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Draft Scout College Football Player News: Baylor

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11/30/23 - Dequan Finn, rSr/2025, Baylor + More +

2023 MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE VERN SMITH LEADERSHIP AWARD WINNER: Dequan Finn, QB, Toledo,...Toledo quarterback Dequan Finn was tabbed the winner of the 42nd Vern Smith Leadership Award as the top player in the MAC. Rockets' Head Coach Jason Candle was selected as the Head Coach of the Year, while UT's Peny Boone earned Offensive Player of the Year honors. Miami linebacker Matt Salopek was tabbed as the Defensive Player of the Year, while RedHawk placekicker Graham Nicholson was selected as the Special Teams Player of the Year. Western Michigan running back Jalen Buckley earned Freshman of the Year honors, rounding out the specialty award selections.

Finn is Toledo's first Vern Smith Leadership Award winner, awarded annually to the league MVP, since Logan Woodside in 2017 and the fifth winner in school history. The junior quarterback, who is now a three-time All-MAC honoree, has had a remarkable season for the Rockets. Finn ranks first in the MAC in passing efficiency (155.36), completion percentage (65.1%), passing yards (2,384), touchdown passes (21) and total offense (242.8) en route to leading UT to its second straight MAC Championship Game. His 530 yards are the most among MAC quarterbacks, and he is one of just six FBS quarterbacks to have at least 2,000 passing yards and 500 rushing yards. - MAC Football

rSr/2025

QB Dequan Finn, Baylor
News Source: MAC Football
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02/26/23 - Issac Power, rSr/2023, Baylor + More +

On Saturday, Baylor punter Issac Power announced on his personal Twitter account that he intends to declare for the 2023 NFL Draft. Power, a fifth-year senior in 2022, had the option to return for a sixth season as a result of the COVID-19 shortened 2020. With Power's decision to test his chances at the next-level, the Bears will be forced to find another option. In 2022, Power was named an Honorable Mention All-Big 12 by the league head coaches. The Castle Rock, Colo. native served as the primary punter in all 13 games this past year and will go down as one of the best punters in program history.

Power finished his career ranked among the program leaders in punts (fifth; 216), punting yards (fifth; 9,000), yards per punt (ninth; 41.67), 50-yard punts (fifth; 43) and 60-yard punts (eighth; six). He was named to the Ray Guy Award Watch List ahead of the 2022 season and was also a preseason All-Big 12 Third-Team by Phil Steele and All-Big 12 Fourth Team by Athlon. In addition to being the holder for field goals, Power punted 41 times for 1,702 yards, which was good for a 41.6-yard average. In 2022, he had 12 punts fair caught, 15 downed inside the 20-yard line and six go for 50 or more yards. - Dallas Morning News

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P Issac Power, Baylor
News Source: Dallas Morning News
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02/06/23 - Sawyer Robertson, rJr/2026, Baylor + More +

Twenty-one new Baylor football players have enrolled for the spring semester including 11 transfers and 10 high school signees. The 21 players are among 32 new players that have signed with the Bears for the 2023 season. The 11 remaining players will join the program this summer. Prominent among the transfers starting this spring is former Mississippi State quarterback Sawyer Robertson, who will battle returning junior Blake Shapen for the starting job.

Robertson was a four-star quarterback at Lubbock Coronado, where he was a three-year starter who threw for 12,256 yards and 146 touchdowns while completing 64 percent of his passes before graduating in 2021. "It's huge getting back to Texas," said Robertson after announcing his transfer in early January. "There's a lot of history at Baylor and they've had a lot of success, especially recent history. It's a great opportunity and I really like the coaching staff." Former BYU offensive linemen Campbell Barrington and Clark Barrington, Arkansas wide receiver Ketron Jackson, Northern Arizona quarterback RJ Martinez, North Texas tight end Jake Roberts, and Oklahoma State running back Dominic Richardson round out the offensive transfers. - Waco Tribune Herald

rJr/2026

QB Sawyer Robertson, Baylor
News Source: Waco Tribune Herald
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01/17/23 - TJ Franklin, rSr/2024, Baylor + More +

Baylor defensive lineman TJ Franklin announced Monday that he's returning for his fifth season of eligibility. As a fourth-year senior in 2022, Franklin finished with 36 tackles with three for loss and 1.5 sacks while also breaking up three passes. For his career, Franklin has collected 90 tackles with 13.5 for loss and eight sacks. The 2020 season didn't count against player eligibility due to COVID-19 restrictions. - Waco Tribune Herald

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DE TJ Franklin, Baylor
News Source: Waco Tribune Herald
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01/12/23 - Sawyer Robertson, rJr/2026, Baylor + More +

When Sawyer Robertson saw that Baylor was looking for a quarterback, he already knew the Bears ran an NFL-style offense and that Waco was a lot closer to home than Starkville, Mississippi. After he visited Baylor last weekend, he was convinced he had found a new home. Robertson committed to Baylor late Tuesday night and plans to arrive on campus during the upcoming weekend to begin spring semester classes. Coming off a CFP championship game appearance, TCU was also a potential transfer destination. Robertson will have three years of eligibility remaining at Baylor "It was a combination of things and a very tough choice, but I went to Baylor's campus and really liked it," Robertson said. "There's a lot of history at Baylor and they've had a lot of success, especially recent history. It's a great opportunity and I really like the coaching staff."

Starting quarterback Blake Shapen will be back for his junior year at Baylor, and Robertson will compete for the starting job this spring. In his first year as a full-time starter, Shapen had his ups and downs in 2022 as he completed 63.3 percent for 2,790 yards and 18 touchdowns with 10 interceptions as the Bears finished 6-7. "I know Blake is a really talented guy and I'm looking forward to working with him and learning from him and getting to know each other better," Robertson said. The Bears were in dire need for another quarterback after redshirt freshman Kyron Drones transferred to Virginia Tech after the season and Dripping Springs quarterback Austin Novosad switched from Baylor to Oregon on the Dec. 21 signing day. - Dallas Morning News

rJr/2026

QB Sawyer Robertson, Baylor
News Source: Dallas Morning News
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01/11/23 - Mike Smith Jr., rSr/2024, Baylor + More +

Former Liberty linebacker Mike Smith committed to Baylor on Tuesday after former North Texas tight end Jake Roberts committed to the Bears on Monday night. As a fourth-year junior, Smith led Liberty with 85 tackles in 2022 with 10 for loss, three forced fumbles and an interception. Previously in three seasons at Mississippi Gulf Coast, he collected 248 tackles (151 solo, 97 assisted), 19 tackles for a loss, seven sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and two interceptions. - Waco Tribune Herald

rSr/2024

ILB Mike Smith Jr., Baylor
News Source: Waco Tribune Herald
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01/08/23 - Jack Stone, Jr/2026, Baylor + More +

Former Michigan State kicker Jack Stone announced Thursday that he's transferring to Baylor. Stone hit two of four field goal attempts and 15 of 16 PATs as a freshman for the Spartans in 2022, including a 51-yard field goal against Penn State. The Dallas Highland Park graduate was rated one of the top kicking prospects in the country in the 2022 class. Stone will have a chance to compete for Baylor's starting kicking job since senior John Mayers has exhausted his eligibility. Baylor signed punter-kicker Palmer Williams from Mocksville Davie in the 2023 class. - Waco Tribune Herald

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K Jack Stone, Baylor
News Source: Waco Tribune Herald
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01/08/23 - Sawyer Robertson, rJr/2026, Baylor + More +

Mississippi State football's quarterback room is thinning. After freshman Braedyn Locke announced Tuesday he was entering the transfer portal, redshirt freshman Sawyer Robertson will join him in leaving the Bulldogs, according to reports from On3 and 247Sports. Robertson was a four-star prospect, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, who had one of the best careers in Texas high school football history. He graduated from Coronado High School, ranking eighth all time in completions (813), 10th in touchdowns (135) and 13th in yards (11,302) in the state. He received offers from Florida State, Arkansas, USC and Texas, among others. He committed to MSU and coach Mike Leach on March 31, 2020. Robertson's decision comes amidst a coaching change as defensive coordinator Zach Arnett was promoted to head coach after Leach's death on Dec. 12.

Entering the 2022 season, Leach said Robertson was competing for the starting job. Will Rogers remained the starter, but it was a promising sign in Robertson's development. Robertson's progress was evident in preseason practice compared to his true freshman season. He threw two interceptions in two public scrimmages, but he matched it with three touchdowns. Entering the season opener against Memphis, Leach expressed his confidence in Robertson if he was forced into a game. "We've invested a lot of reps in him which is important," Leach said. "He's had some ups and downs, but he's on an upswing. He's always been an explosive player." - The Clarion Ledger

rJr/2026

QB Sawyer Robertson, Baylor
News Source: The Clarion Ledger
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12/25/22 - Siaki Ika, rJr/2023, Baylor + More +

Baylor junior noseguard Siaki Ika officially declared for the NFL Draft on Thursday and opted out of the Armed Forces Bowl. After transferring from LSU, Ika made all-Big 12 in both seasons for Baylor, collecting 47 tackles and four sacks despite facing constant double-team blocking. Ika is expected to be picked in the first two rounds of the 2023 NFL Draft. - Waco Tribune Herald

rJr/2023

DT Siaki Ika, Baylor
News Source: Waco Tribune Herald
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12/20/22 - Dequan Finn, rSr/2025, Baylor + More +

Dequan Finn passed for 133 yards and a touchdown and rushed for another score to lead Toledo past Liberty 21-19 in the rainy Boca Raton Bowl Tuesday night. Toledo came from behind, then fended off Liberty, handing the Flames their first loss in a bowl game after three bowl victories. Liberty (8-5) was directed by interim coach Josh Aldridge, who stepped in for Hugh Freeze, who became the head coach at Auburn at the end of the regular season. Toledo (9-5) punctuated a successful season that included winning the Mid-Atlantic Conference title with its first bowl victory since 2015.

Liberty scored twice in a five-minute span of the fourth quarter, turning a 21-7 deficit into a two-point game. Kaidon Salter hit Treon Sibley with a 29-yard scoring pass at 7:24 of the period to make it 21-13 and CJ Daniels found Bentley Hanshaw with a 67-yard scoring strike to close the game to two points. But, Liberty's 2-point conversion try failed and Toledo held on for the final 3:40 Finn was just as dangerous offensively as he had been all season, when he led the Mid-American Conference with 30 total TDs. Finn guided Toledo's offense 75 yards on the opening drive of the second half to give the Rockets their first lead of the game, 10-7, and they led the rest of the way. Lenny Khule's 4-yard TD reception capped the drive and was his third TD of the season. Finn's 1-yard rushing score in the fourth gave Toledo a 21-7 lead. - Toledo/AP College Football

rSr/2025

QB Dequan Finn, Baylor
News Source: Toledo/AP College Football
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12/17/22 - Dequan Finn, rSr/2025, Baylor + More +

2022 ALL-MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE SECOND TEAM: Quarterback - Dequan Finn, Toledo,...Finn ranks third in the MAC in passing efficiency (137.98) and third in total offense (249.5). He has completed 58.6 percent of his passes for 1,973 yards and 21 TDs on the season despite missing two games due to injury. He is also second on Rockets in rushing with 522 yards and has a team-best eight TDs. - Toledo Football

rSr/2025

QB Dequan Finn, Baylor
News Source: Toledo Football
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12/15/22 - Ben Sims, rSr/2023, Baylor + More +

2022 ALL-BIG 12 FOOTBALL HONORABLE MENTION: Ben Sims (TE),...Richard Reese, along with offensive standouts in wide receiver Monaray Baldwin, offensive linemen Micah Mazzccua and Grant Miller, wide receiver Hal Presley, quarterback Blake Shapen and tight end Ben Sims were each honored. - Baylor Football

rSr/2023

TE Ben Sims, Baylor
News Source: Baylor Football
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12/10/22 - Issac Power, rSr/2023, Baylor + More +

2022 ALL-BIG 12 FOOTBALL HONORABLE MENTION: Isaac Power (P),...A total of 15 Bears earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention as a product of receiving a vote in the awards process. Defensively, defensive lineman Gabe Hall, linebacker Matt Jones, safety Devin Lemear, cornerback Mark Milton and safety Al Walcott were named honorable mention. Additionally, Lemear garnered votes for Defensive Freshman of the Year. Returner Gavin Holmes, kicker John Mayers and punter Issac Power were also tabbed honorable mention. - Baylor Football

rSr/2023

P Issac Power, Baylor
News Source: Baylor Football
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12/10/22 - Hal Presley, rSr/2025, Baylor + More +

2022 ALL-BIG 12 FOOTBALL HONORABLE MENTION: Hal Presley (WR),...A total of 15 Bears earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention as a product of receiving a vote in the awards process. Richard Reese, along with offensive standouts in wide receiver Monaray Baldwin, offensive linemen Micah Mazzccua and Grant Miller, wide receiver Hal Presley, quarterback Blake Shapen and tight end Ben Sims were each honored. - Baylor Football

rSr/2025

WR Hal Presley, Baylor
News Source: Baylor Football
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12/10/22 - Richard Reese, Jr/2026, Baylor + More +

2022 ALL-BIG 12 FOOTBALL HONORABLE MENTION: Richard Reese (RB),...Reese, a native of Bellville, Texas, set the program rushing record for freshmen during a historic 2022 season. The Bellville High School product stepped right into the backfield and led the team with 190 carries for 962 yards and 14 TDs, averaging 5.1 yards per carry and 80.2 yards per game. He ranks second in the nation among freshmen in rushing TDs and third among freshmen in rushing yards. He owns three 100-yard rushing performances and twice had games with three rushing TDs. Reese is the third player in program history and the Bears' first running back to earn the Offensive Freshman of the Year honor, joining quarterbacks Charlie Brewer (2017) and Robert Griffin III (2008). - Baylor Football

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