In what was essentially the final "real" practice of the spring, the Bobcats put in the last bit of work before Saturday's Spring Game at Bobcat Stadium.
 
While the Spring Football Game & Fan Fest, presented by Bud Light, gets started around 9 am on Saturday with the "T" Association Alumni Flag Football Game, the Bobcats have been working through spring ball since March 1. And they're ready to put on a showcase in front of Bobcat Nation.
 
Following Thursday's practice, the defensive side of the ball addressed the media: defensive coordinator Zac Spavital, defensive line coach Jacori Greer, and new defensive backs coach Clay Jennings.
 
Spavital provided an overview of the defense and who has stood out so far this spring, but his message was consistent from what was heard all spring in post-practice press conferences: the strength of this team is its experience.
 
"(We're) bringing back a lot of experience," said Spavital. "A lot of guys that have played a lot of snaps. We're farther along from an install standpoint. Situationally every day, we're playing football against our offense. That makes you better."
 
Greer, who is entering his third season with the Bobcats, has noticed how his group is experienced – six of the seven defensive linemen on the roster are returners – but also feature something new.
 
"We are athletic," said Greer. "That's been the biggest benefit versus our group last year who were kind of pigeon-holed in doing only certain things. This group really allows us to be multiple and do a few other things."
 
Saturday's Spring Game gets underway at 11:30 am, and will be followed by an on-the-field autograph signing for fans.
 
Full videos of the coaches and players can be watched online at txst.com. Spavital's quotes are below.
 
Texas State defensive coordinator Zac Spavital
On spring practice from a defensive standpoint…
It's been physical. That's the first thing that comes to mind. The other part is we're bringing back a lot of experience. A lot of guys that have played a lot of snaps. We're farther along from an install standpoint. Situationally every day, we're playing football against our offense. That makes you better.
 
On the consistency and no interruptions in the practice schedule compared to last year…
We've been able to get into a routine, that's for sure. We've been able to spread the practices out. You practice really hard and you focus on that in that day, and the next day you're able to correct it and recover and build back up for that following practice. The routine has been huge. And they've handled it very well. To me, this is the most mature we've had since I've been here. From an age standpoint, but (also) an experience standpoint. And we've got a great group of young men that are within these walls working hard every day.
 
On the differences in he sees in the players based on maturity…
Well, just accountability. Individually, they all have the right approach, right mindset. They're coming to practice to improve on what they need to improve on. Then they're there from a standard of a unit standpoint. Where they're really focusing on the production and working on things that we need to improve on from the last season.
 
On some of the returners…
Up front, obviously you return Nico (Ezidore) and Sammy (Obiang). Guys that have played a lot of football. But we were able to redshirt Davon Sears and Jordan Mitchell. And Anthony Shipton was a young man who was able to get experience in the weight room and then at practice. That's going to be a big emphasis for us, moving positions-wise. Moving Jordan (Revels) to more of an outside rush position has really sparked that room and allowed him to be in situations where he can be really productive for us. Those guys are all coming back and returning but we also got a good nucleus behind them that we're going to look forward to having some depth with. At linebacker, obviously Sione (Tupou) is returning. And London (Harris) has moved to inside linebacker. He's played a lot of football. Obviously missing (Patton) and (Coleman) is always a step backwards, but as far as the feel of replacing some of those positions with guys who have already played a lot of football. You don't feel that drop off as much. In the back end, we've got a lot of guys getting a lot of valuable reps. The two newcomers, AJ (Edwards) and PK (Pierre Kemeni) have done a lot of great things. Zion (Childress) and Tory (Spears) are cranking it up as well as DJ (DeJordan Mask). So a lot of experience there. But then you also got some younger guys back behind them that have been here for a couple years that are playing a lot of football.
 
On the transition of the players such as Jordan Revels and London Harris moving from one position to another…
Great. It was a group decision. When you go through your position change, you want to make sure they are comfortable. And if both sides are comfortable and it's the best thing for the team, then it's a really good solution. Throughout the season, they kind of played some of those spots throughout games. They're kind of familiar with it. It's not a huge transition for them. The details and intricacies of each position, they're just getting from different rooms.
 
On the newcomers…
They fit in really well. They've just come to work. They've been very competitive in practice. They're coming to get a job. I think that provides a lot of things. It promotes competition and it also gives you a mindset these kids can go in and play and function at a high level. I'm very excited about all of our newcomers. CJ (Williams) is another one, an inside linebacker, who has really shown some flashes, especially when we go live. Those guys have quietly in the shadows put their head down and worked and it's been fun to see.
 
On bringing in Clay Jennings as the new defensive backs coach…
He's been a huge impact for us and for me personally. I've known him for a long time. We used to compete against one another at rival schools recruiting, when we coached the same position. And then had a chance to work with him. I knew that we needed a veteran, a guy that can be a mentor and really, really help me from a day-to-day standpoint. He's been that and beyond. Our kids have really adapted to him. He's a mature figure for them, to reach out to. You can see his impact already throughout this team.
 
On what he wants to see out of the defense on Saturday at the Spring Game…
Competition. We'll have a few live segments. Those are going to be situational football. I'd really like to look up after the practice and say we got the most out of every practice this spring. We've done a great job up to this point. I think if you come off the field with another competitive day. To me, it's really glaring it's a competitive offense versus a competitive defense out there day to day. If we can come off the field with that type of finish, we'll be really pleased.