STATEment WIN

The Bobcats did what no other football team had done in the history of the program over the weekend – beat a Power Five team.

The 42-31 win over the Baylor Bears quickly became historic, and days later, fans are still reveling in the enthusiasm that can only come from standing proud as a victor.

After holding Baylor to just a field goal on the Bears opening possession, Texas State responded with a 10-yard touchdown pass from TJ Finley to Ismail Mahdi to take a 7-0 lead. Later, despite the Bears capitalizing on a Bobcat fumble, Texas State held Baylor to just a field goal, to maintain their lead at 7-6. That field goal proved to be a difference maker, as the Bobcats scored back to back touchdowns, taking a commanding 21-6 lead.

But the 18-point deficit proved to be too much for Baylor, and Texas State rolled the Bears for a 4231 win. In the days since, Texas State was featured as the top play on Sport Center’s Top 10, ESPN’s College Football Live recognized the team and they received two votes in the Associated Press Top 25 poll. The euphoria of the fan base defies measuring.

Ishamel Johnson, former San Marcos Daily Record Sports Editor and now College Editor of Dave Campbell’s Texas Football Magazine and Bill Culhane, longtime radio broadcaster for Texas State athletics, tried to put this win in perspective.

For Culhane, who has seen over 30 years of Bobcat football, the Baylor win was a phenomenon he had only experienced once before.

“There have only been two times in my 30 years with Texas State Athletics where my phone has been blown up,” Culhane said. “The first time was when the Bobcats beat Houston in 2012 … That Sunday, I was at my great niece’s two-year birthday party and that was the topic of conversation. [This time,] I was on a work call about an hour ago before one of my teammates/co-workers told me about the Bobcats.”

For Johnson, who covered the Bobcats during their transition to FBS, the win was something he had never seen Texas State do.

“This was the kind of performance that we [Texas State] couldn’t produce,” Johnson said. “It wasn’t pulling out all the stops, running a bunch of gimmick plays or playing over our heads. This was lining up and beating another team that is supposedly more talented and is the bigger program. That is something that has never happened before. You have to go back to the FCS days to find a game where Texas State just lined up, ran their base offense and just beat them.”

Culhane concurred. “This wasn’t a fluke win,” Culhane said. “The fact is, which has to be causing Dave Aranda fits, is that the Bobcats won the line of scrimmage against a Big 12 opponent. They pushed Baylor around.”

The win sticks out, because Texas State flat out dominated Baylor.

Baylor’s offense could not get into a rhythm, as the Bobcat defense harassed quarterback Blake Shapen the entire game.

Meanwhile, the Bobcat offense continuously picked apart a defense that usually ranks in the top of the nation under a great defensive mind in Aranda, as the Texas State offensive line completely bullied Baylor.

In terms of where the win ranks in Bobcat history, the debate is a little more complex.

For Johnson,Texas State’s upset win over Houston in the Bobcats first-ever FBS game is a hard one to top.

“The Houston win to me will always be number one in terms of importance,” Johnson said. “But I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more impressive win since they jumped to FBS.”

For Culhane, the win might not be the greatest win in program history, but it is in the conversation, he said, noting that the Wacker National Championship years and the 2005 season produced all-time victories.

“Nothing can compare the Championship runs of 1981 and 1982,” Culhane said. “So, I think we need to wait a couple of years to see where the program goes from here. I was there for the 1994 win over #3 ranked Northern Iowa, the 2012 win over Houston, 2005 season win against Sam Houston to win the conference championship, the 2005 playoff wins against Georgia Southern and Cal Poly, the 2015 win against Tulsa and the 2016 win against Ohio. So, this is right there in that conversation of great wins. But before I can crown the king, let’s see where we end up.”

To credit both Culhane and Johnson said it’s hard to say where this win ranks in the “Greatest of All Time” category.

The 2012 win over Houston, as Johnson said, should never be overshadowed simply because the Bobcats knocked off the defending C-USA Champions to start of their FBS career.

And much like what Culhane said, it’s hard to compare the Baylor win to literally National Championships wins over North Dakota State and UC-Davis, on top of the magic that was the 2005 season.

No matter who you ask, this win was one of the greatest victories for Texas State, but it’s probably not quite the GOAT.

The 2023 season can’t be just about the Baylor win, Culhane said.

“The support of Kelly Damphousse, Don Coryell, the support staff and the support of Bobcat Nation had mountains of impact on what happened last Saturday in Waco,” Culhane said. “Going forward, everyone has to be pulling in the same direction, otherwise this will only be remembered as a nice win.”

Johnson summed up the win, as well as the Take Back Texas movement.

“Obviously, we need a couple more games, but this is an incredible start,” Johnson said. “These coaches come in here with a certain strategy or philosophy, but ‘Take Back Texas’ felt more like an initiative as opposed to a slogan. That’s what I saw play on the field. It wasn’t just bringing Texas State to win championships but a foundational shift.”

cmcwilliams@sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc