It has officially been over a month since Texas State football won a game. Its last victory came on Sept. 20 against FCS opponent Nicholls State, and the path to breaking the month-long drought doesn’t appear to be getting any easier as James Madison is set to roll into town on Tuesday, Oct. 28.
The last three weeks for Texas State have been gut-wrenching: A one-point loss to Arkansas State, followed by back-to-back overtime losses to Troy and Marshall. These losses have put a large blemish on a season where the Bobcats were expected to compete for a Sun Belt title.
James Madison, on the other hand, has taken care of business this season and finds itself sitting at 6-1 overall with a perfect 4-0 conference record atop the East division in the Sun Belt.
On paper, James Madison is as complete a football team as the Sun Belt has to offer, and they match up well against Texas State. The Dukes are good on offense and defense and simply put, are going to be a big test for the Bobcats.
It is no secret at this point in the year that the identity of Texas State football is an explosive offense, but the Bobcats have yet to face a defense as stiff as JMU. James Madison has the best defense in the Sun Belt, ranking 14th in the country with 15.57 points per game allowed, and their 237 yards allowed per game is fourth in the nation.
While JMU boasts a daunting defensive unit, if there is an offense in the Sun Belt that can score on the Dukes, it figures to be Texas State. Coming into Tuesday’s matchup, Texas State’s 36.1 points per game is the best in the Sun Belt and tied with Texas A&M for 27th in the country. The Bobcats also rank ninth in the nation with 487.9 yards per game.
The Bobcats boast the conference’s third leading rusher in redshirt senior Lincoln Pare with 86.9 yards per game and the second and fourth leading pass catchers in junior wide receivers Chris Dawn Jr. and Beau Sparks with 84.2 and 96.3 yards per game, respectively.
Rounding out the leaders is redshirt freshman quarterback Brad Jackson. Jackson leads the Sun Belt with 255.1 yards per game.
It will be strength on strength when the Texas State offense and James Madison defense meet on the field Tuesday night.
James Madison has a clear and distinct advantage against the Texas State defense. Unlike the offense, which remains one of the nation’s best, the Bobcat defense remains one of the worst. The 31.29 points per game that the Bobcats are allowing rank 115 out of 134 teams in the country.
While much of the focus is on James Madison’s stifling defense, its offense is no slouch. The Dukes’ 32.3 points per game is fourth in the Sun Belt and good enough for a top-50 ranking in the country.
For Texas State, hopes of a conference title are all but gone, but the season is still salvageable. A win against James Madison could turn around the Bobcats’ final season in the Sun Belt and put Texas State back on track toward another bowl game.
Texas State will look to ruin James Madison’s perfect conference record at 7 p.m. on Oct. 28 at UFCU Stadium. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2.
