson-Hunt said. "The culture here is real nice, especially being a Christian school. Where I came from, being heavy in faith is really, really what drives winning teams."

On the field, Simpson-Hunt is a physical 6-foot-0, 205-pound cornerback with fast feet and a hard-noses playstyle. Off the field, he brings a championship pedigree to a locker room with Big 12 Championship and College Football Playoff aspirations in 2025.

"It was a different and once-in-a-lifetime experience," Simpson-Hunt said of the Buckeyes' title run. "I realized that a very small percentage of players in college actually go through that. The fact that I can say that I've been through that is another experience in itself. I feel like just going through that, I know personally what it takes, or how much work has to be put in in order to reach that far or to even get to that level in the first place."

Other Spring Football Spotlights:

• Baylor's Running Back Room Gears Up for Big Season Ahead
• Led by Robertson & Spavital, Offense Eyes Greater Success
• Baylor’s O-Line Focuses on Improvement and Consistency