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<a name="_Hlk490052374"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS –
</span></b></a><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Dec. 12, 2024<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Baylor Football Earns Four AP All-Big 12 Honors<br>
</span></b><i><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Jones, Thomas, Williams pick up first-team praise, Aigbedion lands on second team
<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">For more information contact:</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"> Brent
Ingram, 210-845-8651, </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ligatures:none"><a href="mailto:Brent_Ingram@Baylor.edu"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:blue">Brent_Ingram@Baylor.edu</span></a></span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">;
Max Calderone, 254-265-1639, </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ligatures:none"><a href="mailto:Max_Calderone@Baylor.edu"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:blue">Max_Calderone@Baylor.edu</span></a></span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">;
Josie Hutton, 254-709-7720, </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ligatures:none"><a href="mailto:Josie_Hutton@baylor.edu"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;color:blue">Josie_Hutton@baylor.edu</span></a></span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><br>
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</span><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">WACO, Texas –
</span></b><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">Baylor football earned four All-Big 12 honors as announced by the Associated Press on Thursday.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">Sixth-year senior Matt Jones (LB), redshirt sophomore Keaton Thomas (LB) and sophomore Palmer Williams (P) were each named
to the first team, while junior Omar Aigbedion (OG) landed on the second team.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">BU’s four AP honors are its first since 2021 and second-most under fifth-year head coach Dave Aranda, behind 2021’s eight.
All four of the Bears’ recipients also earned All-Big 12 praise by the league’s head coaches, as previously announced.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">A sixth-year man out of Odessa, Texas, Jones put together his most complete season in the green and gold with a career-high
103 tackles, including 61 solo stops. He added 9.5 tackles for loss and four sacks, along with six pass breakups, a forced fumble and his first-career fumble recovery. Jones logged six games with double-digit tackles, the most by a Bear in a single season
since Bryce Hager’s six in 2012.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">In his first season in Waco, Thomas turned heads by leading the team with 107 total tackles, the most by a Bear in a single
season since Terrel Bernard’s 112 in 2019. Thomas added seven tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks with one interception, a pick-six that he returned 35 yards in the season opener against Tarleton. Thomas produced four double-digit tackle outputs in 2024, including
in three consecutive games against TCU, at West Virginia and at Houston. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">Williams punted 41 times for 2,034 yards this season, leading the Big 12 with a BU school-record 49.6-yard average. In 2024,
the sophomore from Advance, N.C., booted 21 kicks beyond 50 yards and downed 14 punts inside the 20. Williams had a career day at Utah in Week 2, setting a school record with 62.7 yards per punt, including massive boots of 57, 60, 76 and 79 yards, becoming
the first Bear in program history with a pair of 70+ yard punts in the same game.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">Aigbedion made significant impact on the BU offensive line in his first year as a Bear, starting all 12 games at right guard.
The product of Katy, Texas, helped Baylor’s offensive line efficiency rating to ranking sixth in the nation after a finish at No. 112 in the 2023 season. Aigbedion logged an 80.9 pass block rating on the year, according to Pro Football Focus, and allowed just
one sack with a 99.2 pass block efficiency rating.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">To stay up to date on all things Baylor football, follow the team on its official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts:
@BUFootball. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><u><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">2024 ASSOCIATED PRESS ALL-BIG 12 AWARDS:<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">First Team<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">Matt Jones – LB<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">Keaton Thomas – LB<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">Palmer Williams – P
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">Second Team<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none">Omar Aigbedion – OL
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<i><span style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;letter-spacing:.25pt;mso-ligatures:none"><br>
-BaylorBears.com-</span></i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">__________________________________</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:6.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"> </span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:#154734;mso-ligatures:none">Max Calderone</span></b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"> | Director of Athletics Communications
(Baseball, Football)</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">Department of Athletics | Baylor University</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none">C: 254-265-1639</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"> </span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://baylorbears.com/" title="http://baylorbears.com/"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:windowtext;text-decoration:none"><img border="0" width="160" height="44" style="width:1.6666in;height:.4583in" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image001.png@01DB4CAE.73155540" alt="signature_4102560602"></span></a><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;color:black;mso-ligatures:none"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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