SAN MARCOS, Texas— Despite being shorthanded on defense, Texas State head football coach Jake Spavital thought his team put on a good show in its 2021 Spring Game Saturday morning at Bobcat Stadium.
 
"I thought it was pretty entertaining," said Spavital. "It was good to get out there and run around. It was fun for the kids.  They have put in a lot of work. You are starting to see a little bit of the product that we want to put out there. We were very generic in a lot of things, but we played a lot of bodies, made sure we came out of the game healthy, and we were able to make some plays in front of the fan base."
 
The game featured the offense playing against the defense in a scripted scrimmage. Spavital also spread it out a little by including several individual drills sprinkled in between plays.
 
Brady McBride demonstrated that he has a firm handle on the offense, completing 8-of-10 passes for 144 yards and three touchdowns. Ty Evans completed 5-of-7 throws for 66 yards and a TD, while Tyler Vitt connected on 5-of-9 throws for 45 yards.
 
On the ground, Jahmyl Jeter rushed for 30 yards on seven carries, while Calvin Hill gained 30 yards on five rushes. Hill's 23-yard run was the longest rush in the game. Robert Brown, Jr. had a 22-yard run, finishing the game with 28 yards rushing on four attempts.
 
Trevis Graham, Jr. led the receivers with four catches for 53 yards and a TD. Waydale Jones, a transfer from Wake Forest, had three receptions for 29 yards and a TD. Marcell Barbee had two catches for 38 yards, while Javen Banks caught two passes for 32 yards and a touchdown.
 
"We were very limited on the defensive side of the ball due to 20 players being out due to contact tracing and injuries," Spavital said. "We had some guys get banged up, so we took some preventative measures and held them out the rest of the day. It's the last time that we will be tackling this spring."
 
Spavital was pleased that many of Texas State's younger defensive players could get in a lot of plays. Freshman Zion Childers led the Bobcats with five tackles with a sack and a tackle for loss. Freshman linebackers Issiah Nixon and Kenny Haynes added four tackles and a tackle for loss, while junior London Harris led the Bobcats with two tackles for loss. Harris ended the game with four tackles and  a sack. Junior Nico Ezidore had three tackles, a sack with a forced fumble and recovery in limited action.
 
The Bobcats wrap up their spring practice with four workouts next week before final exams begin.
 
"They will be in controlled settings so that we can polish up some of the installs and some of the individual work," said Spavital. "I really like this team and think we are getting better every day. I am looking forward to see where we can take this in the fall."