ATLANTA — Baylor Bears safety Jacob Redding will miss the 2026 season with a torn ACL, Grayson Grundhoefer of SicEm365 reported Saturday, hours before the Bears opened against Auburn at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Zach Smith of the Waco Tribune-Herald confirmed the report.
Per Grundhoefer, Redding tried to play through the injury late in fall camp while wearing a large knee brace. Surgery was ultimately required.
Kickoff was set for 2:30 p.m. CT on ABC. The Aflac Kickoff Game closes a home-and-home series that opened in Waco on Aug. 29, 2025, when Auburn ran for a 38-24 win at McLane Stadium. Redding made 6 tackles in that game.
Last season Redding started 9 of the 11 games he played and finished with 53 tackles, 3 interceptions, and 2 pass breakups. He missed the finale at Houston with an injury. The 3 interceptions led the team, per the Tribune-Herald, and the 53 tackles ranked third.
Jacob Redding’s 2025 Season At Baylor
Redding arrived in Waco from New Braunfels as a walk-on. He redshirted in 2023, played all 13 games in 2024 as a special teams contributor and reserve safety, and made 12 tackles that year. In the spring of 2025, Northwestern transfer Devin Turner tore his ACL, and Redding moved into the lineup.
On Sept. 6, 2025, at No. 17 SMU, he intercepted a pass in the end zone in Baylor’s 48-45 double-overtime win, his first career interception. On Oct. 4 against Kansas State, he returned an interception 66 yards for a touchdown in a 35-34 win at McLane Stadium. Three days later the Burlsworth Trophy named him its Walk-On of the Week. His season high in tackles was 8, at TCU on Oct. 18.
Pro Football Focus graded Redding as Baylor’s highest-rated defender in 2025 at 75.2 overall, with an 81.4 run-defense mark, an 80.0 in tackling, and a 69.8 in coverage.
Baylor finished 5-7 and 3-6 in the Big 12. The Bears allowed 32.6 points per game, 122nd of 136 FBS teams, according to Sports Reference.
Baylor coach Dave Aranda put Redding on the team’s leadership council this offseason. He said as much at the THSCA coaching school in July, in remarks reported by the Tribune-Herald.
“Jacob is one of our hardest workers,” Aranda said. “He has been part of our leadership council. He’s grown in being assertive and having his leadership on the field and holding them accountable.”
“It goes by fast when you’re seeing special teams time and then defense time, and now he’s a leader on the team,” Aranda continued.
On the first day of fall camp, Redding put his own target for the season at 60 to 70 snaps a game.
“My goal is to do whatever my team needs to win football games,” Redding said. “Whether it’s playing 60-70 snaps a game, helping young guys develop or leading guys off the field, I just want to make myself as useful as possible.”
Baylor’s Safety Depth Without Jacob Redding
Turner, who is from Little Elm and played at Frisco Lone Star, is healthy again after missing all of 2025. In three seasons at Northwestern he totaled 162 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and 5 interceptions, and led the Wildcats in pass breakups in back-to-back seasons. Per the Tribune-Herald, he is expected to take on a larger role at strong safety.
Colby McCalister followed defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman from Kansas State to Baylor in January. Klanderman spent six seasons as the Wildcats’ defensive coordinator before taking the Baylor job. McCalister missed the 2025 season with a knee injury and played 26 games at Kansas State across 2023 and 2024, with 5 starts. Per Grundhoefer, McCalister and fellow Kansas State transfer Daniel Cobbs have worked at multiple safety spots during camp.
Tyler Turner and Micah Gifford, both fourth-year players, are also in the mix. The Tribune-Herald listed Michael Allen among the players expected to see more snaps.
Auburn’s quarterback is Byrum Brown, who transferred from South Florida after new Auburn coach Alex Golesh took the job. Brown was a second-team All-AAC selection in 2025.
Baylor is not required to file an availability report until Big 12 play begins. Its first conference game is Sept. 26 against Colorado at McLane Stadium.
The Bears host Prairie View A&M on Saturday, Sept. 12, at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN+.
