TXST FOOTBALL
When Will Windham took over as Texas State’s new defensive coordinator, he had one goal in mind.
Make the Bobcats known for their defense and earn the respect of their peers.
“I told the defense this from the very first time that I met with them, everything I’ve ever heard about Texas State over the last few years has been Texas State’s offense,” Windham said. “That’s been earned and I’m not saying to take anything away from the offense, but I want people to change that narrative a little bit and talk about the defense. We have to practice and play with a chip on our shoulder if we want people to do that.
They’re not just going to do it because we say ‘Hey, please talk about us.’ They’re going to do it because of the product we put on the field.”
In order to reach those goals, Windham stressed the importance of playing with a chip on their shoulder and playing with a new defensive mindset.
“When you walk through the building, we wear shirts that say ‘Habits reflect the mission,’” Windham said.
”Well, if our mission is to be great on defense, then our habits have to reflect that daily. So we’re just trying to instill a mindset of how we play, how we play with that chip on our shoulder, how we practice with that chip on our shoulder, and as we go through those days, we’ll have to continue to stack days.”
Windham also stressed the urgency needed for the defense to be playing at a high level, accomplish their goal and be ready for the season opener.
“We can’t say, ‘Well, it’ll happen next week,’” Windham said. “We need to have intentional urgency as coaches, staff members, support staff and players to get those things fixed or nothing’s going to change and people are going to say the same things about the defense and only talk about the offense. We want to be included in that conversation, but it’s going to be up to us. We’re going to have to force that hand.”
Windham was hired at the end of the 2026 season, replacing previous defensive coordinator Dexter McCoil.
Before coming to Texas State, Windham was the defensive coordinator at South Alabama for the last two seasons and previously the linebackers coach for the Jaguars from 2021 through 2023.
In 2024, the Jaguars allowed the fourth fewest points in the conference, holding opponents to an average of 25.1 points per game. Last season, South Alabama held opponents to 30.4 points per game.
On his decision to come to Texas State, Windham noted the team culture Head Coach G.J. Kinne has built in San Marcos.
“Going against Coach Kinne for three seasons, you see the kind of offense that’s built and the kind of culture he has as a head coach,” Windham said. “Then throughout the process, just being able to talk to him, visit with him, and just the vision he had. Obviously going to the Pac-12, as a defensive coach you like when the offensive side of the ball scores a lot of points so it’s fun. Again, he creates a great culture for players.
I knew that he had 3 kids that were similar ages to mine. So outside of football, there was going to be some good camaraderie within that our kids were going to be kind of in those same age ranges so there’s a lot of it that is not just football.”
Windham also talked about the opportunity of coaching in the new Pac-12 Conference which to him presents a new challenge from the number of different offenses.
“Career path wise in terms of joining the Pac-12, it’s a new challenge for me,” Windham said. “If you look back at my history, one of the things that probably I struggled with is we have to look at our faults to be able to grow against spread offenses. Now I get to go against one every single day in practice. So for me as a defensive coordinator, it makes you better to be able to play those spread type offenses.
So a lot of different things that really went into it, but ultimately, it was Coach Kinne, his vision and where this program is headed.”
Having seen the Bobcat defense firsthand, Windham was impressed by the team’s length and how it made it difficult for the South Alabama offense.
“The one thing that I always thought was prominent here was length, especially in the secondary,” Windham said. “We even talked about it when we got done with our game when we got back to Mobile.
It was the length of defense. And I was on the other side of the ball talking about the offense, but you could hear the offensive coaches say ‘They got length on defense.’ They made it hard, and it was like we need to change how we recruit in Mobile to get more length on defense.
“The pieces were there. I think we had to instill and again, I don’t know what was here before in terms of coaching staff and those types of things, but to me it’s instilling the mindset. That’s the biggest thing is staying hungry, continuing to push and having that chip on your shoulder.”
One of the players that has stood out to Windham is senior defensive lineman DonTerry Russell.
For Windham, he has seen firsthand Russell’s improvement from his junior season to his senior year.
“Today was probably the first time a lot of guys jumped out,” Windham said. “DonTerry [Russell] has done a great job. Coach Kinne even made a comment yesterday, he’s practicing a little bit different than he has in the past. You can see those guys, as time waits for no man, right?
When you get to the end of your career, it’s like that light went on. Like they had a junior day where they met with some NFL scouts and it’s ‘All right, well, this is my chance now. This is where I have to go, shine,’ and he’s done a great job.
He’s being a leader for us.”
Along with Russell, Windham also saw a number of defensive players that have made a significant impact on the defense.
“The guy who really has jumped out a good bit at linebacker is Cole Nilles,” Windham said. “He’s done a great job picking up on the scheme very fast. He’s extremely intelligent and he’s done a great job for us in that linebacker room.
“I thought that the guys that we brought in portal-wise to help bolster the defensive tackle spot has been huge for us. Guys like Tae Woody and Chancellor Owens. They’re doing such a great job of buying into Coach [Chris Gistorb] and what he’s preaching.
Then on the back end, Malik [Willis] had two picks today. He’s so twitchy and great to watch. Craig [Royal] had a pick today, [Jaden Lawton] had a pick today. So those guys are really starting to find their way.”
Texas State will continue spring practice throughout the month of April, concluding with the Maroon and Gold Spring Showcase on Saturday, April 25.
