WACO, Texas (KXXV) — It's a big fight feel this weekend as the Bears open Big 12 play against the defending conference champions in Arizona State.
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"Big, big, high energy. It's real now, you know, everybody has to do their job and be in position to get things done," defensive lineman Jackie Marshall said.
"You know, it's definitely good to play a really good and formidable opponent, but, you know, every week we're just focused on going 1-0," offensive lineman Omar Aigbedion said.
Baylor's defense has come under question this season. However, last week, four turnovers against Samford. Can the defense keep this up?
"I hope so. I think the excitement about guys getting takeaways was good to see. We had a couple today in the two minute period that we had and a lot of excitement with guys getting it. I think everybody wants to be in that bear coat.," head coach Dave Aranda said.
"I think once you kind of get it going, it can be contagious. I don't think we've got it going yet," he said.
"I do feel like we've taken a step, but there's a lot more we can do, you know we can take an even bigger step. I feel like we can do more energy wise, just being dominant up front and being more physical, tackling as well," Marshall said.
Last year, the Bears lost to Colorado in their conference opener in a heart breaker. This year, the Bears want to start strong.
"The team that we've got right now focusing on kind of what we've done well and how can we multiply that? I think anytime when you're starting to learn your team and guys are playing well, you want to feature the stuff that's going good," Aranda said.
"100 percent. It's, you know, the most important thing to start strong, because you never know how the season can turn out. But, I think it's super important," Aigbedion said.
Baylor vs Arizona State is scheduled for this Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
