# 2017 Baylor Bears football team

The 2017 Baylor Bears football team represented Baylor University in the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bears played their home games at the McLane Stadium in Waco, Texas and competed in the Big 12 Conference. They were led by first-year head coach Matt Rhule. They finished the season 1–11 (1–8 in-conference) to finish in ninth place in the Big 12.

## Recruiting
### Position key

| Back | B | Center | C | Cornerback | CB | Defensive back | DB |
| Defensive end | DE | Defensive lineman | DL | Defensive tackle | DT | End | E |
| Fullback | FB | Guard | G | Halfback | HB | Kicker | K |
| Kickoff returner | KR | Offensive tackle | OT | Offensive lineman | OL | Linebacker | LB |
| Long snapper | LS | Punter | P | Punt returner | PR | Quarterback | QB |
| Running back | RB | Safety | S | Tight end | TE | Wide receiver | WR |

### Recruits

Baylor signed a total of 27 recruits.
College recruiting information (2017) :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Jalen Pitre S | Stafford, Texas | Stafford HS | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 197 lb (89 kg) | Jul 24, 2015 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Trevon Lewis S | Houston, Texas | Lamar HS | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Dec 28, 2016 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Timarcus Davis CB | College Station, Texas | College Station HS | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | Dec 31, 2016 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Charlie Brewer QB | Austin, Texas | Lake Travis HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 188 lb (85 kg) | Dec 31, 2016 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| James Lynch DT | Round Rock, Texas | Round Rock HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 282 lb (128 kg) | Jan 4, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Abram Smith RB | Abilene, Texas | Abilene HS | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 196 lb (89 kg) | Jan 5, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| RJ Sneed WR | Cypress, Texas | Cypress Ranch HS | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Jan 7, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Harrison Hand CB | Cherry Hill, New Jersey | Cherry Hill HS West | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 183 lb (83 kg) | Jan 7, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Jason Moore OT | Frisco, Texas | Independence HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 275 lb (125 kg) | Jan 15, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Eleasah Anderson OG | Houston, Texas | Alief Taylor HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 280 lb (130 kg) | Jan 15, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Trestan Ebner WR | Henderson, Texas | Henderson HS | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 188 lb (85 kg) | Jan 15, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Xavier Newman-Johnson OC | DeSoto, Texas | DeSoto HS | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 272 lb (123 kg) | Jan 15, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Ashton Logan S | Temple, Texas | Temple HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 203 lb (92 kg) | Jan 18, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Terrel Bernard LB | La Porte, Texas | La Porte HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Jan 18, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Rob Saulin DE | Pennsville, New Jersey | Memorial HS | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 240 lb (110 kg) | Jan 22, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Khahil Keith OT | Alpine, Alabama | Winterboro HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 293 lb (133 kg) | Jan 22, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Cole Maxwell DE | Allen, Texas | Allen HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | Jan 22, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Henry Klinge OG | Southlake, Texas | Carroll HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 295 lb (134 kg) | Jan 22, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Bryson Jackson LB | Mansfield, Texas | Lake Ridge HS | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Jan 22, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Gavin Holmes WR | Justin, Texas | Northwest HS | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | 178 lb (81 kg) | Jan 22, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Chidi Ogbonnaya DE | Houston, Texas | Langham Creek HS | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 245 lb (111 kg) | Jan 26, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Ryan Miller C | Southlake, Texas | Carroll HS | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 270 lb (120 kg) | Jan 29, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Tyler Henderson TE | Kyle, Texas | Lehman HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 225 lb (102 kg) | Jan 29, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Johnathan Lovett RB | Marlton, New Jersey | Cherokee HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Jan 30, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| DeMarco Artis DE | Sanford, Florida | Seminole HS | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | Jan 31, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| B.J. Thompson DE | England, Arkansas | England HS | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | Feb 1, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Justin Harris DE | Gonzales, Louisiana | East Ascension HS | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 250 lb (110 kg) | Feb 1, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Baylor Football Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. "2017 Baylor Football Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. |||||||

## Schedule

Baylor announced its 2017 football schedule on December 13, 2016. The 2017 schedule consisted of 6 home, 5 away and 1 neutral site game in the regular season. The Bears hosted Big 12 foes Iowa State, Oklahoma, Texas, and West Virginia, and will travel to Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, and TCU. Baylor played Texas Tech for the seventh season in a row in Arlington, Texas.
The Bears hosted two of the three non-conference opponents, Liberty from the Big South Conference and UTSA from Conference USA and travel to Duke from the Atlantic Coast Conference.
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 2 | 6:00 p.m. | Liberty* | McLane StadiumWaco, TX | FS2 | L 45–48 | 45,784 |
| September 9 | 6:00 p.m. | UTSA* | McLane StadiumWaco, TX | FSN | L 10–17 | 41,923 |
| September 16 | 11:30 a.m. | at Duke* | Wallace Wade StadiumDurham, NC | ACCRSN | L 20–34 | 26,714 |
| September 23 | 5:30 p.m. | No. 3 Oklahoma | McLane StadiumWaco, TX | FS1 | L 41–49 | 43,573 |
| September 30 | 2:30 p.m. | at Kansas State | Bill Snyder Family Football StadiumManhattan, KS | ESPN2 | L 20–33 | 52,293 |
| October 14 | 2:30 p.m. | at No. 14 Oklahoma State | Boone Pickens StadiumStillwater, OK | FS1 | L 16–59 | 56,790 |
| October 21 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 23 West Virginia | McLane StadiumWaco, TX | FS2 | L 36–38 | 45,389 |
| October 28 | 11:00 a.m. | Texas | McLane StadiumWaco, TX (rivalry) | ESPNU | L 7–38 | 45,656 |
| November 4 | 11:00 a.m. | at Kansas | Memorial StadiumLawrence, KS | FSN | W 38–9 | 21,797 |
| November 11 | 11:00 a.m. | vs. Texas Tech | AT&T StadiumArlington, TX (rivalry) | FSN | L 24–38 | 34,482 |
| November 18 | 1:30 p.m. | Iowa State | McLane StadiumWaco, TX | FSN | L 13–23 | 40,653 |
| November 24 | 11:30 a.m. | at No. 10 TCU | Amon G. Carter StadiumFort Worth, TX (rivalry) | FS1 | L 22–45 | 43,015 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to gameAll times are in Central time |||||||
    Schedule Source: