By Jackson Posey | Sports Editor, Brooke Cranford | Broadcast Reporter
Baylor dropped its Big 12 opener to Arizona State in walk-off fashion Saturday, 27-24, as four turnovers — including three inside their own territory — proved too much for the Bears to overcome.
“I think anytime you lose, it sucks, and it just guts you,” head coach Dave Aranda said. “Losing is never really good.”
After a back-and-forth game that saw six lead changes and three ties, Sun Devil kicker Jesus Gomez split the uprights from 43 yards out to take the lead as time expired. A big fourth quarter from redshirt seniors Sawyer Robertson (250 yards passing, 3 TDs) and Michael Trigg (71 yards receiving, 2 TDs) wasn’t enough to push the Bears over the edge.
Both teams struggled to put points on the board in the first half, trading first-quarter field goals and second-quarter touchdowns before heading to the tunnel knotted at 10-10.
“Once we get in a rhythm with the first first down, then we start flowing, and that’s when we really move the ball,” Robertson said. “Just took too long, honestly, for us to do that tonight.
A quick offensive start for the Bears came to an end when redshirt senior wide receiver Josh Cameron brought the ball down with one arm while evading a tackler in Sun Devil territory. He was stripped from behind for the first turnover of the game.
Cameron lost his second fumble early in the second half, spinning off a tackler (sans the football) to set up the Sun Devils (3-1, 1-0 Big 12) in prime real estate. Twenty-three yards later, junior cornerback Caden Jenkins broke up an end zone pass to Tyson, forcing another short field goal from Gomez.
“I know Josh is a dawg,” Wilson said. “Obviously, this is not the game that he wanted to have, but I know the person that he is, and he’s going to bounce right back. I was basically just telling him to keep his head up because it’s a long game, and although he had those fumbles or whatever, he still made a lot of plays for us.”
The Bears locked up the Sun Devils on their second fourth-down attempt of the game, stuffing halfback Kanye Udoh on fourth-and-1 to take over at their own 14-yard line. The Bears struggled to stop the ground game, finishing with a 17% run stuff rate, but found the juice when it mattered.
Four plays later, it was all wiped away.
Arizona State’s Keith Abney II picked off Robertson, diving past Cameron to flip the field and put the Sun Devils in prime position to push the lead to two scores. But yet again, Baylor’s defense held firm.
The Bears swarmed Leavitt on second down for a loss of seven yards, then deflected a shot to the end zone. The ball glanced skyward off the outstretched arms of redshirt senior Tevin Williams III, sending an alley-oop to DJ Coleman. (It fell just shy of the junior nickelback, becoming the team’s second near-interception in the red zone.) Gomez converted his third field goal try to extend the lead to 16-10.
“They’ve taken a huge leap this year, and we need to do better up front,” redshirt junior linebacker Keaton Thomas said. “We need to make sure that we’re taking care of business and holding the standard as they are. And so we just need to meet those guys in the middle and work on it.”
Baylor converted a pair of fourth-down tries on the ensuing drive. The first, a pass to redshirt senior tight end Michael Trigg, saved the Bears from a third turnover in their own territory. The second featured an inside handoff to redshirt sophomore running back Bryson Washington, who broke through the first line of defense and scampered upfield for 41 yards, nearly doubling the team’s total rushing yards to that point.
Sitting at the goal line, trailing by one, Trigg earned the Bears a lead — and himself a spot in the SportsCenter Top 10.
Trigg caught the ball on an outside screen and was immediately confronted by multiple tacklers. As the 6-foot-4 tight end toppled, though, a light shone in the darkness: his outstretched arm, clad in golden sleeves and snaking through the defense. It took an effort reminiscent of Space Jam, but the Bears were back in the end zone for the first time in the second half.
— Jackson Posey ✞ (@ByJacksonPosey) September 21, 2025
Redshirt senior defensive lineman Jackie Marshall sacked Leavitt deep in Baylor territory on the ensuing drive, setting up a critical third-and-13. Leavitt answered with a deep ball to Derek Eusebio, who sliced behind the defense for a wide-open 61-yard gain.
Tyson, a preseason First Team All-Big 12 wide receiver, closed the deal with his first touchdown catch of the game and a successful two-point conversion.
Trailing 24-17, Baylor found itself facing third-and-22 after a 12-yard sack. Robertson recovered to deliver a strike to senior wideout Louis Brown IV, moving the chains with just over two minutes to play. As the clock hit 2:00, Robertson snapped the ball — just beating the two-minute timeout — and delivered a perfectly-placed parcel into the outstretched arms of Trigg, who cut up the seam for 33 yards and the game-tying touchdown.
“He’s great,” Robertson said. “Big frame, runs well, catches the ball really well, and so whenever he’s open, I just gotta get it close to him and he makes a play.”
Facing third-and-4 with 1:23 to play, Tyson slid to the ground short of the sticks — but Coleman was flagged for a late hit, moving the chains and keeping the Sun Devils alive. A few short runs later, Arizona State set up its lefty kicker for a 43-yarder with the game on the line and time expiring.
Money.
“Right now, it just sucks to lose,” Aranda said. “I think when we get to the film, I’m going to see some positive stuff. There’s probably more positive stuff than there’s maybe been on that side of the ball.
“Losing sucks, but to lose at home, that’s even worse.”
The loss drops the Bears to 2-2 on the season, and 0-1 in Big 12 play. They’ll look to rebound next week in Stillwater, Okla., where they’ll face off with Oklahoma State (1-2, 0-0) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2.
