ARLINGTON — Beyond his big-picture approach and his favorite reads, a gut-wrenching quarterback decision illustrated just why Dave Aranda is different from his peers.
As spring practice ended, the Baylor coach faced a quarterback competition between returning starter Gerry Bohanon and 2021 backup Blake Shapen. Most coaches would have called a punt until preseason practice.
Aranda informed both quarterbacks of his decision and Bohanon transferred to South Florida for his senior season. That leaves little experience behind Shapen, who started two games as a redshirt freshman a year ago.
During Big 12 media days Wednesday at AT&T Stadium, Aranda explained why he made the decision knowing that a transfer would be the likely result. Aranda and his offensive staff had concluded “at the end of it, it just became apparent that Blake was our better passer.”
And that meant Bohanon was headed for second-string after leading Baylor a 12-2 season and a Sugar Bowl win. Aranda, who prioritizes people over players, was faced with an awkward decision.
“There is no me without Gerry, there is no last year without Gerry, there’s none of that,” Aranda said. “You walk in my house, I’ve got pictures of my kids posing next to Gerry. It’s just kind of a crazy thing. So it was very difficult to do.”
Aranda has no regrets.
“Looking at Gerry and his predicament and wanting the best for him … the fair thing to do was to make that move early,” Aranda said.
Watching the situation unfold on campus, Baylor President Linda Livingstone was not surprised by Aranda’s call.
“You can tell just listening to him how painful it was for him and how personally difficult it was for him because he thinks so much of Gerry and Blake of course too,” Livingstone said. “I think it shows what a quality person he is and how much he cares his players and that he’s trying to do in their best interest and set them up to be successful.”
Unorthodox or not, Aranda’s outside-the-box methods have worked.
He’s being called the next big thing between his success as a defensive coordinator and then his performance in Year 2 at Baylor. The Bears are picked to win the Big 12 for the first time ever.
With Texas and Oklahoma due to exit the Big 12 sometime between now and 2025, Baylor and Oklahoma State may be best positioned among the existing members to become bell-cow programs.
His eccentricities have become part of the charm, including citing children’s literature in postgame press conferences. “The Velveteen Rabbit and The Berenstain Bears are classics now in our language at Baylor,” Livingstone said.
He’s currently reading The Four Pivots, a book by Sean Ginwright on social justice activism.
Then again, football can be fickle, as Aranda is well aware.
Aranda went 2-7 in his debut season at Baylor in 2021 and people wondered about the fit following Matt Rhule.
And if the Baylor defense doesn’t put together a dramatic goal-line stand against Oklahoma State in the Big 12 title game, people might view the season differently.
Expecting a repeat minus key performers on both defense and offense might be expecting too much. Of course, Aranda specializes in beating expectations and incorporating that into the team concept for his players.
“Everyone expects us to go out and just win 12 games,” linebacker Dillon Doyle told reporters Wednesday. “At the end of the day we have to go beat Albany.”
Twitter: @ChuckCarltonDMN
***
Find more college sports coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
