SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State football team opened its 2018 preseason camp when head coach Everett Withers welcomed 105 Bobcats on Friday at Bobcat Stadium.
 
"We are excited to get them out of the field," Withers said. "The two best days in football are the start of camp and the last day of the season when you win a championship.Not everyone gets the last day, but there are a lot of journeys and events in between."
 
The Bobcats have a lot of experienced players returning this fall and enter camp focused on taking it one day and one practice at a time as they begin preparing for the 2018 season. Texas State opens the season at Rutgers on Sept. 1. That game will be televised on the Big Ten Network.

Texas State returns 15 starters on offense and defense this season. The offensive returnees include running back Anthony D. Taylor, wide receivers Tyler Watts and Jeremiah Haydel, along with offensive linemen Aaron Brewer, Reece Jordan and Jacob Rowland. The returning defensive starters are defensive linemen Ishmael Davis, Dean Taylor and Sami Awad, linebackers Bryan London II, Frankie Griffin and Hal Vinson, along with defensive backs JaShon Waddy, A.J. Krawczyk and Anthony J. Taylor.

Withers is hopeful that experience will allow the team to progress faster through training camp and advance the program.

"We have enough kids that have been around and know what we do," Withers said. "Now, we need to learn how to win some games. We are trying to instill that.  "We have a roster that is close to where we need it to be. We have some guys who have played some snaps for us. It is good to go out and say if we do these things right, we have a chance to go out and compete to win."
 
In addition to opening the season at Rutgers, Texas State plays the first of its six home games against Texas Southern on Sept. 8 and opens the Sun Belt Conference schedule at South Alabama on Sept. 15.  The Bobcats travel to UTSA on Sept. 22 and return home to host Louisiana on Oct. 6 and Georgia Southern on Oct. 11. Texas State travels ULM on Oct. 20 and plays New Mexico State in its annual Homecoming game on Oct. 27. The Bobcats play at Georgia State on Nov. 3, play host to Appalachian State on Nov. 10, travel to Troy on Nov. 17 and end the regular season hosting Arkansas State on Nov. 24.

Bobcat fans can purchase 2018 season tickets for all six home games for as low as $80 through the Athletic Ticket Office. Fans can get tickets in person at the North End Zone Complex of Bobcat Stadium, by calling 512-245-2272, or online at www.txstatebobcats.com and logging into the Online Ticket Center. Half season tickets and single game tickets are also available for purchase.