TIPPING THE SCALES

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider

WACO, Texas – Doug McNamee may need to increase the football equipment budget for Will Glasscock and Jimmy Vallace. There are more than a handful of game balls to pass out after the Baylor Bears handed Colorado a 23-13 loss Saturday afternoon at McLane Stadium.

Gavin "Freaky" Freeman's hurdling act, where he leaped over safety Naeten Mitchell and somehow kept his balance for another 10 yards. Dawson Pendergrass churning out 52 of his 85 yards on seven fourth-quarter carries.

On defense, it was safety Bo Onu recording two of the team's five sacks and a pass breakup, and linebacker Travion Barnes getting two stops behind the line and a team-high nine total tackles.

But what tipped the scales in this otherwise evenly matched game was Mark Scott's special teams.

A fifth-year senior playing for his fourth different school, Jayden McGowan returned seven punts for 130 yards, including a career-long 36-yarder and two returns into Colorado territory.

"I'm definitely getting back more comfortable,"said McGowan, a third-team All-SEC kick returner at Vanderbilt in 2023. "It's been a minute since I was back there as a returner. For them to have that trust in me is really reassuring. It feels really good to go back and try to pick up where I left off when I was back at Vanderbilt."

Baylor coach Dave Aranda said McGowan "showed glimpses today" of what he showed at Vanderbilt.

"There's a fearlessness, which is needed," Aranda said. "A couple of those, we were trying to block the kick, so there really wasn't much in terms of holdup or blocking for him. He catches it, and he has to miss or not just free runners. He was able to make a lot of plays just off guts and acceleration and all of it. And he said, 'I'm going to break one of these.' That attitude is contagious."

Sophomore kicker Rhett Armstrong, who missed a 42-yarder in the season-opening 17-16 loss to Auburn, has made 8-of-9 since then and went 3-for-3 against Colorado. His career-long 54-yard field goal with 4:28 left, which tied a stadium record, extended the Bears' lead to a 10-point spread, 23-13.

"That was a huge, huge kick," Aranda said. "I think that was a pivotal deal to create some separation. Rhett is one of those guys where if you say something and lay it out him, he's going to go through the exact things you say, 100% involved into it, and intentional in all of it. And he's just a great kid. For him to have a challenge and accept it and conquer it, it's way cool. I'm proud of him."

Armstrong's third field goal was part of a 10-point fourth-quarter surge after the Buffaloes (2-2, 0-1) tied it at 13-13 four minutes into the fourth quarter. Jadon Porter hauled in a 33-yard touchdown pass from DJ Lagway, his only catch of the day, one play after Freeman's "freaky" play.

"I thought he was going to break that last tackle," Porter said of Freeman, who had six catches for 59 yards, running his season total to 35 receptions "It's kind of crazy how athletic he is, and for his size. You wouldn't think he could do all that."

While Armstrong and McGowan had breakout performances, punter Palmer Williams just did what he always does. The senior had a career-high seven punts with a 50.4-yard average, four kicks inside the opponents' 20-yard line and two of 50-plus yards.

Three times, he pinned the Buffs inside their own 6-yard line.

"Palmer killed it today," senior defensive end Kyler Jordan said. "I think we've all known how good Palmer is, and he really got to show that today. But it's definitely a weapon whenever you're going out there as a defense, and you know they're inside the 5. I don't know how many times it was, but it was unbelievable."

After capping off a three-game homestand with a third-straight victory, the Bears (3-1, 1-0) will go on the road to face Arizona State (2-1, 1-0) at 9:30 p.m. CT next Saturday, Oct. 3, in Tempe, Ariz., a game that will be broadcast by ESPN. The Sun Devils were off this week after opening league play the week before with a 24-17 win over Kansas.

TIPPING THE SCALES

Players Mentioned

Rhett Armstrong

Travion Barnes

Kyler Jordan

DJ Lagway

Jayden McGowan

Bo Onu

Dawson Pendergrass

Jadon Porter

Palmer Williams

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