Who Does Baylor Need to Contain in Week 2 vs. BYU?
Both the Baylor Bears and the BYU Cougars go into their Week 2 matchup in Provo having cruised to season-opening victories. The Bears were cozy in the comforts of McLane Stadium in their 69-10 win over FCS foe Albany. The Cougars, on the other hand, traveled to muggy USF and dominated the Bulls, 50-21.
The Cougars had a good offensive day against the Bears last year that did not result in a victory. Baylor coach Dave Aranda, however, is not taking the opposition lightly, especially 24-year-old junior quarterback Jaren Hall.
"He is going to be one of the better quarterbacks we play all year," Baylor coach Dave Aranda said. "The film is impressive in terms of the decisions he makes, the throws he is able to complete, and really the throws he doesn't take, he doesn't put the team at risk."
Hall's stat line from the USF win is similar to Bears quarterback Blake Shapen's from Saturday, going 25-32 for 261 yards, 2 touchdowns and an interception.
Hall also had a formidable day against the Bears last year even though the Cougars lost 38-24, the quarterback threw for 342 yards. The main way the Bears limited him was sacking him five times.
Even after a great game Saturday, Hall deflected the praise postgame.
"A quarterback is only as good as the guys around him," Hall said. "I've got a lot of good guys around me, so I just got to get them the ball."
One of those guys he got the ball to a lot against the Bears in 2021 was wide receiver Puka Nacua, who lit Baylor up for five receptions, 168 yards, and a touchdown. Nacua left the USF game with an injury, but did damage before he left, with only 1 reception for 22 yards but also 3 rushes for 76 yards and 2 touchdowns.
One player who didn't feature in last year's matchup is BYU running back Chris Brooks. The Cal transfer put the nation on notice with his monster debut for the Cougars, going for 135 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown.
"[Brooks] is a physical runner, falls forward, and has great speed," Aranda said. "He is a force."
We will bring live in-game updates Saturday at InsideTheBears.com and live updates on Twitter at @insidethebears_
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Covering Baylor for Inside The Bears and the Locked on Baylor podcast. You can follow me for more Baylor content at @realcamstuart on Twitter. Originally from Rockland, Massachusetts and a Baylor alum, so I might mix the occasional bias and/or Boston sports tweet in there every once in a while.