The Texas State Bobcats have reached bowl eligibility for the first time since 2014 with a win, Saturday, against the Georgia Southern Eagles.
The Bobcats have reached bowl eligibility twice before 2013 and 2014) in their 11-year history in the FBS division of College Football. Both times before, the ‘Cats did not secure a bowl bid, but this year will (most likely) be different.
Texas State Bobcats Secure The Win
Bobcat Quarterback TJ Finley accounted for five touchdowns in the Bobcat’s, 45-24, win over Georgia Southern. It was their first in six tries, dating back to 2005 when the two squads met in the first round of the Division I-AA Playoffs. It took an all-around effort from the Bobcats to complete their sixth win of the season.
Finley and the Bobcats started the game off by scoring on their opening drive, a 23-yard touchdown pass to Joey Hobert that capped a five-play, 75-yard opening drive. Then, as the ‘Cats kicked the ball to the Eagles for the first time in the game, Georgia Southern’s DeAndre Buchannon returned it 80 yards to the Bobcat 17-yard-line.
The Bobcats would hold the Eagles to only three points but could not respond as Finley fumbled the ball, nearly in the red zone, at the Eagles 27. Southern would respond with a touchdown, their last in over 33 minutes of game time.
During the 33-minute-plus scoring drought for the Eagles, the Bobcats would score 38 points.
Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop
The first score after Georgia Southern took a 7-10 lead in the first, came on a 15-play, 75-yard drive that took seven minutes and 51 seconds, a three-yard touchdown pass from Finley to Konnor Fox as the Bobcats took a lead they would hold until the ‘Cats secured their sixth win at the end of regulation.
Another passing touchdown from Finley, this time to Kole Wilson, would extend the lead to 21-10 before Mason Shipley would make a 31-yarder – extending the Bobcat lead to 14.
After making another defensive stop, the Bobcats had less than two minutes to find points before the half. They would make the most of it as Finley and the Bobcats marched 60 yards in 46 seconds to extend the lead to 21 off a Finley scramble and run from 16 yards out, marking TJ’s fourth touchdown of the evening.
The fifth and final touchdown from Finley came in the third quarter as the defense kept the Eagles from scoring again. The Bobcats took six plays to find the endzone on a 12-yard rush from their Quarterback, continuing the Bobcat run to 31 points in the scoreless stretch from the Eagles.
Not Over ‘Til it’s Over
The final seven points of the run came off an 11-play, 4:40 drive capped by a Donerio Davenport leap from one yard out. The Bobcats had a 45-10 lead with 2:34 left in the third quarter.
The Bobcats would not be able to find the endzone again in the game as Georgia Southern found 14 more points in the final 16 minutes of the game, but, not enough to complete the comeback as the Bobcats secured their spot in the post-season with a 45-24 victory.
Turning the Page
The fans rushed the field, President Damphouse and Athletic Director Don Coryell jumped in the river along with many teammates, alumnae, students, and fans as the ‘Cats celebrated a bowl berth that may spark a turn in the Bobcat football program for the best.
The Bobcats will look for a seventh win in 2023 as they head East to Conway, South Carolina to face the Chanticleers of Coastal Carolina, Saturday, November 11, with kickoff scheduled for 2:30 (CT) at Brooks Stadium on the teal-colored Benton Field.
