TXST FOOTBALL
Bobcats open the season against former rival Lamar
The Countdown to Kickoff series is back for another year looking at the 2024 schedule for the Texas State Bobcats.
Texas State is coming off their best season since making the jump to Football Bowl Subdivision with an 8-5 record and the program’s first ever bowl appearance in the Servpro First Responder Bowl. The Bobcats won the First Responder Bowl beating Rice 45-21.
Now the expectations for Texas State have gone through the roof with many college football media outlets predicting the Bobcats to finish at the top of the Sun Belt and contend for the expanded College Football Playoff.
But before the Bobcats can focus on those goals, they must contend with the season opener against the Lamar Cardinals.
Lamar is coming off their first winning season since 2018, finishing with a record of 6-5 and placing third in the Southland Conference.
The Cardinals return both their leading passer, leading rusher and leading wide receiver from last year’s squad who averaged 26.1 points per game.
Quarterback Robert Coleman passed for 1,956 yards, completed 156 passes and threw for 16 touchdowns. Coleman also rushed for 170 yards and one touchdown.
Running back Khalan Griffin rushed for 823 yards on 177 carries and five touchdowns. Griffin also caught seven passes for 92 yards.
Wide receiver Andre Dennis caught 36 passes for 482 yards and three touchdowns. Izaha Young also returns at wide receiver leading the team in touchdowns with four along with 21 catches for 255 yards.
The Cardinals defense allowed an average of 23.5 points per game but will need to replace several starters including leading tackler Josh Ofili and leader in interceptions Kevin Anderson, who previously played for the Bobcats.
Texas State has an extensive history of playing the Lamar Cardinals dating back to 1951.
Both the Bobcats and the Cardinals were a part of the Lone Star Conference from 1951 to 1962 when Lamar left the conference to become a founding member of the Southland Conference.
Texas State and Lamar played each other one more time in non-conference before the series took a 18 year hiatus with the Cardinals playing at the Division I and the Bobcats playing in Division II. Between 19511963, Texas State led the series 9-3-1.
The Bobcats and the Cardinals met up again in 1981 and continued their series until 1989 playing eight times out of the nine years. The series was more even during the 80s with Texas State winning five games compared to Lamar’s three. Despite both teams being in the Football Championship Subdivision, then known as Division I-AA, the Bobcats and the Cardinals remained in separate conferences.
The series was once again put on pause after the 1989 season when Lamar opted to shut down their football program.
Lamar then revived their football program in 2010 before playing in the Southland Conference in 2011. By the time the Cardinals revived football, Texas State was making plans to jump to the FBS.
The two teams met one last time in 2011 in the amidst of the Bobcats making the transition to FBS.
The Bobcats won the last meeting between the two teams 46-21. Texas State leads Lamar in the overall series 15-6-1.
The first game between Texas State and Lamar in 13 years is set for Saturday August 31 with a time yet to be determined.
cmcwilliams @sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc
