2026 Baylor

4–⁠2 (2–⁠1 Big 12), coached by Dave Aranda. The season’s Wikipedia article records 4–⁠1, over five games to the six on file here.

Schedule and results

Baylor in 2026, game by game: lost vs. Auburn 16–17; won vs. Prairie View A&M 44–3; won vs. Louisiana Tech 36–19; won vs. Colorado 23–13; won at Arizona State 55–19; lost vs. TCU 6–17+41−11Lost 16–17 vs. Auburn-1AuburnWon 44–3 vs. Prairie View A&M+41Prairie View A&MWon 36–19 vs. Louisiana Tech+17Louisiana TechWon 23–13 vs. Colorado+10ColoradoWon 55–19 at Arizona State+36Arizona StateLost 6–17 vs. TCU-11TCU
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 5vsAuburnL 16–⁠1747%
Sep 12vsPrairie View A&MW 44–⁠374%
Sep 19vsLouisiana TechW 36–⁠1960%
Sep 26vsColoradoW 23–⁠1368%
Oct 3atArizona StateW 55–⁠1939%
Oct 17vsTCUL 6–⁠1762%
Oct 24atKansasPreview55%
Oct 30atUCFPreview54%
Nov 7vsIowa StatePreview57%
Nov 14atBYUPreview21%
Nov 21vsTexas TechPreview34%
Nov 28atHoustonPreview31%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

Record
4–⁠2
Conference
2–⁠1 tied for 5th in Big 12
AP now
Unranked
Points
180–⁠88
Coach
Dave Aranda
Elo
1551 +63 this season
SP+ rating
12.7 No. 27 of 138; offense No. 42, defense No. 24, special teams No. 9
SRS
8.9 No. 36 of 138 in FBS
Returning
60% of last season’s EPA, No. 40 of 136
Recruiting class
No. 57 roster talent No. 43 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Jake Spavital
Defensive coordinator
Joe Klanderman
Offense
Bear raid
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense87th of 138
  • Defense11th of 138
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted48th of 138
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted34th of 138
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0735%1.4587th of 138
Defense-0.0538%1.1211th of 138
Opponent-adjusted0.14 off
0.05 def
40% off
40% def
—48th off
34th def

Passing and running

Pass successDepth of targetDeep throwsLine yardsStuffed
Offense38%10.0 yds17%3.0015%
Defense41%7.0 yds9%2.6024%
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played. Passing and running: depth of target is how far downfield passes traveled in the air; deep throws are the share thrown deep, of the passes whose depth and direction the play-by-play describes (about half); line yards are the running yards per carry credited to the blockers; stuffed is the share of carries stopped at or behind the line. The defense’s line is what its opponents did. From CollegeFootballData.com, 2025 on.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.5own 3315% allowed
Defense2.3own 2921% caused

CORE rating 11.0, 26th of 138 (offense 5.5, defense -5.5).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsD.J. Lagway QB1,120 yds
Passing touchdownsD.J. Lagway QB8 TD
Rushing yardsDawson Pendergrass RB328 yds
Rushing touchdownsCaden Knighten RB2 TD
Receiving yardsGavin Freeman WR555 yds
Receiving touchdownsJayden McGowan WR3 TD
TacklesTravion Barnes LB35 tkl
SacksBo Onu S3 sacks
InterceptionsDevon Jordan CB2 INT

Top recruits in the 2026 class

Ryelan Morris ATH★★★★No. 291
Jae’Lin Battle DL★★★★No. 330
Donel Robinson OL★★★★No. 374
London Smith WR★★★★No. 469
Davion Peters WR★★★No. 608

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2026 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.871
Running backs13.00.864
Receivers43.30.879
Offensive line14.00.898
Defensive line23.50.886
Linebackers23.00.870
Defensive backs13.00.877
Athletes and specialists23.50.894
Whole class143.30.881

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 112

The 2026 roster

112 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2026 line; 55 have a stat line. See the roster

2026 Big 12 standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Texas Tech3–⁠06–⁠0
BYU3–⁠06–⁠0
Utah3–⁠06–⁠0
Houston3–⁠16–⁠1
Arizona2–⁠15–⁠1
Oklahoma State2–⁠14–⁠2
Baylor2–⁠14–⁠2
Cincinnati1–⁠24–⁠2
Kansas State1–⁠24–⁠2
Iowa State1–⁠23–⁠3
TCU1–⁠23–⁠3
UCF1–⁠23–⁠3
Arizona State1–⁠23–⁠3
West Virginia1–⁠34–⁠3
Kansas0–⁠32–⁠4
Colorado0–⁠32–⁠4

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.