10/26/2026 11:56:00 AM | Football, Athletic News, Desk of the AD
Baylor Family,
As you saw, yesterday we made a change in leadership for our football program. Because a transition of this magnitude affects so many in our Baylor Family, I want to take time to share the path forward for our program.
I have the utmost respect for Coach Dave Aranda. As I stated yesterday, some of our greatest Baylor Football memories are directly attributable to Coach Aranda's leadership, and I am thankful for his contributions to Baylor both on and off the field. Whatever might be ahead for him, I am confident he will continue to have a positive impact on the game with his brilliant mind and his compassionate heart for people.
I have asked our defensive coordinator, Coach Joe Klanderman, to serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Please give him and our student-athletes your very best support as they compete and represent us in the coming weeks.
Our goal for the next Baylor Head Football Coach is simple. We want to bring in someone who will launch a generation of consistent winning. There are certainly non-negotiables when it comes to how we win and represent Baylor and its Christian mission, but it is imperative that we win because there is no substitute for how it fuels our priorities, our goals, and our future.
For the right leader, the role of Baylor Head Football Coach will be one of the truly special opportunities in all of college football. Our institutional experience, our mission, and our track record combine to create a value proposition that cannot be replicated.
Thanks to the generosity of the Baylor Family, any list of the nation's top football facilities must include ours. The combination of McLane Stadium, Allison Indoor and the Fudge Football Development Center creates a first-class daily experience for our student-athletes and staff. Our location in the Heart of Central Texas, within a 3-hour drive of over 80% of the population of Texas, gives us access to the best young student-athletes on the planet. And we will continue to work every day to ensure our program is funded to compete for conference titles and College Football Playoffs berths on a regular basis.
Baylor's commitment to our Christian mission while delivering the academic experience of an R1 research institution is a differentiator. Football student-athletes have been acutely affected by all the changes in college athletics in recent years. We believe leaning into our Christian mission with them is more relevant today than ever as the world offers nothing like the Gospel in response to the heavy weight of money, expectations, and pressure. We want each of them to experience that here.
In the roughly decade and a half since Baylor Football's infrastructure caught up to our peers, we have been a winning program. This is evidenced by our three Big 12 Championships being the second-most during that stretch. Using different blueprints, each of our past three head coaches led us to New Year's Bowl games, double-digit win seasons, and the doorstep of the CFP. This recent past success will help anchor our future success, and we will all create an exciting new era together.
The process to find our next head coach is already underway and will be focused, confidential, and comprehensive. I will avail myself of every resource at my disposal, not the least of which is our people. Realistically, the logistics of the football calendar dictate that it will likely be December before we are able to announce our new leader. While that is not far off, it is more time than is typical for a search like this one, and out of respect for the process and the people involved, this letter will be the last public comments I make about our head coach search until we announce a new hire.
In two weekends, we will celebrate Homecoming, and I'd like to ask for your help. Homecoming is done best at Baylor as many of our traditions date back well over a century. But this year on Nov. 7, my request is you are in McLane for our game against Iowa State. Our team deserves your support but also equally important, I want those who we might be considering for this opportunity to get a glimpse of what makes Baylor special. The most important way to play your part is with your presence.
I will be in touch soon, and in the meantime please continue to pray for our program, our process and our University.
Sic 'Em!
Doug
As you saw, yesterday we made a change in leadership for our football program. Because a transition of this magnitude affects so many in our Baylor Family, I want to take time to share the path forward for our program.
I have the utmost respect for Coach Dave Aranda. As I stated yesterday, some of our greatest Baylor Football memories are directly attributable to Coach Aranda's leadership, and I am thankful for his contributions to Baylor both on and off the field. Whatever might be ahead for him, I am confident he will continue to have a positive impact on the game with his brilliant mind and his compassionate heart for people.
I have asked our defensive coordinator, Coach Joe Klanderman, to serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Please give him and our student-athletes your very best support as they compete and represent us in the coming weeks.
Our goal for the next Baylor Head Football Coach is simple. We want to bring in someone who will launch a generation of consistent winning. There are certainly non-negotiables when it comes to how we win and represent Baylor and its Christian mission, but it is imperative that we win because there is no substitute for how it fuels our priorities, our goals, and our future.
For the right leader, the role of Baylor Head Football Coach will be one of the truly special opportunities in all of college football. Our institutional experience, our mission, and our track record combine to create a value proposition that cannot be replicated.
Thanks to the generosity of the Baylor Family, any list of the nation's top football facilities must include ours. The combination of McLane Stadium, Allison Indoor and the Fudge Football Development Center creates a first-class daily experience for our student-athletes and staff. Our location in the Heart of Central Texas, within a 3-hour drive of over 80% of the population of Texas, gives us access to the best young student-athletes on the planet. And we will continue to work every day to ensure our program is funded to compete for conference titles and College Football Playoffs berths on a regular basis.
Baylor's commitment to our Christian mission while delivering the academic experience of an R1 research institution is a differentiator. Football student-athletes have been acutely affected by all the changes in college athletics in recent years. We believe leaning into our Christian mission with them is more relevant today than ever as the world offers nothing like the Gospel in response to the heavy weight of money, expectations, and pressure. We want each of them to experience that here.
In the roughly decade and a half since Baylor Football's infrastructure caught up to our peers, we have been a winning program. This is evidenced by our three Big 12 Championships being the second-most during that stretch. Using different blueprints, each of our past three head coaches led us to New Year's Bowl games, double-digit win seasons, and the doorstep of the CFP. This recent past success will help anchor our future success, and we will all create an exciting new era together.
The process to find our next head coach is already underway and will be focused, confidential, and comprehensive. I will avail myself of every resource at my disposal, not the least of which is our people. Realistically, the logistics of the football calendar dictate that it will likely be December before we are able to announce our new leader. While that is not far off, it is more time than is typical for a search like this one, and out of respect for the process and the people involved, this letter will be the last public comments I make about our head coach search until we announce a new hire.
In two weekends, we will celebrate Homecoming, and I'd like to ask for your help. Homecoming is done best at Baylor as many of our traditions date back well over a century. But this year on Nov. 7, my request is you are in McLane for our game against Iowa State. Our team deserves your support but also equally important, I want those who we might be considering for this opportunity to get a glimpse of what makes Baylor special. The most important way to play your part is with your presence.
I will be in touch soon, and in the meantime please continue to pray for our program, our process and our University.
Sic 'Em!
Doug
Monday, October 26
Sunday, October 25
Sunday, October 25
Saturday, October 24
