Countdown to Kickoff: Texas State adds BC, BYU

Texas State had two late additions to its 2020 schedule, both on the road, to replace its two games that were canceled in August, bringing its total back up to a full 12-game slate.

The first will be a trip to the east coast, as the Bobcats take on Boston College for the first time in program history.

The Golden Eagles are entering a new era under first-year head coach Jeff Halfley, Ohio State’s co-defensive coordinator last season. The team has won six or seven games in six of the last seven years, including a 6-7 overall record in 2019 with a 4-4 record in ACC play.

Notre Dame transfer quarterback Phil Jurkovec was deemed eligible for play this year by the NCAA on Aug. 4 and will presumably be the team’s starter after completing 12-of-15 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns last season with the Fighting Irish. He’ll get BC’s top three pass-catchers back from last year in redshirt junior tight end Hunter Long (28 receptions for 509 yards and two touchdowns), senior wide receiver Kobay White (29 receptions for 460 yards and five touchdowns) and sophomore wideout Zay Flowers (22 receptions for 341 yards and three touchdowns).

Three-time All-ACC First Team running back A.J. Dillon was taken by the Green Bay Packers in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Junior tailback David Bailey figures to be next in line to be the Golden Eagles’ feature back, gaining 844 yards and seven scores on 148 carries as Dillon’s primary backup in 2019, and actually earned more yards per carry than his predecessor (5.7-yard average for Bailey, 5.3-yard average for Dillon). Bailey will also run behind an offensive line that featured four on the 2019 All-ACC list.

BC was the worst defense in the conference last year, allowing 480.3 yards and 299.6 passing yards per game. Senior linebacker Max Richardson will look to stabilize the group after leading the team with 108 total tackles and 3.5 sacks to go along with two pass deflections and a forced fumble, with help from fellow senior linebacker John Lamot, who was second on the team with 77 tackles. Senior defensive back Mike Palmer snagged a team-high two interceptions and will hope to lead an improved secondary.

The Bobcats will head to Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, to face the Golden Eagles on Sept. 26. It’ll be the 10th-straight season Texas State plays against a Power 5 school. ESPN staff writer Bill Connelly’s SP+ projections ranked Boston College 70th in the FBS, ahead of the Bobcats at No. 123, and predicted a 5-7 season for the Golden Eagles before the team had its games against Holy Cross, Kansas, Ohio and Purdue canceled and added Texas State to its schedule.

The second trip the maroon and gold added will be out west, where the Bobcats will face BYU for the first time in program history.

The Cougars posted back-to-back 7-6 seasons the past two years, though a lot of the team’s struggles last season were due to injury. Head coach Kalani Sitake was awarded a contract extension through 2023 and the team has the talent to approach bowl eligibility for a third-straight season.

Quarterback Zach Wilson missed four games of his sophomore year due a hand injury but managed to complete 62.4% of his passes for 2,382 yards and 11 touchdowns with nine interceptions. He loses his top three wide receivers from 2019 but still retains his top target in senior tight end Matt Bushman, who caught 47 passes for 688 yards and four touchdowns.

BYU should be good up front with seven offensive linemen returning with starting experience. The team will need more production out of its running backs, though, after its top-two rushers — sophomore Sione Finau and junior Lopini Katoa — combined for just 717 yards and six scores on 144 carries (4.9-yard average).

The defense will be extremely deep as six of the top seven defensive linemen and all eight of the team’s top linebackers are set to return, a group that includes senior linebacker Kavika Fonua, who led the team with 83 stops while also collecting two interceptions, a sack and a forced fumble. The secondary lost most of its playmakers from last year, but have three experienced defensive backs in seniors Troy Warner and Chris Wilcox and junior Keenan Ellis, who missed most or all of last season.

Texas State will head to Lavell Edwards Stadium in Provo, Utah, to face the Cougars on Oct. 24, marking the end of a five-game road stand. Connelly’s SP+ projections ranked BYU 53rd in the FBS, ahead of the Bobcats at No. 123, and predicted a 6-6 season for the Cougars before the team had 10 of its originally scheduled games canceled and added six, including Texas State.