TXST FOOTBALL
Following Texas State’s historic win over UTSA, the Bobcats are now trying to shift their focus on another massive showdown with the Arizona State Sun Devils.
The Bobcats and Head Coach G.J. Kinne are operating on a short recovery span with the game being played on a Thursday rather than the traditional Saturday.
“It was a really good practice today [and] obviously a little bit unique with the schedule throughout the week because [we will be] playing on a Thursday,” Kinne said. “I thought our guys and the staff handled it well and worked their tails off to get ready for a really good opponent.”
Preparing for a game in a short time span has its positives and negatives for Kinne, especially after the Bobcats are coming off their emotional win against the Roadrunners.
“For us, because it is a quality opponent that is coming here, it is one of those good and bad things,” Kinne said. “It’s good because our guys are able to focus, lock in and get ready to go. But it is bad because the opponent is so good.”
The message from Kinne and the coaching staff this week to the players has been refocusing and locking in against Arizona State with a victory helping the Bobcats increase their odds of becoming the Group of Five representative in the expanded College Football Playoff.
“It’s going to be a really big challenge for us,” Kinne said. “It was a huge game for us Saturday, [so] being able to lock in, focus and get ready for Thursday has been the message all week. As long as we sleep, hydrate and recover.”
Running back Lincoln Pare agreed with his coach that the ability to recover and refocus faster than the opponent will provide an advantage since both teams played on Saturday.
“The challenges are very similar for both teams,” Pare said. “[We] both played on Saturday, and now we have to come up and play on Thursday. It’s about which team will recover faster. Our coaching and training staff have done a really good job of making sure we recover and we are fresh for the game.”
Kickoff for Texas State-Arizona State is set for Thursday night at 6:30 p.m. from UFCU Stadium in San Marcos.
cmcwilliams @sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc
