Texas State (6-4, 4-2) vs Georgia State (2-8, 0-6)
Senior Day

Saturday, November 23, 2024
UFCU Stadium | San Marcos, Texas
Kickoff: 6 PM

TV: ESPN+
            Brant Freeman (Play-by-play)
            Keith Moreland (Analyst)
            Koral Allemand (Sideline)

Radio: KTSW 89.9 & Varsity Network (free app)
            Clint Shields (Play-by-play)
            Geff Gandy (Analyst)

X/Twitter Updates: @TXSTATEFOOTBALL

OPENING DRIVE

• Texas State is coming off a historic 2023 season that saw the program win its first bowl game, in its first appearance, a 45-21 victory over Rice in the SERVEPRO First Responder Bowl.
• The Bobcats set an FBS-program record with eight wins in 2023.
• Texas State posted the highest season attendance average the program has seen in 2023 at 21,184 (127,102 total), and has had two sellouts at UFCU Stadium in 2024.
• TXST is coming off a 58-3 win over Southern Miss, good for its highest scoring output of the season.
• With Saturday's victory, Texas State is bowl eligible for the second consecutive season.
• The Bobcats had 703 yards of total offense in the win over Southern Miss last weekend, good for a program record (was 697).
• Quarterback Jordan McCloud was named to the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Honorable Mention list after his 335-yard, 4 TD performance against Southern Miss.
• TXST will honor seniors ahead of Saturday's game.
• Georgia State enters the match-up 2-8 overall and 0-6 in Sun Belt play and is coming off a 27-20 loss to Arkansas State.

A WIN VS GEORGIA STATE MEANS

• The Bobcats improve to 5-4 in the series with Georgia State.
• TXST is riding a 3 game win streak for the first time in 2024 and first time since 9/16-9/30 2023.
• Texas State wins five Sun Belt games for only the second time since going 5-3 in 2014. The Bobcats have won 5 conference games 21 times over the program's existence.
• The Bobcats win 3 games in November for the first time since 2014 (3-2).

VICTORY STAR
Texas State played in, and won, its first bowl game in 2023, a 45-21 victory over Rice in the SERVEPRO First Responder Bowl.

• The Bobcats set an FBS program record for wins in a season with 8.
• The last time Texas State had 8 wins in a season was in 2008 when the Bobcats were 8-4 in the regular season and finished the year with a first-round loss at Montana in the Division I-AA (FCS) Playoffs first round.
• Texas State has 14 seasons in its program history with 8 or more wins. 

THE KINNE EFFECT
In his first year, Texas State head coach GJ Kinne took the Bobcats to a place they have never gone -- a bowl game -- and did something that has not been done in 40 years.

• Kinne is the first Texas State head coach to have a winning season in his first campaign at the helm of the Bobcats since Dennis Franchione in 1990 (6-5).
• With the bowl win, Kinne became the first, first-year head coach at Texas State to win 8 or more games since John O'Hara in 1983 (9-3). O'Hara took over the Bobcats after they won back-to-back DII national championships under Jim Wacker in 1981 and 1982.
• Prior to Kinne, only 2 Texas State head coaches in the program's history had won 8 or more games in their first season: O'Hara (1983) and Bill Miller (8-2 in 1965).
• Kinne was named the 21st head coach in Texas State's history on Dec. 2, 2022 (one day after his 34th birthday). 

EXCITING BRAND OF FOOTBALL
One thing that GJ Kinne and the rest of the Texas State coaching staff installed in their first year was an offense that has produced at its highest level in the Bobcats' FBS history.

• Texas State finished the 2023 season ranked 11th in the country in scoring offense (36.7) and 15th in total offense (457.6).
• Texas State finished 28th in the country in passing offense (270.9) and 26th in rushing offense (186.7).
• Entering 2023 as an FBS team, Texas State had never ranked higher than 24th in the nation in total offense. In 2014, the Bobcats finished the season 24th in total offense, which was the only time they had been in the nation's top-50 in that category.
• Also entering the season, Texas State's highest finish as an FBS team in rushing offense was 18th (2014) and passing offense was 56th (2020).
• Its best finish in scoring offense at the FBS level was 31st in 2014.
• The Texas State offense averaged 132.4 more yards per game in 2023 compared to 2022. 

ON THE OFFENSIVE
While Texas State's offense finished 11th in the country in scoring offense, it became the nation's most improved scoring offense over the 2023 season.

• Texas State improved its scoring output from 21.1 points per game in 2022 to 36.7 in 2023 (+15.6). 35.6 in 2024
• The Bobcats' 36.7 points per game in 2023 marked the first time they have averaged more than 28 points per game since 2014 when they averaged 33.8. 

A FINE LINE
TXST State has started the same offensive line every game in 2024 - Strawn, Jones, Todd, Lockette, Harkey. The Bobcats are 1 of 4 FBS teams (Kansas, Texas, Wisconsin) to do so this season. The group has combined for 120 career starts, led by Nash Jones with 49.
 
LET'S GET ACTIVE
Quarterback Jordan McCloud ranks in the top 10 among FBS active players in touchdown passes and total TDs responsible for and the top 20 for completions, completion %, passing yards, total plays and total offense.
 
Ismail Mahdi is also an active national leader for all-purpose yards, leading the country in all purpose-yards per game.
 
STAYIN' ALIVE
Two Bobcats have a streak of 25+ games with a reception, making TXST 1 of only 3 FBS teams with two players on the list (Utah, Wake Forest).
 
Joey Hobert sits at 33 dating back to Dec. 31, 2021, while Kole Wilson is at 28 starting Nov. 5, 2022.
 
Hobert had his 4th multi-TD game at Texas State, and 9th overall, against Arkansas State.
 
2024 games
vs. Lamar | 6-91, 2TD
vs. Sam Houston | 8-75, 2TD
vs. Arkansas State | 10-101, 2TD 

• Hobert was one of the top targets for Texas State in 2023.
• Led the team with 76 receptions for 895 yards and 8 receiving touchdowns.
• Receptions and receiving yards were both FBS program records.
• Hobert, who missed 2 of the last 3 games of the season, is second all-time on TXST's single-season reception list.
• Hobert -- as well as Kole Wilson -- are tied for 5th in the program's history for most receiving touchdowns in a season with the 8.

 TAKE BACK TEXAS
Texas State has a .609 winning % dating back to the start of the 2023 season, and is one of only four FBS teams in Texas to win eight games in 2023.
                         2024 2023  Total   %
Texas             9-1     12-2   21-3    .875
SMU                9-1     11-3   20-4    .833
Texas A&M   8-2     7-6      15-8    .652
TXST               6-4     8-5      14-9    .609
UTSA              5-5     9-4      14-9    .609
Texas Tech   6-4     7-6      13-10  .565
TCU                6-4     5-7      11-11  .500
Sam Houston         8-2      3-9       11-11  .500
North Texas 5-5     5-7      10-12  .455
Baylor            6-4     3-9      9-13    .409
Rice                3-7     6-7      9-14    .391
Houston        4-6     4-8      8-14    .364
UTEP              2-8     3-9      5-17    .227
 
FAST START
The Bobcats have outscored their opponents 127-27 in the first quarter of games this season and 219-95 through the first half. TXST has also held 5 opponents (Lamar, Sam Houston, Troy, ULM & Southern Miss) scoreless in the first quarter and 2 in the first half (Lamar & ULM).
 
HOTTEST TICKET IN TOWN
The Bobcats have sold out 2 of 5 home games this season with crowds of 28,000 against UTSA and Arkansas State. It was the first Sun Belt Conference sellout for TXST on Oct. 12.
 
Single-Game Attendance Highs (Home)
Rk Date Attendance Opponent
1.   Sept. 24, 2016 - 33,133 Houston
2.   Sept. 8, 2012 - 33,006 Texas Tech
3.   Sept. 13, 2014 - 32,007 Navy
4.   Sept. 23, 2017 - 31,333 UTSA
5.   Oct. 12, 2024 - 28,000 Troy
       Sept. 7, 2024 - 28,000 UTSA
 
MAKING OUR POINT
While Texas State's offense was one of the highest scoring in the country in 2023, the season was also its highest scoring in the school's FBS history.

• Texas State set an FBS school record with 477 points scored, besting the previous mark of 406 set in 2014.
• It was only the second time in the school's FBS history that the Bobcats scored 400+ points in a single season (406 in 2014).
• The 477 points were the most points scored by TXST in any season besting the 470 in 13 games in 2008 as an FCS program. That year, Texas State scored 457 points in 12 regular season games (432 in 2023 regular season).
• Texas State scored 40+ points in 6 games last season, which topped the overall program record of 5 previously set in 1967 and 1983 (3 in 2024).
• The Bobcats scored 265 points in conference-play in 2023 (8 games). In 2022, Texas State scored 253 points all season (12 games).
• TXST is averaging 34.3 points in conference games in 2024. 

SCORING OFFENSE, TXST'S FBS HISTORY
Top seasons since 2012
Rk   Year              Points           Games
1.    2023             477                13
2.    2014             406                12
--     2024             356                10
3.    2012             343                12
4.    2020             332                12
5.    2015             323                12
 
PLAY FAST, GO BIG
Part of Texas State's unprecedented scoring output in 2023 was its ability to play fast and hit big plays.

• The Bobcats tied for 19th in the nation with 215 plays from scrimmage of 10+ yards (168, 14th in 2024).
• Texas State had 76 plays of 20+ yards, which tied for 17th in the country (48 in 2024).
• TXST was tied for 13th in the country in pace of offense with a play every 23.1 seconds. Jacksonville State led the country at 20.3 (25.8 in 2024). 

GOING FOR A DRIVE
Texas State's offense scored on 45% of its drives (57 TD, 15 FG on 160 drives) in 2023 and scored on 55% (6/11) in the season opener against Lamar.

• TXST sits at 50% in 2024, scoring on 56 of 113 drives.
• Texas State is 7-0 when scoring on 40 percent or higher of its offensive drives in a game this season - Lamar, UTSA, Sam Houston, Troy, Arkansas State, ULM, Southern Miss.
• Texas State averaged 10+ yards per play on 23 percent of its drives, which was 8th-best in the nation according to BCFToys.com (non-garbage time drives against FBS opponents only). 

TOTAL OFFENSE
Texas State's offense set the FBS program record for most yards in a season in 2023.

• Texas State's 5,961 total yards of offense bested the program's previous FBS record of 5,573 set in 2014.
• The overall program record for most yards of total offense in a season is 6,147 set in 2005 (14 games).
• The Bobcats had 486+ yards of offense 6 times in 2023, a yardage total they matched exactly to open the 2024 season. 

450+ in 2024
Lamar | 486
UTSA | 504
Troy | 467
Arkansas State | 591
Southern Miss | 703 PROGRAM RECORD
 
TOTAL OFFENSE, TXST'S FBS HISTORY
Top seasons since 2012
Rk   Year              Total Yards Games
1.    2023             5,961            13
2.    2014             5,573            12
3.    2015             5,000            12
--     2024             4,703            10
4.    2012             4,557            12
 
AIR ATTACK
Texas State's passing offense set the FBS and overall program record for most yards in a season in 2023.

• Texas State had 3,522 passing yards in 2023, which marked the first time since 2008 that the Bobcats totaled more than 3,000 yards in the air.
• The overall program record for passing yards in a season was 3,499 set in 2008 (13 games).
• Texas State had 200+ passing yards in all but 2 games in 2023 (8 of 10 in 2024).
• The Bobcats have only thrown for 3,000+ yards in a season 4 times in program history: 2003, 2008, 2009, 2023.
• Texas State had 5 300-yard passing games in 2023, which is an FBS program record (4 in 2024).
• The Bobcats also set the overall program record for most completions in a season with 287. The previous record was 264 in 2009. 

MOST PASSING YARDS, TXST HISTORY
Most passing yards in a season, overall history
Rk   Year              Passing Yds      Games
--     2024             2,636            10
1.    2023             3,522            13
2.    2008             3,499            13
3.    2009             3,178            11
4.    2003             3,129            12
 
GROUND GAME
Despite throwing for more than 3,500 yards in 2023, the Bobcat offense was also one of the best in the country and in the program's FBS history in rushing

• Texas State rushed for 2,439 yards last season, which was the second-most in the program's FBS history (2,862 in 2014).
• Texas State has rushed for more than 2,000 yards in a season 5 times in the program's 12 years at the FBS level. The first 4 instances, though, were in the first 4 years in FBS.
• The Bobcats finished the season as one of 35 FBS team to register 3,000+ passing yards and 2,000+ rushing yards. 

MOST TEAM RUSHING YARDS IN A SEASON
Texas State's FBS history
Rk   Year          Rushing Yds Attempts
1.    2014         2,862             538
2.    2023         2,439             529
3.    2015         2,248             470
4.    2012         2,152             413
--     2024         2,067             390 
5.    2013         2,058             471
 
On the other side of the ball, Texas State has held opponents under 101 rushing yards four times this season and is 3-1 in those outings.
vs Lamar | 51 yds
vs UTSA | 82 yds
vs Arizona State | 101 yds
at Troy | 63 yds
 
GETTING TO THE BACKFIELD
In addition to Texas State having one of the best offenses in the country, it finished second in the nation in TFLs and tied for 9th in sacks.

• Texas State registered 7 sacks in the opener against Lamar. The most for TXST in an FBS game behind eight vs Idaho on Oct. 4, 2024 and the most since six against South Alabama Nov. 5, 2023.
• The Bobcats have 32 sacks this season, finished with 40 in 2023.
• TXST is currently 7th in the nation (1 SBC) with 3.20 sacks/game and 8th (1 SBC) with 7.9 TFLs.
• The Bobcats had 108 TFLs in 2023, 2nd in the nation and an FBS program record, and were 16 shy of matching the overall program record of 124 set in 1982.
• Texas State's 40 sacks were an FBS program record and most in any season for Texas State since it had 41 in 1997.
• The overall program record for sacks in a season is 58.5 set in 1982.
• The Bobcats finished 9th in the country with an average of 3.08 sacks per game in 2023.
• Texas State had 7 games in 2023 of 10+ TFLs and 8 games of 3.0+ sacks - 2024: 2/6
• The Bobcats had 26 different players credited with a TFL and 19 with a sack in 2023. 

ALL IN THE FAMILY
TXST has a handful of players with family NFL ties.
Jordan McCloud - Brother - Ray Ray
Joey Hobert - Father - Billy Joe
Tory Spears - Father - Marcus
Jordan Williams - Father Roy
Drew Donley - Father - Doug / Mother - Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader