Quick recap: KU fell to Baylor 45-17 at the end of the season

November 30, 2024

Kansas Athletics

The Kansas defense swarms a Baylor ball carrier on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Waco, Texas.

WACO, Texas – The winning formula for the Kansas defense during the Jayhawks’ impressive run late in the season was to stick in the red zone and force the occasional turnover on downs – like early in KU’s win over Colorado – or a good one timed interception. like before halftime against BYU.

That formula failed Saturday afternoon at Baylor when the Jayhawks had no answer to any aspect of the Bears’ offensive attack.

BU quarterback Sawyer Robertson threw four touchdowns as Monaray Baldwin and Josh Cameron passed the 100-yard barrier, running backs Bryson Washington and Dawson Pendergrass combined for 296 yards, and the Bears handed KU its worst loss in recent memory, 45-17 than two years ago, in a game that resembled many of the Jayhawks’ visits to McLane Stadium in front of Lance Leipold.

KU lost to the Bears for the 14th straight time and failed to reach the six-win threshold that guarantees bowl eligibility. With a number of other five-win teams vying for eligibility on Saturday and the Academic Progress Rating mediocre, KU’s season will almost certainly come to an end.

After giving the ball away just once in its three games to move into postseason contention, KU committed three turnovers, two fumbled interceptions by Jalon Daniels and a fumble by redshirt senior tight end Tevita Ahoafi on Saturday. Noa his first catch in his career.

Daniels went 12 of 23 for 280 yards with the two interceptions and now faces a decision as to whether he will return to KU for a sixth season of college football. Senior running back Devin Neal ran for 133 yards, including 77 yards and his only touchdown in the first quarter.

The Jayhawks got off to a fast start thanks to a Baylor penalty on kickoff, a jet sweep by Neal and a 33-yard completion from Daniels to Quentin Skinner.

However, Ahoafi-Noa, being targeted for the second time in his career, couldn’t quite find his footing on a near-touchdown on third-and-5 from Baylor’s 20-yard line, and Tabor Allen missed a 38-yard Target field.

KU derailed the Bears’ opening drive with sacks by DJ Withers and JB Brown, and Neal ran 38 yards on third-and-inches to give the Jayhawks another scoring opportunity. He then strolled for a 19-yard touchdown, giving his team its first lead of the game. The referees threw a flag to hold but picked it up so the score counted.

Baylor took advantage of a pair of catch-and-run plays from Sawyer Robertson over Ashtyn Hawkins and Josh Cameron to move into KU territory, then faced a third down where Robertson threw the ball to Monaray Baldwin, who played Marvin Grant burned for a 36-yard score.

The Jayhawks’ offensive success suffered a significant setback when Daniels sailed a pass intended for Leyton Cure, which was easily intercepted by Devyn Bobby. Pendergrass ran for 26 rushing yards and then Baldwin raced past Grant again on a slot fade for a nearly identical second touchdown.

KU responded with a much more methodical push, including a 13-yard run by Neal on third-and-7 and another long connection from Daniels to Skinner. However, they repeated some of their difficulties in goal-to-go situations from the Colorado game, gaining two yards in three plays from the 10-yard line and settling for a short field goal to make the score 14-10 to reach.

That proved insufficient as Baylor continued to shred the KU defense for 23 yards on a catch by Cameron and 25 yards on a run by Bryson Washington. Robertson threw Cameron his third touchdown of the first half — before throwing his first incompletion throw — on an in-break route as the wideout spun past Mello Dotson and into the end zone.

The Jayhawks were close to scoring just before halftime when Daniels found Ahoafi-Noa down the field, but after 35 yards he was picked off by Tevin Williams III and fumbled. Matt Jones recovered and Baylor managed to get to the edge of field goal range, but a last-second sack by Tommy Dunn forced a 53-yard attempt. Isaiah Hankins’ kick hit the left post, meaning Baylor’s lead remained at 11 entering the break.

The half did little to improve KU’s defensive prospects, as the Bears tore the Jayhawks apart with one play after another on their first drive, leading to a 10-yard touchdown run by Bryson Washington, KU’s biggest backlog since September 30, 2023.

Things got even worse for the Jayhawks shortly after, after another three-pointer. Robertson got the ball to Baldwin for two first downs, then checked it to Pendergrass, who missed JB Brown and ran it in for another touchdown.

The Jayhawks showed some serious spirit on offense: Daniels hit Grimm 48 yards on a trick play, setting up a rebound to Lawrence Arnold and scoring for a 14-yard score that made the score 35-17.

KU had a chance for a stop after an illegal change put Baylor back on third-and-7, but the Jayhawks allowed Robertson to go for a first down. On the next play, Washington rushed 50 yards up the middle and scored two plays later.

Daniels found Jared Casey and Grimm for big gains, but then threw a second interception to Bobby. Hankins made his first successful field goal from 40 yards out.

How they scored

First quarter

5:18 – Devin Neal 19-yard run. Tabor Allen PAT well. Seven plays, 83 yards, 3:40 TOP. KU 7, BU 0.

2:51 – Monaray Baldwin 36-yard pass from Sawyer Robertson. Isaiah Hankins PAT well. Six plays, 75 yards, 2:27 TOP. KU 7, BU 7.

0:59 – Baldwin 39-yard pass from Robertson. Hankins PAT well. Two plays, 65 yards, 0:28 TOP. BU 14, KU 7.

Second quarter

9:16 – Allen 26-yard field goal. Fifteen plays, 67 yards, 4:37 TOP. BU 14, KU 10.

6:00 – Josh Cameron 14-yard pass from Sawyer Robertson. Hankins PAT well. Eight plays, 82 yards, 3:10 TOP. BU 21, KU 10.

Third quarter

10:58 – Bryson Washington 10-yard run. Hankins PAT good. Nine plays, 74 yards, 4:02 TOP. BU 28, KU 10.

6:25 – Dawson Pendergrass 20-yard pass from Robertson. Hankins PAT well. Seven plays, 62 yards, 3:17 TOP. BU 35, KU 10.

5:03 – Lawrence Arnold 14-yard run. Everyone PAT well. Three plays, 75 yards, 1:22 TOP. BU 35, KU 17.

0:07 – Washington 1-yard run. Hankins PAT well. Nine plays, 74 yards, 4:56 TOP. BU 42, KU 17.

Fourth quarter

9:31 – Hankins 40-yard field goal. Eleven plays, 57 yards, 4:42 TOP. BU 45, KU 17.

Box score