Report: Dave Aranda, Baylor hires former TCU coach, Texas assistant Gary Patterson to off-field role

Baylor Bears head coach Dave Aranda has hired Gary Patterson to an off-field position as a Senior Level Strategic Consultant, per a report.

Gary Patterson is best known for his more than two decades as the head coach at TCU, one of Baylor’s Big 12 rivals. He later spent the 2022 season as a special assistant to the head coach with Texas.

The Senior Level Strategic Consultant role will see Patterson breaking down upcoming opponents and self-scouting the Baylor team for Aranda and the on-field coaches.

Patterson became one of the most successful coaches in the history of the TCU Horned Frogs. There, he compiled an 181-79 career record while leading the Horned Frogs from the WAC, to C-USA, to the Mountain West, and eventually to the Big 12. Along the way, he picked up six conference championships and led the Horned Frogs to three major bowl games while being known as one of the best defensive minds in the game. On top of that, he also led TCU to six AP Top 10 finishes.

Prior to being the head coach at TCU, Patterson was a defensive coordinator for the Horned Frogs as well as several other stops. He brings coaching experience on the defensive side of the ball dating back to his career starting in 1982 after playing at Kansas State before that to Aranda and Baylor.

Dave Aranda is likely hoping that Gary Patterson can work closely with defensive coordinator Matt Powledge, acting as a mentor and someone who he can consult with.

The 2023 season was a frustrating one for Baylor and with Aranda’s return for the 2024 season, changes were expected. Bringing in Gary Patterson is one of those moves.

Dave Aranda made changes at offensive coordinator

After the 2023 season, Dave Aranda decided to move on from offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes after Baylor averaged only 23.1 points per game this past season. This was one of the key changes that was expected following a 3-9 campaign.

In place of Jeff Grimes, Dave Aranda brought in Jake Spavital to be the team’s next offensive coordinator. Spavital has previously been the offensive coordinator at Cal, West Virginia, Texas A&M. He also spent four seasons as the head coach at Texas State, going 13-35.

Last season, under the leadership of Spavital, the Cal offense averaged 30.2 points per game on offense. That was up from the 23.9 points that Cal averaged the year before when Spavital was still at Texas State.