With just a few days remaining until Texas State football takes the field for its season opener against Eastern Michigan on Aug. 30, head coach GJ Kinne officially announced redshirt freshman Brad Jackson will start at quarterback for the Bobcats.
Kinne kicked off his post-practice press conference on Aug. 26 with the announcement.
“Brad Jackson will be our starting quarterback; he’s earned it and done an unbelievable job since the moment he’s been here,” Kinne said. “Great player, great leader, [Jackson]’s really everything you want for a guy to be the face of the program.”
Before the official announcement, Jackson appeared to be the favorite to start throughout training camp, as he had been taking first-team reps with the offense leading up to the season. Along with running first-team reps, Jackson was also one of seven team captains selected by his fellow players on the team.
“[Jackson]’s special,” Kinne said. “It was evident early on how special [Jackson] is…he’s probably the vocal leader of the offense.”
Jackson beat out an array of transfers on his way to securing the QB1 nod from Kinne. Among those Jackson beat out were Pitt transfer Nate Yarnell, SMU transfer Keldric Luster and Auburn transfer Holden Geriner. Kinne credits all the QBs for making the position battle interesting, but maintains that Jackson is the guy moving forward.
“Those other guys did an unbelievable job competing,” Kinne said. “They made it interesting, but at the same time, Brad was the guy.”
Kinne pointed to the consistency and the maturity Jackson had throughout camp as the defining characteristics that led to Jackson securing his role.
“The consistency that [Jackson] brings, his personal life on the field, just super consistent all through camp,” Kinne said. “Really explosive through the air, he’s great with the box counts and does a little bit of everything…the way he carries himself, just a really good player.”
Jackson appeared in three games for the Bobcats during his redshirt year and ran for more yards than he passed for. Jackson was efficient carrying the ball in his hands, rushing for 164 yards on 22 attempts, an average of 7.5 yards per carry.
Jackson only attempted 15 passes in his appearances, but moved the ball downfield when he did. Through the air, Jackson was 8-15 for 118 yards for an average of 14.8 yards per completion.
Jackson will make his debut as QB1 for Texas State on Saturday, Aug. 30, in the Bobcats’ season opener vs Eastern Michigan. Kickoff for the Bobcats’ season opener is set for 7:30 p.m. at UFCU Stadium.
