'Our Focus is to Try to Get Ready For a Game': Aranda Addresses AD Drama, Talks No.13 Utah
The biggest story of Baylor football’s bye week broke last Friday, when OutKick reported that athletic director and College Football Playoff chair Mack Rhoades was the subject of a school investigation following an alleged verbal and physical altercation with star tight end Michael Trigg on Sept. 20, when the Bears faced Arizona State.
When asked if the news surrounding Rhoades has been a distraction inside the program, head coach Dave Aranda responded in his weekly press conference on Monday, saying, “No. That’s an HR deal that’s above my pay grade. The team’s in a good spot. Energy-wise, it was really good. Focus-wise was good. We’ve got a big test ahead of us. It’s going to take our best to put up a challenge and get a win. I think they all recognize that, and we’re all excited for that.”
As for whether there’s tension between Aranda and Rhoades because of the September incident, the sixth-year head coach didn’t tip his hand to say if the relationship between the two is strained.
“Mack and I have always had a good relationship,” Aranda said. “We’ve always been open and have always talked. [He’s] always had free access to say what needs to be said, and I’ve always appreciated that.”
When Aranda was asked another question about the situation — this time by David Smoak of 365 Sports — about whether an athletic director should be involved on the field before or after the game, he quickly pivoted to talk about the task at hand.
“I think all of those questions — I understand all of the interest in them. Our focus is to try to get ready for a game. This is a huge game for us. This is a game we need to win. We’re in an instance where, similar to last year, we have to win all the rest of these games,” Aranda said.
He added, “The focus needs to be on 1-0 today and 1-0 tomorrow and 1-0 the next day and stack those up, so that we can get a 1-0 on Saturday night. The focus is very much that. I think all of these things, as they play out, will play out however they play out, but we have to win this game, and we have to play our best. This is a team that’s embarrassed a fair amount of teams, and we’re not looking to be that next team.”
The drama surrounding Rhoades adds a layer of complexity to the current situation within the program, where Aranda, firmly entrenched on the hot seat, is essentially fighting for his job and needs an improbable upset over No. 13 Utah this weekend to continue to make a case for his return.
“This is a game we need,” Aranda noted. “This is a game that we have to play well in. This is a game that we’ve got guys that want to play at the next level and want to do all the things; they need this game. We, as a program, need this game. It’s an important one.”
Before the bye week, Baylor had its first complete performance of the season, where the Bears dominated UCF on both sides of the ball and picked up a 30-3 win in the process. Considering how well his squad played on Nov. 1, Aranda would have preferred that Baylor not have a second bye week, which could interrupt the good mojo.
“Probably so,” Aranda said when asked if he wanted the Bears to keep playing after the UCF game. “The energy was good today. We talked about this last week in the practices that we had, how important it is to start fast and do the things that we’ve been really working hard to do and have failed to do up until this last one. I think everyone’s on the same page about what the prescription is and what has to happen here in these last couple of games.”
As for what to expect from head coach Kyle Whittingham and his No. 13 Utes, Aranda talked very highly of Utah, saying, “Numbers-wise, this is the most unique [offense] for sure. They present challenges in surfaces and in angles. Every Utah team that I’ve ever known has been really physical. This is hitting all three of those marks.”
Where Utah is most dangerous is in the ground game, which will be a tough task for Baylor’s defense to slow down. The Utes boast two projected first-round picks on the offensive line, a litany of talented running backs, and a quarterback, Devon Dampier, who has rushed for 520 yards and five touchdowns on 96 carries.
“A lot of it is set up for the quarterback to run,” Aranda said. “Our name for it is ‘BASH,’ but there will be a running back run this way and there will be a quarterback run this way, so you have to be really disciplined on whether you’re on the East Coast or if you’re living on the West Coast, and don’t get them mixed up.”
The Bears (5-4, 3-3) will face the Utes (7-2, 4-2) at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 15, at McLane Stadium. The game will be nationally televised on ESPN2.
