Baylor's Jayden McGowan Makes His Mark in Win over Prairie View A&M

WACO, Texas – With just over a minute to go in the first quarter and Baylor holding onto a 10-3 lead, the offense was looking for more.

Quarterback Nate Bennett (Jr.) caught the snap and took a two-step drop, his eyes never leaving the right side of the field, with the lone receiver over there being wide receiver Jayden McGowan (5Sr.).

Bennett loaded up as McGowan created separation the further he got into the route, all the way until he hauled in an effortless pass into the back of the end zone.

Sure, it’s a touchdown score in a game that Baylor (1-1) were overwhelming favorites in, but for McGowan, it was a release and return to form for a player that has struggled to get those chances due to injury.

“Man, it’s been such a blessing,” McGowan said after the victory. “It’s been so long since I was able to play ball; I ended up missing the whole last season, so I’m just so thankful for the opportunity to play again.”

As a matter of fact, it was McGowan’s first touchdown since 2023.

McGowan broke out in his first two seasons at Vanderbilt in 2022 and 2023, racking up 836 receiving yards and three touchdowns, while also working as a primary kick/punt returner. He even returned a kick for a score in 2023.

Ever since then, he’s struggled to find the field, with just three catches in the past two years, in trips to Boston College and Charlotte.

McGowan shared his first touchdown in three years with another first: Bennett's first career touchdown, as he made his introductory start on Saturday.

“It's very special,” McGowan said. “I mean, going through camp, I work with Nate a lot, so being able to see him putting all this work in, even though he's been going with the second group behind DJ, he's been working just as hard. He's been preparing the starter, and it's so nice to see him finally get him for the touchdown.”

When examining the wide receiver crop of the transfer portal, Baylor head coach Dave Aranda handpicked McGowan as a guy that can have a legitimate role in the offense and special teams, despite the injury history.

“He’s someone that's coming back from surgery himself, and he's been in a couple schools, and you look at the film from a couple schools ago, he’s way dynamic, unbelievably dynamic film,” Aranda said.

When McGowan got to Baylor, Aranda still felt McGowan wasn’t at 100% yet and still needed some time to recover from a season-ending knee injury in his first game at Charlotte last year.

“When he first got here, his knee was a little gimpy, but he's healthy now, and he's fast, and so we got to get him the ball a little bit more,” Aranda said.

He showed his shiftiness on his second touchdown on a swing pass that was thrown behind the line of scrimmage. Right as he caught it, he stopped on a dime to make the crashing defensive back miss, before turning upfield and having a pair of blocks ease the way to a 13-yard rushing score, the lone touchdown of the second half.

He’s picked up where he left off on punt-returning duties as well, with 27 return yards on three attempts.

McGowan looks up to fellow wide receiver Gavin Freeman (5Sr.), who currently leads the nation in receptions at 22.

“I feed off of Gavin, and he feeds off of me,” McGowan said. “He plays probably the hardest on the team, and whenever I see him practicing hard, it motivates me to go harder.”

The Bears were hoping that with Jadon Porter (Jr.) out with an injury on Saturday, they could go deep into the depth chart and find a guy who could break out. Through his deep speed, agility and elusiveness, McGowan proved on Saturday that he can be a threat.

“We're at a spot where we were looking for someone, and he was available, and he has loved everything about Baylor, and has really kind of taken up, and he's smiling more than I thought he would,” Aranda said. “I thought when he first came in here, it was going to be time, as he was kind of a tough nut to crack, but he's really taken to the community and the school, and it's cool to see him have success.”