Position Group Grades from Texas State

Each week, we’ll grade Baylor’s position groups from the prior game. Here’s how each group performed in Baylor’s 42-31 loss to Texas State.

Quarterback

The statistics don’t account for Shapen playing on only one good knee for half the game, but it doesn’t require much of a curve to grade him well. His 93.3 passer rating on PFF is the highest of his career and only the second time he’s graded higher than 81. Furthermore, Shapen’s 9.8 yards per attempt is the third highest of his career. Combine that with 303 yards, 2 TDs, and 0 INTs, and you have a pretty good game. Grade: A-

Running Backs

Dominic Richardson was the lone “bright spot” with 4.9 yards per carry, but the team’s average of 3.4, brought down by Richard Reese’s 2.0 yards per carry, puts Baylor near the bottom of FBS teams. To make matters worse, Richardson graded horrendously in pass blocking on PFF with a 26.3. The only reason they don’t deserve an “F” is how little the offensive line gave them to work with. Grade: D+

Offensive Line

This is pretty easy. Six false start penalties across four of the starting linemen (someone give Clark Barrington a medal), a high score of 53.2 on PFF (Clark, again), and countess QB pressures allowed? One of the worst performances in recent memory. Grade: F

Wide Receivers

Three receivers had over 70 yards, but their average of 5 yards after the catch left a lot to be desired. No receiver had a touchdown, but at least they only had one combined drop. Final note, walk-on Jonah Burton led the way with 88 yards on 5 receptions. Looks like he deserved the co-starter designation on the depth chart. Grade: B-

Tight Ends

Drake Dabney led all Baylor players with 101 receiving yards and two touchdowns. And in pass blocking, all three tight ends graded well on PFF. Their only demerits are mediocre run blocking grades and the overthrown potential touchdown pass by Dabney to Shapen. Grade: A-

Defense Line

I tried to warn everyone in my game preview that Texas State’s offensive line was no joke, but I never would have guessed just how much they could dominate our defensive front. Baylor’s line generated only one sack and nine total QB hurries. Against the run, Franklin and Lanz had two tackles each; Hall and Ma’ae had zero. Grade: F

Linebackers

I’m going to give the linebackers more credit for stopping Texas State’s run game than the defensive line. The Bobcat’s 3.7 yards per carry would in the bottom quarter of the country last season, and most of the tackles came from the linebackers. They struggled significantly more in pass coverage, specifically Matt Jones and Mike Smith Jr, who allowed a perfect completion percentage when targeted, including two touchdowns. Grade: D+

Cornerbacks

This may seem strange given Bobcat’s QB T.J. Finley had 298 yards, 3 TDs, and a QBR of 96.2, but I don’t think Baylor’s cornerbacks played too horrendously. PFF graded them all above average and doesn’t attribute any missed tackles to them. In some instances they got lucky with the wide receiver dropping a perfect pass, but they were in the right place more often than not. Grade: C+

Safeties

Unlike the cornerbacks, I feel like the safeties were in the wrong place more often than not. The highest graded safety on PFF was STAR Bryson Jackson at 60, and the five lowest rated players in coverage on the entire team were all safeties. At least Corey Gordon Jr and Devyn Bobby tied the team-high with four tackles? Grade: D

Special Teams

Hankins had a career long 53 yard field goal and only missed a very difficult 57 yarder. Jack Stone had 7 total kickoffs, and only 2 were returned. The most disappointing special teams player was true freshman Palmer Williams whose first punt only went 30 yards. Grade: B