Dave Aranda Gets Blunt Sendoff as Baylor Students Relieved After Long Overdue Decision: “Mentally Over Him”

Long before Baylor made anything official, Baylor Bears fans had already made their judgment about head coach Dave Aranda. When the school fired Aranda on Sunday, students did not react with shock. Baylor students, at large, had the general sentiment of excitement, energy, and relief.

“I wasn’t very surprised,” said Brooke Cranford, sports director for Lariat TV News, shared by KWTX on Instagram. “Everybody’s been done with him prior to the situation.”

Many thought Aranda’s firing was triggered by the Bears’ most recent 25-24 defeat to Kansas. This is partially correct. Cranford and Jeff Cohen, sports editor for The Baylor Lariat, spent the season covering the team from the sidelines, press boxes, and news conferences. Both described a change that had been coming for years, and Cohen said fans had wanted one for a couple of seasons.

Baylor let Aranda go after back-to-back losses to TCU and Kansas, respectively, which dropped the Bears to 4-3. He leaves with a 40-40 record over seven years.

The Kansas game stung for a reason. The Jayhawks had lost 14 straight to Baylor, a run that dates back to 2007, and this was their first Big 12 win of the season. Jeff Cohen, sports editor for The Baylor Lariat, did not hide how he felt. 

“I think losing to Kansas for the first time since 2007, you just can’t really accept that. It was the final straw,” said Cohen.

The week before was not much better, a 17-6 home loss to TCU. Cranford was present at the press conference afterward, sitting in front of Athletic Director McNamee. When she turned around, she claimed, “his face was beet red.” That was when she became convinced a change was coming, and the students felt the same.

“Being there and seeing the disappointment on everybody was just horrific,” she said. “I knew it was over when we lost that game… The students have been mentally over him, saying fire [him].”

The frustration had been building for years. Baylor went 12-2 in 2021, won the Big 12 and beat Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl. After that came a 6-7 season, a 3-9 season, an 8-5 rebound, and a 5-7 finish in 2025. Baylor had only one other winning season after 2021. Aranda also fired two offensive coordinators and two defensive coordinators along the way.

Baylor president Linda Livingstone cited financial stewardship when announcing Aranda’s return, a decision that came a day after athletic director Mack Rhoades resigned. She told ESPN she saw Aranda as “a learner and he’s a listener” who was open to doing things differently.

This season began with a 17-16 loss to Auburn in Atlanta, where the Bears narrowly missed a game-winning two-point conversion. Four straight wins followed, including a 55-19 road win at Arizona State. Then the TCU and Kansas losses ultimately ended it.

Defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman is the interim head coach. He is in his first season at Baylor after arriving from Kansas State. Some students hope he brings more energy to the sideline, something they felt was missing under Aranda. Those hopes come from a fan base that was already frustrated with the team’s performance in recent years. 

“There’s only two home games left, so I think people are like, well, this is really our opportunity to see if this team can be different at home,” Cohen noted, as those games will be led by Klanderman.   

Cranford called it “a make-or-break moment for Baylor football.”

With Aranda’s firing drawing so much attention, the next question is who will be the next head coach. ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg listed Jeff Traylor, Lincoln Riley, Matt Rhule, Spencer Danielson, and GJ Kinne as possible candidates. It will be McNamee’s first major coaching hire. 

The Bears are scheduled for a road game against the UCF Knights on October 30 at Acrisure Bounce House, Orlando, Florida. 

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