Since the beginning of sport culture, head coaches have found unique ways to hype up their teams in the weeks leading up to a big game. Some coaches stand in front of their team and deliver a long winded motivational speech, while others lean on guest speakers. However, leading up to the 2024 season’s kickoff, Baylor football head coach Dave Aranda opted to use a different medium to get his point across...

When the lights turn off, some people count sheep, while others dream of flying, falling or losing the occasional tooth. But when redshirt sophomore Keaton Thomas lays his head on his pillow at night, the X’s and O’s of head coach Dave Aranda’s unique defensive playbook flicker like an old movie on repeat.

After senior guard RayJ Dennis powered through contact and ended a scoring drought that lasted just over two minutes, No. 3 seed Baylor men’s basketball was down by 13 with just over six minutes to play.

Baseball is a game of streaks — losing streaks and hitting streaks, slumps on the mound or at the plate, maybe even an unusually high number of consecutive wins. Baylor baseball has learned a thing or two about that when looking back on the 2012 season and a craze that stormed through Waco: “Feed the beaver.”

Competitive, humble and unselfish — these are the three words 6-foot-5-inch freshman guard Ja’Kobe Walter used to describe himself as a player. He said that self belief has helped him lock in when he's on the court.

“My coaches tell me that my walk-up song is ‘I want it all and I want it now,’” head coach Mitch Thompson quipped. “That's just the way it is, and that's probably true. I'm a really impatient guy, and I do want it all, and I want it now, so give it to me now and let's do it."

Stoic, phlegmatic and impassive. As a last-ditch field goal by the Knights (3-2, 0-2 Big 12) drifted away from the uprights and the clock hit double zeros, head coach Dave Aranda put his head down, walked to midfield and shook hands with UCF head coach Gus Malzahn as if there had never been a doubt.

“I used to play baseball [because] I love it," Will said. "I still love it, but it's almost to the point now where I don't want to hang it up because so many people have invested so much time, energy and effort into getting me back on the field. I kind of feel like if I didn't go out and keep playing, I'd let them down. That's my big reason why I play, to make everybody's time and effort worth it.”

When it rains, it pours. Baylor baseball has found its groove, and even a rain delay couldn’t stop the scorching hot Bears, as they took down Sam Houston State University, 7-6, Tuesday night at Baylor Ballpark.