COMMUNICATING WITHOUT WORDS

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
         Baylor safeties Christian Morgan and JT Woods have been together for so long, they can communicate without using words.
         "I can just look at Christian and point, and we both know exactly what we're saying," said Woods, who combined with Morgan for half of the team's 12 interceptions last season, picking off three apiece. "The trust has grown so much over the years. I've been with these guys for going on four years, so the communication is awesome."
         Since coming in as part of a 2018 recruiting class that was ranked in the top 25 nationally, Woods and Morgan have started 14 and 11 games, respectively.
         "We're a veteran group, and that helps a lot with communication and playing together at full speed," Morgan said. "We're all able to stay on the same page and make plays. It's just good to have a guy out there (like Woods) that I can trust to make all the calls and all the checks. I just want to continue to build this year and be a force in the Big 12."
         In his second year as the safeties coach, Matt Powledge "stresses communication and being vocal out there," Morgan said, "so when the ball is snapped, we all feel comfortable doing our jobs."
         "Coach Powledge is a genuine guy," Morgan said. "I've become a better person because of him. We just make sure everything on the back end is taken care of."
         Joining that experienced safety duo is fifth-year senior Jalen Pitre, a first-team All-Big 12 pick last year at the hybrid STAR position.
         "Talk about an athlete," Woods said of Pitre, who returned both of his interceptions for touchdowns and led the team with 60 tackles. "I'm right behind him, so I get to see him make the craziest plays. He just brings so much energy to the room; honestly, the entire defense, the entire team. It's really amazing just watching him be a complete athlete, ball hawk, all of that. I love getting to play with him and being on the field with him each day."
         While 10 of the 11 starters return on defense, the addition of LSU transfer Siaki "Apu" Ika at nose tackle "makes our job a lot easier on the back end," Morgan said, "because he's getting pressure on the quarterback."
         "Apu is a game-wrecker. Anytime you have a guy like that at nose in our defense, it frees up guys like Terrel (Bernard), Pitre, Dillon (Doyle) to make plays," Morgan said. "(When he pressures the quarterback), it makes them make bad decisions and throw picks and do things they don't want to do."
         The last four years have gone by "like that (snapping his fingers), just so fast," Woods said.
         "It seems like yesterday I was just moving in, being the early enrollee, kind of the new kid on campus. And now, you just blink and it goes by so fast. It's been a roller coaster, but it's definitely been a joy ride."
         With a defensive-minded head coach like Dave Aranda, Woods said he enjoys seeing him "just sit back and dissect a play" in film study.
         "If you sit in a film session with him, you can really see the defensive mind that he has. It's amazing," he said. "For me being a defender, I just love sitting back and getting to listen to him talk. He can go on and on about plays that happened years and years ago. Just being able to talk about that, and then me being able to understand it, too, is amazing."
         After a week that was "very strong in terms of the week we put in," Aranda said, the Bears began their second full week of fall camp with a workout Monday afternoon.
         "We've really got one more week of camp and we end with a second scrimmage (Saturday) before we get into a different schedule (with classes starting) and then a mock game prior to our first game," he said.
         Baylor will open the season Sept. 4 with a road game against Texas State in San Marcos, then return home to host Texas Southern Sept. 11 at McLane Stadium. For season, mini-plan and single-game ticket information, go to the 2021 Baylor Football Tickets link.

COMMUNICATING WITHOUT WORDS

Players Mentioned

Christian Morgan

Jalen Pitre

JT Woods

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