Reigning Sun Belt Player of Year McCloud looks to take Bobcats to even further heights

Reigning Sun Belt Player of Year McCloud looks to take Bobcats to even further heights

One of the most talked about transfers during the 2024 offseason is former James Madison quarterback Jordan McCloud.

Since making the move to San Marcos, McCloud has made the transition well, earning the starting role at quarterback.

“I love it,” McCloud said. “I love the town, the people and the team. We are gelling together. The offense is very fast and explosive. We are going to score a lot of points.”

McCloud is coming off a career best season leading the Dukes to a 11-2 record and the program’s first ever bowl game.

McCloud shined in the Dukes’ passing game for a career high 3,657 yards and 35 touchdowns while completing 68.2% of his passes leading to him being named Sun Belt Player of the Year.

McCloud entered the transfer portal in early December but was unable to find a spot while Texas State was going through their own quarterback drama during the offseason.

Despite the 2023 starting quarterback T.J. Finley announcing his intentions to return back to Texas State for the 2024 season, the Bobcats announced the commitment of former Arizona quarterback Jayden de Laura.

A day following the de Laura commitment, Finley announced his intentions to enter the transfer portal.

But the commitment and signing of de Laura was filled with controversy as the Arizona quarterback had settled a civil lawsuit regarding allegations of sexual assault dating back to 2018, along with former teammate Kamo’i Latu.

Less than a week after signing, Texas State released a statement that de Laura had withdrawn from the university.

With the Bobcats looking to add another quarterback and McCloud looking for a new home, both sides were able to find common ground.

McCloud announced his intentions to transfer to Texas State in late February and joined the Bobcats just before spring practice.

On choosing Texas State, McCloud felt the new culture change at Texas State, along with a high powered offense, was the right place for him.

“I just wanted to go to a place where I knew I could win,” McCloud said. “I didn’t want to go somewhere where [the team] is bottom tier. This team has a winning culture, the coaches come from a winning place and I wanted to play for people who want to win and are used to winning. [I wanted to go] into a culture where there is no satisfaction.”

With both Head Coach G.J. Kinne and offensive coordinator Mack Leftwich’s ability to elevated quarterbacks through their offensive system, McCloud also wanted that same success as well.

“It is really cool,” Mc-Cloud said. “Coach Kinne played in the NFL for a while so he has that background. Coach Leftwich is really smart. He has great concepts, good with quarterbacks and the offense speaks for itself. They are young too. They understand the game a lot more and how it is evolving.”

But despite being the reigning Sun Belt Player of the Year, McCloud knew he needed to earn not only the starting role but the leadership role as well.

“Everything is earned and not given,” McCloud said. “I have to come out here, operate and compete every single day. As far as a leadership role, just coming in and not stepping on anybody’s toes. Just do what is asked of me, helping guys that need help, and helping the younger guys in the room. Just being a voice for them and not being too big headed.”

As the Bobcats look to reach even further heights following a historic 2023 season, a key to reaching that goal for McCloud is having a great team culture, which helped him lead James Madison during their historic season last year.

“Everything is about culture,” McCloud said. “That is what it comes down to. They had a great culture over there. We had our team and we fought for each other every single day. Just learn that each and every single week if your team is fighting, you will have a chance.”

cmcwilliams @sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc