2023 Baylor Bears football
ConferenceBig 12 Conference
Record3–9 (2–7 Big 12)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJeff Grimes (3rd season)
Offensive schemeMultiple
Defensive coordinatorMatt Powledge (1st season)
Base defense3–4
Home stadiumMcLane Stadium
Uniform
Seasons
← 2022
2024 →
2023 Big 12 Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 3 Texas y$^   8 – 1     12 – 2  
No. 16 Oklahoma State y   7 – 2     10 – 4  
No. 15 Oklahoma   7 – 2     10 – 3  
Iowa State   6 – 3     7 – 6  
No. 18 Kansas State   6 – 3     9 – 4  
West Virginia   6 – 3     9 – 4  
Texas Tech   5 – 4     7 – 6  
No. 23 Kansas   5 – 4     9 – 4  
UCF   3 – 6     6 – 7  
TCU   3 – 6     5 – 7  
Houston   2 – 7     4 – 8  
BYU   2 – 7     5 – 7  
Baylor   2 – 7     3 – 9  
Cincinnati   1 – 8     3 – 9  
Championship: Texas 49, Oklahoma State 21
  • ^ – College Football Playoff participant
  • $ – Conference champion
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2023 Baylor Bears football team represented Baylor University in the Big 12 Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bears were led by Dave Aranda in his fourth season as their head coach.

Baylor was picked sixth out of 14 teams in the preseason media poll of the conference. It was not ranked in the national top 25 polls of media or coaches, though the team did receive some votes.

The Bears played eight of their 12 regular season games at home, the largest number in school history[1] and the most home games in the NCAA FBS this year, along with Penn State, Arizona State and Mississippi State.[2]

This was the first season with Big 12 membership at 14 teams, after the realignment upheaval of the preceding years, which saw the league add four teams (BYU, UCF, Houston and Cincinnati). Consequently, the football schedule was no longer a "round robin" in which every team plays every other team, as was the practice when the league had 10 teams. The league continued to play nine intra-conference games; therefore, the Bears in 2023 did not play BYU, Kansas, Oklahoma State or Oklahoma, which (along with Texas) was in its final year with the league before moving to the SEC. The Bears played three of the four newcomers.

Five Baylor players were named to national preseason watch lists for the following awards:

The Bears played their home games at McLane Stadium in Waco, Texas, its 10th year of hosting play.

The Bears failed to qualify for a bowl game and suffered their first losing season since 2020 following their loss to Kansas State.

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 26:00 p.m.Texas State*
ESPN+L 31–4244,945
September 911:00 a.m.No. 12 Utah*
  • McLane Stadium
  • Waco, TX
ESPNL 13–2043,732
September 1611:00 a.m.LIU*
  • McLane Stadium
  • Waco, TX
ESPN+W 30–743,732
September 236:30 p.m. No. 3 Texas
  • McLane Stadium
  • Waco, TX
ABCL 6–3849,165
September 302:30 p.m.at UCF
FS1W 36–3544,005
October 77:00 p.m.Texas Tech
ESPN2L 14–3944,620
October 2111:00 a.m.at Cincinnati
ESPN+W 32–2938,193
October 282:30 p.m.Iowa Statedagger
  • McLane Stadium
  • Waco, TX
ESPN+L 18–3043,528
November 42:30 p.m.Houston
  • McLane Stadium
  • Waco, TX
ESPN+L 24–25 OT41,180
November 112:00 p.m.at No. 25 Kansas State
ESPN+L 25–5951,790
November 182:30 p.m.at TCU
ESPN+L 17–4242,621
November 256:00 p.m.West Virginia
  • McLane Stadium
  • Waco, TX
FS1L 31–3436,200

[3]

Game summaries

vs. Texas State

See also: 2023 Texas State Bobcats football team
Texas State Bobcats (0–0) vs. Baylor Bears (0–0)
Period 1 2 34Total
Texas State 14 14 7742
Baylor 6 7 11731

at McLane Stadium • Waco, TX

  • Date: Saturday, September 2, 2023
  • Game time: 6:00 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 99 °F (37 °C)
  • Game attendance: 44,945
  • Referee: David Alvarez
  • TV announcers (ESPN+): Peter Sousa and LaDarrin McLane
  • Pregame line: Baylor –26.5
Statistics Texas State Baylor
First downs 20 22
Plays–yards 69–441 76–524
Rushes–yards 39–143 32–108
Passing yards 298 416
Passing: comp–att–int 22–30–0 27–44–1
Time of possession 26:12 33:48
Team Category Player Statistics
Texas State Passing TJ Finley 22–30, 298 yards, 3 TD
Rushing Ismail Mahdi 6 carries, 83 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Joey Hobert 6 receptions, 105 yards, 1 TD
Baylor Passing Blake Shapen 21–31, 303 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Dominic Richardson 16 carries, 84 yards
Receiving Drake Dabney 6 receptions, 101 yards, 2 TD

vs. Utah

See also: 2023 Utah Utes football team
No. 12 Utah Utes (1–0) vs. Baylor Bears (0–1)
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 12 Utah 0 3 31420
Baylor 0 10 3013

at McLane Stadium • Waco, TX

  • Date: Saturday, September 9, 2022
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m. CDT
  • Game weather: sunny • Temperature: 90 °F (32 °C)
  • Game attendance: 43,732
  • Referee: Christopher Wiggins
  • TV announcers (ESPN): Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Robert Griffin III (analyst), Kris Budden (sideline)
  • Pregame line: Baylor +7.0
Statistics Utah Baylor
First downs 20 14
Plays–yards 73–377 57–339
Rushes–yards 47–224 29–121
Passing yards 153 218
Passing: comp–att–int 12–26–1 12–28–2
Time of possession 36:17 23:43
Team Category Player Statistics
Utah Passing Nate Johnson 6–7, 82 yards
Rushing Ja'Quinden Jackson 19 carries, 13 yards
Receiving Mikey Matthews 4 receptions, 48 yards
Baylor Passing Sawyer Robertson 12–28, 218 yards, 1 INT
Rushing Dominic Richardson 14 carries, 81 yards
Receiving Ketron Jackson, Jr. 4 receptions, 72 yards

vs. LIU

See also: 2023 LIU Sharks football team
LIU Sharks (0–2) vs. Baylor Bears (0–2)
Period 1 2 34Total
LIU 0 7 007
Baylor 7 9 7730

at McLane Stadium • Waco, TX

  • Date: Saturday, September 16, 2023
  • Game time: 11:00 a.m. CDT
  • Game weather: rain • Temperature: 76°F
  • Game attendance: 43,732
  • Referee: Nate Black
  • TV: ESPN+
  • Pregame line: Baylor –44.0
Statistics LIU Baylor
First downs 10 26
Plays–yards 43–143 75–391
Rushes–yards 29–143 48–270
Passing yards 40 121
Passing: comp–att–int 6–14–1 13–27–0
Time of possession 23:36 36:24
Team Category Player Statistics
LIU Passing Chris Howell 4–10, 41 yards, 1 INT
Rushing Jaden Dawkins 1 carry, 42 yards
Receiving Aviyon Smith Mack 1 reception, 35 yards
Baylor Passing Sawyer Robertson 10–22, 113 yards, 1 TD
Rushing Dawson Pendergrass 21 carries, 111 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Ketron Jackson, Jr. 2 receptions, 29 yards

vs. Texas

See also: 2023 Texas Longhorns football team
No. 3 Texas Longhorns (3–0) vs. Baylor Bears (1–2)
Period 1 2 34Total
No. 3 Texas 7 21 10038
Baylor 3 3 006

at McLane Stadium • Waco, TX

  • Date: Saturday, September 23, 2023
  • Game time: 6:30 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: sunny • Temperature: 97°F
  • Game attendance: 49,165
  • Referee: Derek Anderson
  • TV announcers (ABC): Dave Pasch, Dusty Dvoracek, and Tom Luginbill
  • Pregame line: Baylor +14.5
Statistics Texas Baylor
First downs 24 19
Plays–yards 59–503 84–365
Rushes–yards 34–75 31–60
Passing yards 328 305
Passing: comp–att–int 19–25–0 29-53-1
Time of possession 26:30 33:30
Team Category Player Statistics
Texas Passing Quinn Ewers 18-23, 293 yards, 1 TD
Rushing Jonathon Brooks 18 carries, 106 yards, 2 TD
Receiving Ja'Tavion Sanders 5 receptions, 110 yards
Baylor Passing Sawyer Robertson 20-35, 203 yards, 1 INT
Rushing RJ Martinez 3 carries, 22 yards
Receiving Monaray Baldwin 3 receptions, 81 yards

at UCF

See also: 2023 UCF Knights football team
Baylor Bears (1–3) vs. UCF Knights (3–1)
Period 1 2 34Total
Baylor 7 0 32636
UCF 21 7 7035

at FBC Mortgage Stadium • Orlando, FL

  • Date: Saturday, September 30, 2023
  • Game time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: cloudy • Temperature: 83 °F (28 °C)
  • Game attendance: 44,005
  • Referee: Henry Johns
  • TV announcers (FS1): Eric Collins and Devin Gardner
  • Pregame line: Baylor +8.0 • Gamecast
Statistics Baylor UCF
First downs 22 18
Plays–yards 77–446 61–469
Rushes–yards 43–153 35–235
Passing yards 293 234
Passing: comp–att–int 21–34–0 13-26-1
Time of possession 35:31 24:29
Team Category Player Statistics
Baylor Passing Blake Shapen 21-34, 293 yards, 1 TD
Rushing Richard Reese 16 carries, 100 yards
Receiving Monaray Baldwin 7 receptions, 150 yards, 1 TD
UCF Passing Timmy McClain 13-25, 234 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Johnny Richardson 6 carries, 105 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Javon Baker 3 receptions, 113 yards, 1 TD

vs. Texas Tech

See also: 2023 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team
Texas Tech Red Raiders (2–3) vs. Baylor Bears (2–3)
Period 1 2 34Total
Texas Tech 7 10 71539
Baylor 0 3 01114

at McLane Stadium • Waco, TX

  • Date: Saturday, October 7, 2023
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: clear • Temperature: 66 °F (19 °C)
  • Game attendance: 44,620
  • Referee: Michael VanderVelde
  • TV announcers (ESPN2): Brian Custer, Rod Gilmore, and Lauren Sisler
  • Pregame line: Baylor +2.5
Statistics Texas Tech Baylor
First downs 19 17
Plays–yards 68–366 68–341
Rushes–yards 42–186 30–17
Passing yards 180 324
Passing: comp–att–int 19–26–1 22–38–0
Time of possession 30:04 29:56
Team Category Player Statistics
Texas Tech Passing Behren Morton 19–26, 180 yards, 1 INT
Rushing Tahj Brooks 31 carries, 170 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Myles Price 10 receptions, 90 yards
Baylor Passing Blake Shapen 22–38, 324 yards, 1 TD
Rushing Dominic Richardson 9 carries, 26 yards
Receiving Monaray Baldwin 5 receptions, 126 yards

at Cincinnati

See also: 2023 Cincinnati Bearcats football team
Baylor Bears (2–4) vs. Cincinnati Bearcats (2–4)
Period 1 2 34Total
Baylor 3 17 9332
UCF 0 14 01529

at Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH

  • Date: Saturday, October 21, 2023
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: sunny • Temperature: 52 °F (11 °C)
  • Game attendance: 38,193
  • Referee: Kevin Mar
  • TV: ESPN+
  • Pregame line: Baylor +2.5
Statistics Baylor Cincinnati
First downs 22 21
Plays–yards 70–396 74–450
Rushes–yards 28–80 43–288
Passing yards 316 162
Passing: comp–att–int 25–42–0 19-31-0
Time of possession 31:13 28:47
Team Category Player Statistics
Baylor Passing Blake Shapen 25-42, 316 yards, 1 TD
Rushing Dominic Richardson 8 carries, 37 yards
Receiving Ketron Jackson, Jr. 5 receptions, 130 yards
Cincinnati Passing Emory Jones 19-30, 162 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Corey Kiner 15 carries, 129 yards
Receiving Xzavier Henderson 8 receptions, 82 yards, 2 TD

vs. Iowa State

See also: 2023 Iowa State Cyclones football team
Iowa State Cyclones (4–3) vs. Baylor Bears (3–4)
Period 1 2 34Total
Iowa State 7 10 10330
Baylor 0 6 6618

at McLane Stadium • Waco, TX

  • Date: Saturday, October 28, 2023
  • Game time: 2:30 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: rain • Temperature: 71 °F (22 °C) • Wind: SW 8 MPH
  • Game attendance: 43,528
  • Referee: David Alvarez
  • TV announcers (ESPN+): Mark Neely, Barrett Brooks
  • Pregame line: Baylor +3.0
Statistics Iowa State Baylor
First downs 19 17
Plays–yards 66–400 66–306
Rushes–yards 35–162 25–67
Passing yards 238 239
Passing: comp–att–int 19–31–1 24–41–1
Time of possession 33:33 26:27
Team Category Player Statistics
Iowa State Passing Rocco Becht 19–31, 238 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Eli Sanders 14 carries, 90 yards
Receiving Jaylin Noel 8 receptions, 76 yards
Baylor Passing Blake Shapen 24–41, 239 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Dawson Pendergrass 8 carries, 37 yards, 2 TD
Receiving Monaray Baldwin 6 receptions, 117 yards, 1 TD

vs. Houston

See also: 2023 Houston Cougars football team
Houston Cougars (3–5) vs. Baylor Bears (3–5)
Period 1 2 34OTTotal
Houston 0 7 37825
Baylor 0 0 710724

at McLane Stadium • Waco, TX

  • Date: Saturday, November 4, 2023
  • Game time: 2:30 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: sunny • Temperature: 73°F
  • Game attendance: 41,180
  • Referee: Derek Anderson
  • TV: ESPN+
  • Pregame line: Baylor –2.5
Statistics Houston Baylor
First downs 21 22
Plays–yards 59–366 72–413
Rushes–yards 32–130 35–150
Passing yards 236 263
Passing: comp–att–int 21–27–2 29–37–1
Time of possession 26:39 33:21
Team Category Player Statistics
Houston Passing Donovan Smith 21–27, 236 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing Donovan Smith 20 carries, 66 yards, 1 TD
Receiving Samuel Brown 9 receptions, 86 yards, 1 TD
Baylor Passing Blake Shapen 29–37, 263 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing Dominic Richardson 11 carries, 51 yards
Receiving Drake Dabney 4 receptions, 76 yards, 1 TD

Personnel

Roster

2022 Baylor Bears Football

Quarterback

  • 12 Blake Shapen – Redshirt junior (6'0, 206)
  • 13 Sawyer Robertson – Redshirt sophomore (6'4, 220)
  • 15 RJ Martinez - junior (5'11, 213)
  • 17 Cade Tessier – freshman (6'3, 217)
  • 18 Brayson McHenry – Redshirt freshman (5'11, 198)

Running back

  • 21 Dominic Richardson – junior (6'1, 204)
  • 23 Jordan Jenkins – Redshirt sophomore (6'1, 217)
  • 25 Jacoby Clarke – Redshirt senior (5'10, 230)
  • 29 Richard Reese – sophomore (5'9, 179)
  • 30 Bryson Washington - freshman (6'0, 204)
  • 35 Dawson Pendergrass - freshman (6'2, 212)

Wide receiver

  • 11 Ketron Jackson Jr – junior (6'3, 208)
  • 14 Armani Winfield – Redshirt freshman (6'2, 200)
  • 16 Hal Presley – junior (6'2, 196)
  • 17 Jonah Burton - Redshirt sophomore (5'10, 197)
  • 18 Jordan Nabors – sophomore (5'11, 189)
  • 19 Javon Gipson – Redshirt sophomore (6'3, 213)
  • 24 Landry Kinne – Redshirt junior (6'0, 187)
  • 34 Josh Cameron – Redshirt sophomore (6'1, 215)
  • 80 Monaray Baldwin – junior (5'9, 168)
  • 81 Jonathan Davidson – Redshirt junior (6'1, 208)
  • 84 Cameron Bonner – Redshirt sophomore (5'11, 186)
  • 88 Micah Gifford - freshman (6'3, 203)

Tight end

  • 43 Gavin Yates - junior (6'3, 230)
  • 44 Mark Patton - Redshirt junior (6'4, 253)
  • 45 Hawkins Polley - freshman (6'3, 250)
  • 49 Jonathan Steinhauer - freshman (6'6, 242)
  • 82 Cody Mladenka - Redshirt freshman (6'4, 242)
  • 85 Matthew Klopfenstein - freshman (6'4, 246)
  • 86 Jake Roberts - junior (6'5, 248)
  • 87 Kelsey Johnson - sophomore (6'2, 248)
  • 89 Drake Dabney - senior (6'5, 248)

Placekicker

  • 96 Bryce Boland – Redshirt junior (5'11, 172)
  • 97 Hayden Arnold - freshman (5'8, 180)
  • 98 Isaiah Hankins – Redshirt sophomore (6'0, 192)
  • 99 Jack Stone – sophomore (5'11, 197)

Punter

  • 94 Palmer Williams – freshman (6'2, 183)
  

Offensive line

  • 50 Connor Heffernan – Redshirt sophomore (6'3, 294)
  • 53 Campbell Barrington - junior (6'6, 299)
  • 54 Timothy Dawn – Redshirt freshman (6'2, 306)
  • 56 Clark Barrington - 5th year senior (6'5, 306)
  • 57 Wes Tucker – freshman (6'5, 294)
  • 58 Gavin Byers – senior (6'5, 318)
  • 61 Cayden Tone - freshman (6'4, 272)
  • 62 Ryan Lengyel – Redshirt sophomore (6'5, 305)
  • 65 Sean Thompkins – freshman (6'5, 290)
  • 70 Bryce Simpson – Redshirt freshman (6'5, 286)
  • 71 MJ Ruhman – Redshirt sophomore (6'4, 291)
  • 72 Coleton Price – Redshirt freshman (6'2, 305)
  • 73 George Maile – Redshirt freshman (6'3, 305)
  • 74 Kaden Sieracki – Redshirt freshman (6'8, 318)
  • 75 Elijah Ellis – Redshirt senior (6'6, 307)
  • 76 Isaiah Robinson – freshman (6'6, 299)
  • 77 Tate Williams – Redshirt sophomore (6'4, 301)
  • 79 Alvin Ebosele – Redshirt freshman (6'6, 304)

Defensive line

  • 9 TJ Franklin – 5th year senior (6'5, 269)
  • 35 Jackie Marshall - Redshirt sophomore (6'3, 265)
  • 48 Treven Ma'ae - Redshirt junior (6'5, 296)
  • 50 Kaian Roberts-Day - Redshirt freshman (6'3, 274)
  • 54 David Marshall Jr – sophomore (6'0, 278)
  • 57 Prince Ugoh – Redshirt sophomore (6'1, 227)
  • 59 Devonte Tezino – Redshirt freshman (6'5, 286)
  • 90 Brendan Bett – freshman (6'5, 290)
  • 91 Trey Wilson - freshman (6'3, 259)
  • 92 Trent Thomas - freshman (6'3, 237)
  • 93 DK Kalu - freshman (6'4, 270)
  • 94 BoChao Jin – Redshirt junior (6'0, 277)
  • 95 Gabe Hall – senior (6'6, 292)
  • 96 Justin Sambu – 5th year senior (6'4, 284)
  • 97 Cooper Lanz – Redshirt sophomore (6'3, 273)
  • 98 Jerrell Boykins Jr – Redshirt sophomore (6'4, 330)
  • 99 Tre Emory – Redshirt freshman (6'2, 308)

Long snapper

  • 26 Garrison Grimes – Redshirt sophomore (6'2, 216)
  • 93 Dylan Schaub – freshman (6'5, 226)
  

Linebacker

  • 2 Matt Jones – Redshirt senior (6'3, 251)
  • 32 Carmello Jones – Redshirt freshman (6'1, 225)
  • 36 Tyrone M. Brown – Redshirt sophomore (5'11, 233)
  • 40 Mike Smith Jr - 5th year senior (6'1, 231)
  • 41 Brooks Miller – Redshirt junior (6'1, 229)
  • 42 Jeremy Evans – Redshirt freshman (6'1, 216)
  • 44 Josh White – Redshirt junior (6'0, 215)
  • 49 Trey Laurence – freshman (6'0, 209)
  • 56 Braden Strauss – Redshirt junior (5'11, 215)
  • 58 Jaden Maronen – Redshirt sophomore (5'10, 220)

Outside linebacker

  • 45 Byron Vaughns – 5th year senior (6'4, 242)
  • 46 Tony Anyanwu – junior (6'2, 243)
  • 51 Kyler Jordan – Redshirt freshman (6'1, 235)
  • 52 Corey Kelly - freshman (6'3, 218)
  • 55 Garmon Randolph – Redshirt senior (6'7, 250)

Cornerback

  • 13 Isaiah Dunson – sophomore (6'1, 186)
  • 15 Carl Williams IV - freshman (6'1, 180)
  • 19 Caden Jenkins - freshman (6'1, 173)
  • 21 Chateau Reed – Redshirt junior (6'2, 190)
  • 22 Reggie Bush – Redshirt freshman (6'0, 191)
  • 25 LeVar Thornton Jr - freshman (6'3, 175)
  • 27 Tevin Williams III – Redshirt sophomore (6'0, 188)
  • 34 MJ Artmore Jr - freshman (6'0, 191)
  • 37 Tay'Shawn Wilson - freshman (5'9, 178)

Safety

  • 7 Bryson Jackson – 7th year senior (6'2, 209)
  • 12 Alfonzo Allen – sophomore (5'11, 194)
  • 20 Devin Lemear – Redshirt sophomore (5'11, 187)
  • 24 Corey Gordon Jr. – Redshirt freshman (6'2, 191)
  • 28 Devin Bobby – sophomore (5'10, 186)
  • 29 Romario Noel – Redshirt sophomore (6'3, 210)
  • 30 Michael Allen – Redshirt freshman (5'7, 183)
  • 33 DJ Coleman – freshman (6'0, 194)
  • 38 Jacob Redding - freshman (6'0, 187)
  • 39 Michael Mastrodicasa – Redshirt sophomore (6'0, 196)
  • 47 Caleb Parker – Redshirt junior (5'11, 205)

References

  1. ^ "Football Opens 2023 Season with Texas State". BaylorBears.com. August 28, 2023. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  2. ^ Mike Huguenin (March 7, 2023). "Breaking down the 2023 college football schedule, league-by-league". Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  3. ^ "2023 Baylor Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved December 25, 2022.


Categories