Meta description:</strong> Dave Aranda says Colorado’s run game can pull Baylor’s safeties forward and create the one-on-one shots Julian Lewis wants.
p>Baylor beat Louisiana Tech by 17 points Saturday and still handed Dave Aranda a useful warning before Colorado arrives in Waco. Bulldogs quarterback Trey Kukuk ran 11 times for 75 yards.
That is not the number a defense wants sitting on the desk when Colorado offensive coordinator Brennan Marion’s Go-Go offense is next.
Colorado has rushed for at least 180 yards in each of its first three games, and Aranda spent part of his Monday press conference explaining why the Buffaloes can turn a crowded backfield into a problem that eventually reaches the secondary.
“We got a lot of respect for him and his schemes,” Aranda said. “There’s some unusual back sets, and there’s option, triple option looks coming out of the backfield. A lot of runs, a lot of gas created.”
Baylor enters Saturday’s Big 12 opener at 2-1 after beating Louisiana Tech 36-19. Colorado is also 2-1, but its 41-7 loss at Northwestern came with one statistic that survived a rough afternoon: 180 rushing yards at 5.5 yards per carry.
Baylor Has to Win the Math Before the Snap
Marion’s offense can make the backfield look busier than rush-hour traffic. Multiple backs can line up around the quarterback, tight ends can become lead blockers, and the defense has to sort out every possible gap before the snap.
“There’s three backs there, and a lot of tight ends,” Aranda said. “So the tight ends acting as running backs, as lead blockers. And so a lot of gaps are created there.”
Colorado’s production at Northwestern showed why the formation is more than window dressing. Jaquail Smith carried eight times for 91 yards, including a 35-yard run, while Dekalon Taylor added 34 yards on seven attempts. Five Buffaloes had at least seven carries.
Baylor cannot simply key on one runner and call the problem solved. If the front loses a gap, the easiest answer is to bring a safety closer to the line.
That is also where Marion wants the defense to go.
Aranda said Colorado uses its run game to force safeties forward, which can leave wide receivers isolated outside.
“And then because of that, they force, like we talked about earlier, those safeties to come down,” Aranda said. “And then you’ve got your one-on-ones on the outside.”
Colorado Has Already Shown the Other Half of the Trap
Colorado quarterback Julian Lewis has not needed many opportunities to show what can happen when those one-on-one matchups appear.
Against Weber State, Lewis hit DeAndre Moore Jr. for a 66-yard touchdown on Colorado’s first offensive snap. A few minutes later, he found Joseph Williams for a 63-yard score. Colorado had two touchdowns and 129 passing yards after three attempts.
Aranda pointed to that game when discussing the danger of committing too much help to the run.
“I think, look at Weber State, some of the games they played, they were able to hit on some of those big plays,” Aranda said.
The Bears saw a different version of the same numbers problem last week. Kukuk was Louisiana Tech’s leading rusher, averaging 6.8 yards per carry. Baylor still won comfortably, but Colorado is built to create more hesitation around those run fits.
The good news for Baylor is that Colorado has not turned its offensive structure into consistent scoring yet. The Buffaloes committed four turnovers at Northwestern and scored only seven points despite gaining 348 yards.
The uncomfortable part is that the run game never disappeared.
“For us to be able to limit the run game, and then have help on top with safeties to help with explosives, the pass game that’s going to come off of the run game, critical for us,” Aranda said.
That is Baylor’s assignment. Stop enough of Colorado’s run game without making the answer obvious somewhere else.
