By Jackson Posey | Sports Writer
Baylor’s two-headed linebacking monster of Matt Jones and Keaton Thomas was ripped in half this offseason, with the sixth-year senior Jones attempting to catch on in the NFL. But like the mythological Lernaean Hydra, the Bears’ coaching staff hopes that when one head is cut off, two more will grow in its stead.
“We’re way deeper this year as far as guys that can play,” inside linebackers coach Jamar Chaney said. “I’m excited. The guys been having a real good spring. All of them have their strengths and some got weaknesses as well. But we’ve like what we’ve seen so far. We just gotta keep building, keep grinding.”
Chaney, a former All-SEC linebacker at Mississippi State, joined the Bears’ coaching staff last offseason amid a broad defensive overhaul. He coached Jones and Thomas to stellar campaigns, as the duo became the first Baylor teammates to each record triple-digit tackles in a season since 2012.
“It’s hard to replace a guy like Matt because he had so much experience,” Chaney said. “He’s a guy that you could tell something right now, he could go out and execute it right now. Make a correction on the sideline, he can go out and execute it, get people lined up. I think if we’re gonna miss something, it’s gonna be that.”
Jones’ “green dot” (signifying the defensive player with a helmet microphone to receive play calls from the sideline) will pass on to Thomas. The fast-twitch athlete transferred to Baylor after being named a First Team NJCAA All-American at Northeast Mississippi Community College. Thomas, a redshirt junior, may have gained another year of eligibility this offseason as the NCAA seems poised to no longer count non-NCAA athletics against players’ eligibility clocks.
“As soon as 2025 hit, I told my family, I told coach Chaney, Aranda: last year doesn’t matter,” Thomas said. “It’s a new year. I have to be better than whatever I did that past year, right? It’s always taking the next step, working to be elite. It’s nothing about trying to be ‘as good,’ it’s always about trying to be better.”
Thomas starred for the Bears in 2024, racking up 114 tackles (seven for loss) and earning First Team All-Big 12 honors alongside Jones. He’ll be expected to lead a new-look unit that brought in several newcomers to vie for playing time.
“He helps a lot,” Chaney said. “You have a guy of that league in your room, so he sets the standard. He sets the expectation of what we want here as a linebacker, and he makes sure he demands that from those other guys, no matter if it’s a transfer or a high school guy, and he sets the tone in the room. So it’s always good when you have that.”
One of the transfers looking to secure a starting spot is Travion Barnes, a senior Almonte Springs, Florida native who finished fifth nationally in tackles (129) in 2024, helping keep an otherwise hapless Panthers team respectable defensively.
“[They’re] aren’t too many guys [who] can say they won defensive player of the year in the conference they play in, and he’s done that,” Chaney said. “He’s one of the guys I talk about that’s got a lot of experience. He hasn’t been out there with us [because of injuries] … But the feedback from the trainers, the strength coaches — the dude is the real deal.”
Former Fresno State havoc-wreaker Phoenix Jackson will also expect playing time. In 11 games for the Bulldogs, Jackson totaled 48 tackles (6.5 for loss), four sacks, five hurries, one forced fumble, two interceptions and four pass breakups. That versatility is a must in Dave Aranda’s multiple defensive scheme.
Four-star freshman Kaleb Burns and returners Kyland Reed and Jeremy Evans could also challenge for snaps. The Bears’ inside linebackers anchored the defense in 2024, holding steady despite early-season challenges in the trenches and in the secondary. If Jones’ production can be recreated in the aggregate, the Bears will have the foundation to take another step forward defensively.
“I think we have a lot of depth this year,” Chaney said. “You’ll see a rotation out there of guys. And man, the guys that came back, they’ve been doing an awesome job. … We’re excited about this group. These guys been grinding, working hard. And like I said, the sky’s the limit for them. We just gotta keep choppin’.”
