Sports

Top Recruit Randomly Commits To Baylor After Dave Aranda’s Comments About Paying Players

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A Baylor Bears logo at midfield of McLane Stadium.

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The Baylor Bears landed a huge commitment from four-star wide receiver Taz Williams on Saturday, adding a headliner to their 2025 recruiting class. That pledge might’ve come as a bit of surprise to the coaching staff.

Williams didn’t have the Bears in his final group!

The pass catcher made his announcement at Red Oak High School in front of a packed auditorium. Most believed he’d be picking from the quartet of Penn State, Michigan, SMU, and Texas A&M.

Initially, he donned a Wolverines hat sitting on his table, but he quickly spurned Michigan to announce his surprise school.

Baylor seemingly came out of nowhere in his recruitment as most experts pegged the receiver as a Penn State lean. He took official visits to Ann Arbor, State College, and College Station in June and doesn’t have a trip to Baylor scheduled until the end of this month.

How did the Bears pull off the recruiting upset? Dave Aranda might have some insight!

Baylor is finally paying players like Taz Williams to come play for the Bears.

Aranda, whose Baylor program has been on a bit of a hot streak when it comes to recruiting, commented on his approach while speaking at Big 12 media days.

The Bears are finally getting the checkbook out!

“We’re paying players,” the head coach quipped when asked about that recent recruiting success.

Baylor was initially slow to adapt to the NIL era, with Aranda shouldering much of the blame. Not keen on buying talent, his previous approach was more about relationships and less about transactions.

Unfortunately, that strategy has become less effective with the introduction of player payment.

Baylor is getting with the times, and it’s paying dividends! With Taz Williams in the boat, the Bears’ 2025 class ranks 5th in the Big 12.