Three Takeaways: October 16
10/16/2023 11:17:00 PM | Football
Bears' offensive philosophy will transition more to 'throw it to run it'
Baylor Bear Insider Jerry Hill gives his three takeaways from Monday's weekly press conference with head coach Dave Aranda talking about the Bears' bye week and Saturday's matchup between Baylor (2-4, 1-2) and Cincinnati (2-4, 0-3), which kicks off at 11 a.m. CT from Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio, and will be streamed on ESPN+:
- THROW TO RUN: With an offense that has struggled to run the ball, averaging just 121.5 yards per game and 3.4 per attempt, Aranda said the Bears have to change their philosophy and throw it to run it. "That's something that has to change from the beginning of the year to run it and then run it again and not be successful and then throw it at the end of the (series)," he said. Blake Shapen has been a spark, completing 43-of-72 passes for 617 yards and two touchdowns in the two games since returning from a knee injury. "To throw it and be creative to get those four yards to stay on track and stay on schedule, so that it's not run-run-pass, but it's a bubble screen here and an access throw there. I think that's something that we're way paying attention to and involved in right now."
- LOOKING INWARD: During the bye week after a 39-14 loss to Texas Tech, the Bears did a lot of self-study, with the defense breaking down and looking at the offense over the first six weeks of the season "and vice versa," Aranda said. "They had a majority of the week to do that," he said. "That was all delivered and deciphered on Thursday. There was a lot of learning in that. We're really leaning into that and applying a lot of those truths, however ugly, bad or good, to help us get better. I think the No. 1 thing was execution and doing what we need to do execution-wise in a violent matter. I know this is a repeated thing, but taking in what we've done in practice and applying it into the game, especially when it matters most."
- GOOD BILL OF HEALTH: Not only is the team the "healthiest we've been in a while," Aranda was able to get over an illness he's been dealing with for the last few weeks. "A lot of medication," he said. "I've never really gone to a doctor or taking medication, and I was taking five pills a day. So, I had them all labeled out. That's the first time I've taken medication like that, but I'm glad I did. I feel much better." After the team went through a rash of injuries over the first half of the season, Aranda said "practices are going to be a little bit different from the bye week now until the end of the season to try to maintain that level of readiness with the team and get guys to Saturday as best we can."
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