FORT WORTH, Texas — On a day that started with frustrating recruiting news, Baylor is finish preparation for its season finale.
Thursday, the Bears (6-6 record in 2022) will face Air Force (9-3) in the 2022 Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl.
Air Force, which won the 2022 Commander-in-Chief's Trophy, runs the triple option on offense, something Baylor hasn't seen this season.
Wednesday, at the pregame press conference, Baylor coach Dave Aranda said he hasn't coached against it since he was at Hawaii.
"Since middle school," Baylor senior linebacker Dillon Doyle joked Wednesday. "But I've got plenty of experience with gap offense, playing in the Big Ten for a couple of years."
Aranda, the Bears' acting defensive coordinator Thursday, remembers the way his teams defended it in the past and what will help them this time.
"I think there's angles," Aranda said Wednesday. "You can have numbers, but if the angle is bad, then you have to address it. I think you have to be way hyper-sensitive, in terms of numbers and angles, and then the adjustments that come in to it."
Only two players have opted out of the game, defensive tackle Siaki "Apu" Ika, who Doyle said is preparing for the 2023 NFL Draft, and defensive back Mark Milton.
This week's work flow is a chance of pace for Aranda, who hasn't been a coordinator in a game since the National Championship Game in January of 2020 at LSU.
"It's a lot of work," Aranda said. "You always appreciate this particular offense and the detail, I think going in to it, as coaches, you really look at the numbers and it's an 11-on-11 game all the way."
The Bears are anticipating trickery on defense like they haven't seen this season.
"The things Air Force does with playing with the linebackers' eyes, and making very different schemes look very similar is very impressive," Doyle said.
The game is expected to be frigid, with the National Weather Service forecasting an 18-degree air temperature just before kickoff.
Wednesday, the Bears shared their (albeit limited) experiences in the cold, with Aranda describing not being able to feel his fingers or speak normally when leading the Wisconsin defense at Minnesota in 2014.
"Obviously, layers are important and then wearing latex gloves under your football gloves is also important and, then, putting on Vasoline," Doyle said. "That's something I learned from NFL players, 'Hey, if you're not going to wear sleeves, you have to put Vasoline on your arms to keep the heat in."
Doyle followed it with a laugh, saying, "I don't know if my ego can handle wearing sleeves tomorrow."
The biggest issue for the program continues to loom, though, as the 2022 Baylor football season ends Thursday: hiring a new defensive coordinator to replace Ron Roberts and a new position coach and special teams coordinator to replace Ronnie Wheat.
Wednesday, Aranda said he was happy to see Roberts land at Auburn and that he's confident Wheat will land in a good situation, too.
"Valuing the person and, really, having true relationships that go past any superficial level," Aranda said Wednesday, describing what he's looking for in his next defensive coordinator. "When you have that with someone who is way in to the adjustments and the latest trends with defensive football, you'll have the guy we're looking for."
The Bears, in the meantime, will play Thursday's lone bowl game. Kickoff at TCU's Amon G. Carter Stadium is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. central time.