By Drake Toll | LTVN Managing Editor
Dave Aranda, the 28th head coach of Baylor football, is a calm, soft-spoken California native who carries a big stick: his defense. Nicknamed “The Defensive Coordinator Whisperer,” the former LSU assistant lives and breathes pigskin.
An attendee of Redlands High School in Redlands, Calif., Aranda lettered in football and started at linebacker beginning his sophomore season, a unique feat at the time. Then called “The Fencepost” due to his quiet demeanor, the wily Aranda was sought after by multiple collegiate football programs. That is, until a single play his senior year completely altered his young life.