TXST FOOTBALL
The fight for the starting quarterback position has turned into a four-way battle between redshirt freshman Brad Jackson, senior Gevani McCoy, senior Nate Yarnell and junior Holden Geriner.
While G.J. Kinne anticipates a competitive battle, the Texas State Head Coach still notes it’s early in the process and wants to have the best evaluation possible.
“It’s still really early,” Kinne said, “When you’re getting four guys equal reps, sometimes that’s good, and sometimes that’s bad. We have to continue to get those guys as many reps as possible. I canceled a couple of the individual drills and seven-on-seven just to get a couple more team reps, a couple more live bullets at those guys. We just have to continue to evaluate.”
Through three weeks of spring practice, Kinne is satisfied with the quarterbacks’ progress up to this point.
“I like where we’re at,” Kinne said. “Those guys are getting better each day. Some are like Holden [where] he’s an older guy but hasn’t got a ton of reps in his day, so every day he’s getting better; the more [improvement] he’s seeing, the more he gets comfortable in the system. All those guys are doing a really good job and our defense throws a lot at quarterbacks with some of the bullet patterns and some of the things that we do are a little unique.”
Of the four quarterbacks, Jackson is the only one who has experience playing the Kinne offense. Promoted to backup quarterback in the middle of the 2024 season, Jackson played in three games for the Bobcats.
His most notable performance was against Louisiana Monroe where Jackson played for the majority of the game with starter Jordan McCloud still dealing with an ankle injury. Jackson rushed for 119 yards on 16 carries and scored twice in the Bobcats’ 38-17 win over the Warhawks.
“It’s been such a blessing,” Jackson said. “I’ve been able to be under this offense for a year now and just being able to learn from Coach Kinne, and then to learn from [Landon] Keopple, it has just been amazing for me being able to run the offense each and every day.”
Entering year two, Jackson understands what the Bobcats are trying to build and what it is going to take for the team to achieve the next challenge.
“The biggest thing for me is I know what we’re trying to do here at Texas State,” Jackson said. “Going 8-5 and winning the First Responder Bowl two years in a row is great but our expectation is to win a Sun Belt Championship and have a shot to go to the College Football Playoffs.
“My biggest thing coming in year two is to have that year of seniority on me. I’m still a freshman, but I’m able to kind of know what we’re trying to do here. Just being able to lead guys and set this culture here at Texas State that we want to build and hopefully compete for a championship.”
Coming into spring practice, McCoy is the quarterback on the roster with the most playing experience. A three-year starter at Idaho before transferring to Oregon State, McCoy has passed for 7,159 yards and 46 touchdowns while rushing for 638 yards and 10 touchdowns.
“I’ve seen what they’ve done in the past,” McCoy said. “It was just an exciting conversation with the coaching staff here and they just said that there would be a quarterback competition. Just the things that they’ve done in the past are very exciting.”
For McCoy, knowing the offensive scheme has the ability to adjust to his strengths is exciting as he continues to learn.
“I’ve learned that this offense is very explosive,” McCoy said. “That’s very exciting for a quarterback. So, for me, it’s just learning from my mistakes and just keep going forward.”
Yarnell also enters the quarterback race with a lot of experience. Playing three years at Pitt, Yarnell finished the 2024 season throwing for 1,056 yards and 10 touchdowns. His biggest game of the season came against Clemson where Yarnell passed for 350 yards and one touchdown against the future ACC champions in a 2420 loss.
“I’ve been in four [different] offenses now in college,” Yarnell said. “I’ve been in pro style and in spread, and this is the offense I wanted to be in. It’s why I’m here. Coach Keopple can call these plays and get it done. Coach Kinne has built a fantastic culture here and we’re gonna score points. That’s why I came here.”
A graduate of Lake Travis High School, Yarnell is also happy to be back home.
“It means everything to me being pretty close to home,” Yarnell said. “Just being close to my family, being able to spend time with my brothers and my parents. I said when I came back to Texas, all I needed was Whataburger, H-E-B and Dr. Pepper. I came back down here, and I got all three of those things; so I’m just really excited about it.”
The fourth quarterback looking to make an impact is Geriner. A transfer from Auburn, Geriner saw limited action last season, making just two appearances.
On transferring to Texas State, Geriner was excited about the type of offense the Bobcats run.
“Just looking at the past offenses, the numbers that they put up and just the guys that are in this building already,” Geriner said. “I think I can really help us do something extremely special.”
Having played in multiple offensive schemes, Geriner’s ability to adapt will look to put him in the front running.
“I’ve had to learn a couple of new offenses in my career,” Geriner said. “That’s kind of been something that I’ve adapted and learned how to do. So just coming in here, having an open mind every single day and just asking the coaches questions left and right as well as the guys that have been here. I’m just learning as much as I can every day.”
Texas State will conclude spring practice at 12 p.m. Saturday with the annual Maroon-Gold Spring Game.
cmcwilliams @sanmarcosrecord.com Twitter: @ColtonBMc
