2016 Opponent Previews

Texas State could struggle under first-year coach

Texas State quarterback Tyler Jones runs during the first half against Florida State in Tallahassee, Fla., on Sept. 5, 2015. (Mark Wallheiser/Associated Press)

This is the third piece of a 12-part series previewing Arkansas' 2016 football opponents.

Texas State is coming off a 3-9 year capped by a season-finale 55-17 loss at Arkansas State. The Bobcats went 2-6 in Sun Belt play, finishing 10th in the 11-team conference.

2016 Football Previews

WholeHogSports will preview all 12 of Arkansas' 2016 football opponents in the following days. Here is a schedule of when each preview will be published:

-http://www.wholehog…">Louisiana Tech: Monday, June 13

-http://www.wholehog…">TCU: Tuesday, June 14

-http://www.wholehog…">Texas State: Wednesday, June 15

-http://www.wholehog…">Texas A&M: Thursday, June 16

-http://www.wholehog…">Alcorn State: Friday, June 17

-http://www.wholehog…">Alabama: Monday, June 20

-http://www.wholehog…">Ole Miss: Tuesday, June 21

-http://www.wholehog…">Auburn: Wednesday, June 22

-http://www.wholehog…">Florida: Thursday, June 23

-http://www.wholehog…">LSU: Friday, June 24

-http://www.wholehog…">Mississippi State: Monday, June 27

-http://www.wholehog…">Missouri: Tuesday, June 28

2016 outlook

Texas State has a bye week prior to making the trip to Fayetteville on Sept. 17. Its home opener is the week after the game against the Razorbacks, when it hosts Houston, a preseason top-15 team by some publications.

A coaching change is not expected to help the Bobcats much, as ESPN’s Football Power Index projects them to win only 3.7 wins, a slight increase from last year’s three-win season.

The FPI also has Texas State at No. 126 in the country, ahead of only fellow Sun Belt foe Louisiana-Monroe and Conference USA’s North Texas.

Significant departures

Texas State must replace its top three receivers – C.J. Best, Jafus Gaines and Brandon Smith – and top two tight ends – Ryan Carden and Lawrence White.

Another receiver, Kwamane Bowens, was expected to be back in 2016, but left the team before spring practice. Three others – Demun Mercer, Justin Gamble and Brice Gunter – were kicked off the team in June.

Between those nine players and other receivers, tight ends and running backs that won’t be back in 2016, the Bobcats are losing 96 percent of last year’s receptions and 95 percent of last year’s receiving yards.

Only four players who caught passes last season are still on the team, and none of them are receivers: running backs Stedman Mayberry (5 rec., 26 yds.) and Tyler Siudzinski (4 rec., 71 yds.) and tight ends Tim Gay (1 rec., 17 yds.) and Gabe Schrade (1 rec., 11 yds.).

Smith was also Texas State’s top kickoff returner, returning 27 kicks for 625 yards, including a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.

Running back Robert Lowe, who had a team-high 915 rushing yards and accounted for 10 total touchdowns last season, graduated.

The Bobcats’ offensive line is also losing several pieces, most notably left tackle Adrian Bellard, who started 36 consecutive games. Left guard Brandon Sarabia (16 career starts) and right guard Zach Crawford (19 career starts) are gone, as well as four linemen who left the program after the season: Jackson Hoskins (1 career start), Hayden Lambert, Kian Schoenborn (5 career starts) and Kanon Mackey.

On defense, Texas State biggest holes will be at linebacker and in the secondary, where it is losing four of its top five tacklers from last season.

Linebackers Trey McGowan (76 tackles) and Jerrid Jeter-Gilmon (61 tackles, 4 TFL) are gone, as are cornerback David Mims II (57 tackles, 4 TFL, 5 PBU) and safety Aaron Shaw (57 tackles, 2 PBU, 1 int.).

Key returners

Although he may not have many experienced players to throw to, quarterback Tyler Jones will be back as a senior. He has started 31 of the Bobcats’ 36 games the last three years and ranks fourth in school history with 6,284 passing yards and 44 touchdown passes in his career.

Jones is also a dual-threat quarterback, with 1,379 rushing yards and 16 rushing touchdowns to his name.

Defensively, safety Damani Alexcee – who had a team-high 79 tackles last year – will lead the secondary with the help of cornerback Brandon McDowell – who had a team-high six pass breakups. McDowell also an effective punt returner, with a 95-yard punt return for a touchdown against Prairie View A&M.

Sack leader Karee Berry (39 tackles, 5.5 TFL, 3 sacks) will be back at defensive end/linebacker, while Dallas McClarty (40 tackles, 1.5 TFL) will return at nose tackle.

Notable additions

While Jones appears to be the frontrunner at quarterback, he has struggled in the past, including throwing 10 interceptions last year. Because of that, graduate transfer Eddie Printz, who began his career at Missouri, may push Jones for the starting job.

In two seasons with the Tigers, Printz – who was committed to UCLA at one time and was offered by Arkansas out of high school – attempted just one pass.

The Bobcats’ 23-man 2016 signing class was ranked 90th nationally by Rivals and included just one three-star prospect, albeit at a position of need: junior college wide receiver Elijah King.

Coaching staff

Everett Withers will be in his first season as a full-time FBS head coach in 2016. He replaces Dennis Franchione, who resigned in December, and comes to Texas State from James Madison.

In two seasons at the FCS program, Withers went 18-7, reaching the playoffs each year. He was also 7-6 as North Carolina’s interim head coach in 2011.

At the coordinator positions, Brett Elliott and Randall McCray are in their first seasons as offensive and defensive coordinator, respectively, at Texas State.

Elliott followed Withers from James Madison, where he led an offense that averaged 44.3 points and 528.8 yards per game in 2015. Prior to that, he spent three seasons as a graduate assistant at Mississippi State.

As a player, he was the starting quarterback at Utah before breaking his wrist and being replaced by eventual No. 1 overall NFL draft pick Alex Smith. Elliott finished his career at DIII Linfield College, where he set an NCAA all-divisions record with 61 touchdown passes in 2004.

McCray spent the last three seasons as defensive coordinator at FCS Gardner-Webb. His 2015 defense allowed 20.4 points and 306.7 yards per game. McCray was also a part of Arkansas coach Bret Bielema’s original staff at Wisconsin, coaching various defensive positions from 2006-2009.

Series history

Arkansas and Texas State have never played in football.

However, the Razorbacks are 23-1 all-time vs. current Sun Belt members, with the only loss coming in 2012 – a 34-31 overtime loss to Louisiana-Monroe.

Recent SEC history

The Bobcats haven’t played an SEC team since 2006, when it lost 41-7 at Kentucky as an FCS school. They are 0-4 all-time vs. current SEC members, but three of the losses came to Missouri and Texas A&M before they joined the conference.

Texas State does have recent games against Power 5 programs, though. It is 0-5 in such games the last five seasons, with losses to Florida State, Illinois and three to Texas Tech, by an average margin of 33 points.

Arkansas ties

While there are no players from Arkansas on Texas State’s roster, one of the Bobcats’ assistant coaches has ties to the Razorbacks. Texas State running backs and tight ends coach Ron Antoine spend two seasons – 2008 and 2009 – on Bobby Petrino’s staff at Arkansas.

The Razorbacks have 19 players from Texas on their roster, including a few who were teammates with Texas State players in high school.

Texas State cornerback Chris Stanton and Arkansas walk-on defensive back Matt Dodson played together at Boyd High School in McKinney, Texas.

A pair of Arkansas walk-ons – running back Connor McPherson and defensive back Ryder Lucas – played with Texas State safety Stephan Johnson at College Park High School in The Woodlands, Texas.

Thoughts from a beat writer

To get an even better idea of what Texas State will look like in 2016, WholeHogSports reached out Joe Vozzelli, who covers the Bobcats for the San Marcos Record. We asked him several questions about Texas State. Here are his responses:

WHS: What would you consider reasonable expectations for Texas State under first-year head coach Everett Withers?

JV: For more than one reason, the cupboard has been left bare for Texas State. New head coach Everett Withers has said change is uncomfortable and that has been evident with players quitting the team (10 of them during the offseason) or being dismissed due to discipline (three wide receivers last week). So with a depleted roster, and huge questions at the skill positions, particularly wide receiver and tailback, those outside the program don't have high expectations for Withers' first season at the helm. Honestly, even if everything goes right, the Bobcats are probably a four- or five-win team this season.

WHS: Is Tyler Jones the definite No. 1 guy at quarterback, or will graduate transfer Eddie Printz push him for that spot?

JV: Everett Withers has billed every position as an open competition. But, Tyler Jones clearly separated himself from the field during spring drills. Even then, Withers wasn't ready to anoint Jones as the starter. “He’s going to be in a competition throughout the summer,” Withers said back in April. “He’s not perfect and he’s not where we need him to win games." If anyone will push the senior, it's graduate transfer Eddie Printz who didn't participate in the spring. With that said, Jones, a dual threat, is a better fit for the scheme that offensive coordinator Brett Elliott wants to run. Unless Printz has a huge preseason camp, Jones will start when Texas State opens the season on Sept. 3 at Ohio University.

WHS: Who is the winner of that job going to throw the ball to?

JV: That's a very good question. At this moment, Texas State doesn't have a No. 1 or a No. 2 or maybe even a No. 3 guy. It had gotten so bad that the Bobcats switched L.G. Williams from quarterback to wideout just to add some depth and that was before wide receivers Justin Gamble, Demun Mercer and Brice Gunter were kicked off the team. Junior college player Elijah King is likely the best wideout on paper, but had a case of the drops throughout spring drills. There really is no telling who will start come September.

WHS: Which players do you expect the Bobcats to lean heavily on?

JV: On offense, Tyler Jones has to be the guy that he was as a freshman and sophomore when he was the best player on the field for Texas State. He didn't have a bad junior season but he wasn't great either and the rest of the offense sputtered as a result. Jones' problem is sometimes he tries to do too much. Tailback Tyler Tutt may be a freshman but he's talented enough to start right away. I'd be shocked if he doesn't find himself at the top of the depth chart when the Bobcats play Arkansas on Sept. 17. On defense, Everett Withers pointed to nose tackle Dallas McClarty, linebacker Frankie Griffin and safety Stephan Johnson as having great springs. As Texas State changes to a 3-4 defense, McClarty has to be a factor in the middle of the defensive line. Johnson brings size while Griffin runs to the ball with "fanatical effort."

WHS: How do you think Texas State will fair against Arkansas?

JV: It's going to be a long night for Texas State. The Bobcats don't match up very well against Arkansas, especially in the trenches. On paper, the Razorbacks struggled against spread offenses last season, but I don't see Texas State having the talent to test them in that regard. There are too many questions on both sides of the ball for the Bobcats to keep this game close.