SAN MARCOS, Texas — Texas State opened its final season as a member of the Sun Belt Conference before joining the Pac-12 in 2026 on Saturday night.
The results were pure San Marvelous.
The Bobcats piled up 606 yards of total offense and steamrolled Eastern Michigan, 52-27, in front of a crowd of 21,082 mostly maroon-and-gold-clad fans and Pac-12 logos aplenty dotting the landscape of UFCU Stadium.
“A lot of fun,” Texas State head coach GJ Kinne said. “Great crowd. The guys were fired up. That’s a good way to start the season, going 1-0.”
Eastern Michigan trimmed Texas State’s advantage to 24-17 at halftime before the Bobcats blew the contest wide open with 21 unanswered points.
“We had some ups and downs,” Kinne said. “Especially in that first half, you saw some inexperience show up. We came out to play. The coaches put together a really good game plan, and we came out and executed.”
Texas State’s running game was nearly unstoppable, with three rushers averaging 11.3 or more yards per carry. Lincoln Pare led the way with 12 carries for 167 yards and a touchdown, while Greg Burrell added 79 yards and a TD and Jaylen Jenkins finished with 75 yards and a TD.
The passing game was no slouch, either, as quarterback Brad Jackson threw for 214 yards and four touchdowns — all to Beau Sparks, who had seven catches for 82 yards. He is the second Texas State receiver in program history to catch four touchdowns in one game.
“It’s definitely good for the confidence, but for me it’s all about the team,” Sparks said. “I came here to win games. I want to win games. Whatever I can do to help us win games, I am going to do.”
The contest included a planned celebration of Texas State’s future conference home with halftime and postgame drone shows that featured conference members of the Pac-12 and the league’s logo dancing through the sky.
“I didn’t even know they were doing that,” Kinne said. “These guys were just hungry and ready to hit somebody. People are excited about the Pac-12. We’re excited about the Pac-12, but I don’t think it had anything to do with [the team’s performance] tonight.”
The Bobcats (1-0) definitely fed off the excitement in the air of the enthusiastic crowd reveling in a great season-opening performance by the team.
“The stadium, the energy was amazing,” Sparks said. “It gets you wanting to go and keep going. Our fans are amazing.”
Texas State announced in June that it would be moving to a rebuilt Pac 12 as one of its nine foundational members. The university also has a record enrollment of more than 44,700 students for the fall semester.
Wayne Hodgson, a 1980 graduate of Texas State, which was then Southwest Texas State University, is especially excited about the move to the Pac-12.
“Texas State couldn’t have paid for better advertising than what has gone on this summer,” he said. “All of the [college football] podcasts on YouTube are talking about Texas State every other day. It’s an incredible thing. The conference is going to be really good. Texas State is also getting good at the right time.”
Texas State, which plays at UTSA (0-1) next week, is coming off an 8-5 season that culminated with a 30-28 win over North Texas in the SERVPRO First Responders Bowl in January. Eastern Michigan (0-1) hosts Long Island on Saturday.