Coming off their first loss in the Big 12, the Baylor Bears will be looking to bounce back with a win on the road against their conference rivals, the Kansas Jayhawks. Baylor lost on their home field last weekend against TCU 17-6. TCU was able to keep Baylor out of the end zone despite Baylor quarterback DJ Lagway attempting 53 passes. Lagway completed 22 of those attempts for 256 yards and one interception in a one-dimensional gameplan. The Bears finished the game with 34 rushing attempts for 54 yards. Kansas has lost four of their last five games, and they are still looking for their first conference win. They lost on the road last weekend against Kansas State 35-24. After continued improvement each week, quarterback Isaiah Marshall took a step back in his progression, completing less than 50% of his attempts for 151 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception. Kansas led that game 17-7 after the first quarter, but could not hold on for the remainder of the game.
It has been a rollercoaster for both teams at the quarterback position this season. Baylor’s quarterback, DJ Lagway, has had some great games this season, and some like last weekend against TCU. On October 3rd, Lagway threw for 306 yards and 4 touchdowns on the road against Arizona State before his performance last weekend. Baylor asks a lot out of their quarterback in a pass-first style. Lagway has attempted 39 or more passes in all of his last four starts.
Kansas quarterback Isaiah Marshall started the season with a bad game against Missouri, but has improved steadily since. Marshall can also do it with his legs, running for more than 100 yards in two of his last three games. Baylor’s defense should be able to limit Marshall’s running ability in this game. The Bears rank ninth in college football with only 86.7 rushing yards allowed per game this season. This will be a key matchup against Kansas’ offense that rushes for an average of 207.2 yards per contest. If Kansas wants to win this game, they will need to do it through the passing game. For Marshall, his numbers show that when he or his team are unable to run the football, his passing numbers get worse. Baylor can bounce back with a win by forcing turnovers in this game against Marshall. Marshall has thrown at least one interception in four of his last five games. With both teams looking for a bounce-back performance, I like Baylor to come out of Kansas with a win.
Baylor vs Kansas prediction: Baylor -3 (-102) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.
