ANOTHER BIG-TIME THREAT

By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider

WACO, Texas – When Baylor went looking for another receiver after spring training, the Bears found Jayden McGowan out of Charlotte, who had missed almost all of the 2025 season with an injury and hadn't been much of a threat since a two-year run at Vanderbilt (2022-23).

"You look at film from a couple schools ago, (he's) way dynamic. Unbelievably dynamic film," Baylor coach Dave Aranda said of McGowan, who made a huge impact in the Bears' 44-3 win over Prairie View A&M Saturday night with three catches for 67 yards and one touchdown, another TD on a 13-yard run and a total of 107 all-purpose yards. "His highlight film when he was at Vanderbilt was amazing to watch."

But that film at Vanderbilt was pretty much the only thing Baylor had to go on. The 5-foot-7 McGowan made only two catches in 11 games at Boston College and one for seven yards in last year's season opener at Charlotte.

"I thought when he first came here, it was going to be a tough nut to crack," Aranda said. "But he loved everything about Baylor. He's smiling more than I thought he would. He's really taken to the community and the school, and it's cool to see him have success."

After undergoing a surgery to repair a knee ligament, McGowan "was a little gimpy" when he first arrived at Baylor.

"I was pushing my rehab, pushing the pace on it fast," he said. "Whenever I started ball again and started the intense training, there was some swelling, of course, because that's what happens. But that was probably two months ago. Now, I'm fully healed, feeling better than ever."

With second-leading receiver Jadon Porter out, along with quarterback DJ Lagway and starting center Koltin Sieracki, the Bears needed another offensive weapon to step up. While Oklahoma State transfer Gavin Freeman had his second-consecutive 10-catch, 100-plus-yards day, 11 other players caught at least one pass from either Nate Bennett or Edward Griffin.

"It was really fun, especially seeing guys who haven't gotten many snaps through their careers or through the season so far," McGowan said. "It's nice seeing a lot of guys involved. I think (offensive coordinator Jake Spavital likes to spread the ball around a lot. So, it's really nice seeing them get to see their hard work finally pay off in the game."

Outside of Freeman, McGowan was at the head of the class, hauling in three catches for 67 yards, scoring on a 33-yard strike from Bennett at the end of the second quarter and then tacking on the final touchdown of the night with a 13-yard run late in the third quarter.

"He is fast, fast," Aranda said, "so we have to get him the ball a little bit more."

After struggling to finish drives last week against Auburn and then settling for a 46-yard field goal by Rhett Armstrong that tied it at 3-3 with 8:20 left in the first quarter, the Bears exploded for touchdowns on their next four drives and took a 34-3 lead into the locker room at halftime.

Filling in for Lagway, Bennett threw a perfect strike over the middle to McGowan for the junior quarterback's first-career touchdown pass. He finished 13-of-25 for 301 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions.

"Going through camp, I worked with Nate a lot," McGowan said. "Being able to see him put in all this work – even though he's been going with the second group because of DJ – he's been working just as hard. He's been preparing like a starter. So, it was nice to see him get that first passing touchdown."

Aranda said Bennett's preparation throughout the week "put him in a position to play fast and play free, which I thought he did. I didn't see a lot of thinking or second-guessing or any of those things out there."

"From where he's been and what he's had to overcome and the hurdles he's had to go through, it's really cool to see him have this moment," Aranda said. "He was really happy. And I thought his joy transferred over to a lot of guys, which is way cool."

After missing almost the whole 2025 season with the knee injury, McGowan said he was "just so thankful for the opportunity to play again and for Coach Spav and Coach Aranda for giving me the shot to play."

"Luckily, I was able to make the most of my opportunities," he said.

Baylor (1-1) will be back at McLane Stadium next Saturday to host Louisiana Tech (1-1) at 3 p.m. in a game that will be broadcast by ESPNU. Trailing No. 8 LSU by just three at the half, the Bulldogs gave up five second-half touchdowns in a 45-14 loss in Baton Rouge.

ANOTHER BIG-TIME THREAT

Players Mentioned

Rhett Armstrong

Nate Bennett

Gavin Freeman

Edward Griffin

DJ Lagway

Jayden McGowan

Jadon Porter

Koltin Sieracki

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