Football | 9/23/2016 11:40:00 PM

September 24 | 6:02 p.m. (CT) | Bobcat Stadium | San Marcos, Texas
ESPNU | KTSW (89.9 FM) in San Marcos | 1300 The Zone in Austin | KLUP The Answer (AM 930) in San Antonio
Watch | Texas State Radio | Live Stats | Game Notes | FIve Things To Know About Houston
 
Opening Kick
The Texas State football team looks to win its home opener for the fourth straight season on Saturday night when the Bobcats host the No. 6/7-ranked Houston Cougars at Bobcat Stadium. The game will be televised on ESPNU and kicks off at 6:02 p.m.

Texas State is looking to begin this season with a 2-1 record for the first time since 2013 when the Bobcats opened the year beating Southern Miss and Prairie View A&M before falling to Texas Tech. The Bobcats are coming off a 42-3 loss at No. 24-ranked Arkansas on Sept. 17.
 
Meanwhile, Houston enters the game with a 3-0 record after defeating Cincinnati, 40-16 on Sept. 15. The Cougars are the second straight nationally-ranked team that Texas State has faced. This marks the first time that the Bobcats have played nationally-ranked teams in back-to-back games since 2010 when Texas State played two ranked FCS opponents, No. 17 Cal Poly and No. 3 Stephen F. Austin.
 
This is the seventh meeting all-time between Texas State and Houston. Texas State leads the series, 4-2. Houston got the best of the Bobcats in the last meeting, with a 59-14 win for the Cougars at TDECU Stadium in Houston on Sept. 26 of last year.
 
MEDIA COVERAGE
Saturday's game will be televised on ESPNU with Anish Shroff  calling the play-by-play,  Ahmad Brooks serving as the analyst and  Alex Corddry reporting from the sidelines.
 
The game can be heard live on 1300 The Zone (1300 AM) in Austin, KTSW (89.9 FM) in San Marcos, KLUP the Answer (930 AM) in San Antonio and on www.txstatebobcats.com. Brant Freeman is the play-by-play announcer with Bill Culhane serving as analyst and Ben Campos serving as the sideline reporter.
 
THE COACHES
Texas State's Everett Withers is in his first season with the Bobcats and opened with a triple overtime win at Ohio. Withers has a 26-14 career record following the Arkansas game.
 
Tom Herman is in his second season at Houston with a record of 16-1 at the school and for his head coaching career. Herman was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Texas State in 2005-06.
 
SCOUTING TEXAS STATE
Texas State will be looking for its first win against a nationally-ranked FBS team when the Bobcats host No. 6/7 Houston. The Cougars are the highest ranked FBS team that Texas State has faced. The Bobcats also are the first Sun Belt Conference team in league history to host a Top 10 nationally ranked team.
 
Texas State senior quarterback Tyler Jones ranks second among Sun Belt quarterbacks with 250.5 yards passing per game. Jones has completed 51 of 81 passes this season for 501 yards and four touchdowns while throwing three interceptions.
 
Bryan London ranks third among Sun Belt leaders with 11.5 tackles per game after collecting 23 tackles in Texas State's first two games. Junior college transfer Gabe Loyd is tied for 11th with 9.0 tackles per game.
 
SCOUTING HOUSTON
In addition to Tom Herman coaching at Texas State, two members of his staff served two stints on Texas State's coaching staffs. Current Houston associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Craig Naivar served as the defensive coordinator and safeties coach in 2004-06 and 2011-13.  Houston secondary coach and special teams coordinator Jason Washington was the cornerbacks coach at Texas State in 2004-06 and 2011-13. He also was the secondary coach for the Bobcats in 2014.
 
Houston quarterback Greg Ward, Jr. has thrown for 647 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for two more TDs after throwing 326 yards and rushing for 73 yards while accounting three touchdowns in the win at Cincinnati.
 
Linebacker Steven Taylor leads Houston's defense with 21 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 6.0 tackles for loss, a forced fumble and an interception.