Bobcats bounce back, take down FIU 41-12

Texas State won the physicality battle they’d been honing in on leading up to the ‘Cats’ 41-12 rout of Florida International (FIU).

A combination of explosive plays through the air, turnovers, winning the line of scrimmage and a 195-yard rushing performance from redshirt sophomore running back Calvin Hill led the way to the Bobcats’ first home opening victory since 2018. The maroon and gold took their first lead of the game on a 31-yard field goal from redshirt junior kicker Seth Keller at the 5:57 mark and never looked back.

“Overall (it was a) great team win (and) that was something that we've been working for for a long time. That's what we're capable of doing,” head coach Jake Spavital said. “You know, last week I thought we got punched in the mouth and there were a lot of tough conversations (and) a lot of look in your mirror situations. And how these kids responded — that's like what we talked about all the time. (We talk) about showing back up and getting back to work regardless of what happened, just keep swinging. I was proud of this team, they like each other (and) play for each other.”

Spavital’s praise of the team’s camaraderie showed in Hill’s first answer at the team’s postgame press conference. He chose to highlight the offensive line that blocked for him throughout the game before responding to questions about himself, and gave his game ball back to the team after the coaching staff gave him one postgame.

“Before answering any questions, I just want to give a shout out to my (offensive) line,” Hill said. “Like, none of this could have been possible without them. They opened the holes for me, (and) they led the way from me. And that was impossible without them so I just want to give a big shout out to them.”

The Bobcats’ offensive line also helped redshirt junior quarterback Layne Hatcher find success during the maroon and gold’s first win of the season. Hatcher finally was able to capitalize on his receivers’ big play ability down the field, throwing a 67-yard touchdown pass to redshirt freshman Charles Brown in the first quarter and following it up with another 52-yard bomb to senior Javen Banks in the second quarter.

Hatcher did throw an interception late in the first half, but overall Spavital was pleased with the passing game’s progression and Hatcher’s 226-yard and three touchdown performance.

“I thought we went into it wanting to run the football and just take our shots downfield when it was necessary,” Spavital said. “I thought Layne was pretty patient with what he was doing and took the shots when needed. And he had some big plays. I think Charles Brown is a very dynamic kid in terms of speed, (he) ran by a guy and Layne threw it out there to him. Layne’s starting to understand his personnel very well. (Javen Banks) ended up winning on a cover two shot. They ended up going with the inside vertical and left (Banks) who inside-stemmed it and stacked it and it was beautiful. 

“And then the touchdown to Ashtyn on the goal line. Ashtyn's got a unique ability to get open on the front line because he's a twitchy guy, so I thought the pass game was way better than what it was last week. You know, there's still some things we got to work through. But overall, those guys are working and getting open for him. So very pleased with that so far.”

The Hatcher-Hawkins connection was one of the few positives from Texas State’s 38-14 loss to Nevada, and it continued inside Bobcat Stadium. He once again led the team with nine targets and four receptions. Hawkins was able to find the corner of the end zone on his touchdown, and was a threat over the middle in the slot throughout the night.

The main focus for the Bobcats was clear heading into week two — win your matchups physically and play with an edge. 

While the maroon and gold aren’t completely where they want to be in that department, the improvement was still clear. Hatcher had protection for most of the night and was sacked twice, cutting in half the four sacks Texas State gave up against Nevada. The defensive line totaled three sacks throughout the night and five and a half tackles for loss. Sophomore Ben Bell, redshirt junior Levi Bell, junior Jordan Revels, redshirt sophomore Davon Sears and redshirt senior Nelson Mbanasor led the way on the line of scrimmage defensively.

“I thought we played hard and it showed. I thought we were hitting people (which set up) getting some great yards in the run game. Even in the pass game, I thought the (offensive) line was holding up and allowed us to get through some things,” Spavital said. “And more importantly our guys on the perimeter were getting open and contesting a lot of things. Last week we got contested and we didn't do what we were capable of doing. This just kind of shows them that we can get open, block, protect and establish the run. So I was pleased with the physicality and that's something in this game you got to bring every single week. If you don't play physical then you're probably gonna lose because the toughest team always ends up winning.”

The Bobcats will have their toughest test of 2022 in week three when they head north on I-35 to play reigning Big 12 champion Baylor at McLane Stadium in Waco. Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m.

“Obviously we play a tough Baylor team on the road on a (nationally televised) kickoff, but we got to worry about ourselves and continuously try to minimize these mistakes, find a rhythm (and) find a consistency,” Spavital said. “I think every single week we are finding the guys that we're gonna go to war with and (who are) the guys who consistently show up. You know, that's the thing all teams go through in these first three (to) four games of the season. They're trying to figure out who they're gonna lean on for the rest of the year and we're getting there. We’re getting better every single day and we still got a lot of work. We'll show up tomorrow, make the corrections and we'll get back out there and have a good week of prep and then go take a shot at Baylor.”