2023 Texas State

8–⁠5 (4–⁠4 Sun Belt Conference), coached by G.J. Kinne.

Schedule and results

Texas State in 2023, game by game: won at Baylor 42–31; lost at UTSA 13–20; won vs. Jackson State 77–34; won vs. Nevada 35–24; won at Southern Miss 50–36; lost at Louisiana 30–34; won vs. UL Monroe 21–20; lost vs. Troy 13–31; won vs. Georgia Southern 45–24; lost at Coastal Carolina 23–31; lost at Arkansas State 31–77; won vs. South Alabama 52–44; won vs. Rice 45–21+43−46Won 42–31 at Baylor+11BaylorLost 13–20 at UTSA-7UTSAWon 77–34 vs. Jackson State+43Jackson StateWon 35–24 vs. Nevada+11NevadaWon 50–36 at Southern Miss+14Southern MissLost 30–34 at Louisiana-4LouisianaWon 21–20 vs. UL Monroe+1UL MonroeLost 13–31 vs. Troy-18TroyWon 45–24 vs. Georgia Southern+21Georgia SouthernLost 23–31 at Coastal Carolina-8Coastal CarolinaLost 31–77 at Arkansas State-46Arkansas StateWon 52–44 vs. South Alabama+8South AlabamaWon 45–21 vs. Rice+24Rice
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2atBaylorW 42–⁠3124%
Sep 9atUTSAL 13–⁠2025%
Sep 16vsJackson StateW 77–⁠3457%
Sep 23vsNevadaW 35–⁠2476%
Sep 30atSouthern MissW 50–⁠3651%
Oct 7atLouisianaL 30–⁠3438%
Oct 14vsUL MonroeW 21–⁠2074%
Oct 28vsTroyL 13–⁠3137%
Nov 4vsGeorgia SouthernW 45–⁠2447%
Nov 11atCoastal CarolinaL 23–⁠3134%
Nov 18atArkansas StateL 31–⁠7751%
Nov 25vsSouth AlabamaW 52–⁠4443%
Dec 26vsRiceFirst Responder BowlW 45–⁠2155%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Rice 45–⁠21 in the First Responder Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 6th in the Sun Belt Conference.

In program history: The 4th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 46 on file).

Record
8–⁠5
Conference
4–⁠4 tied for 6th in Sun Belt Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
477–⁠427
Coach
G.J. Kinne
Elo
1513 +105 this season
SP+ rating
-1.6 No. 70 of 133; offense No. 37, defense No. 110, special teams No. 43
SRS
−2.8 No. 76 of 133 in FBS
Returning
47% of last season’s EPA, No. 73 of 131
Recruiting class
No. 98 roster talent No. 94 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Mack Leftwich
Defensive coordinator
Jonathan Patke
Offense
Run and Gun
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense46th of 133
  • Defense52nd of 133
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted54th of 133
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted66th of 133
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1546%1.2346th of 133
Defense0.0942%1.3452nd of 133
Opponent-adjusted0.13 off
0.11 def
44% off
43% def
—54th off
66th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.5own 2916% allowed
Defense3.7own 3219% caused

CORE rating -0.0, 62nd of 133 (offense 1.3, defense 1.3).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsT.J. Finley QB3,439 yds
Passing touchdownsT.J. Finley QB24 TD
Rushing yardsIsmail Mahdi RB1,331 yds
Rushing touchdownsIsmail Mahdi RB10 TD
Receiving yardsJoey Hobert WR895 yds
Receiving touchdownsJoey Hobert WR8 TD
TacklesBrian Holloway LB105 tkl
SacksBen Bell DL10 sacks
InterceptionsBrian Holloway LB4 INT

Top recruits in the 2023 class

Justin DeLeon OL★★★No. 797
Jo’Laison Landry DL★★★No. 990
Chris Dawn Jr. WR★★★No. 1463
Bami Badusi OT★★★No. 1585
P.J. Hatter QB★★★No. 1664

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2023 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.842
Receivers23.00.840
Offensive line23.00.859
Defensive line13.00.865
Defensive backs13.00.826
Whole class73.00.847

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 122

The 2023 roster

122 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2023 line; 69 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 37

The 2023 portal
Malik Hornsby QB★★★from Arkansas
Derrick Brown LB★★★from Texas
Brey Walker OL★★★from Oklahoma
Danny Valenzuela OL★★★from Arizona State
Alex Harkey OT★★★from Colorado
Joshua Eaton CB★★★★from Oklahoma
Beau Corrales WR★★★from SMU
Chayse Todd OL★★★from Houston
Christian Rorie DL★★★from Duke
Dan Foster LB★★★from Marshall
D.J. Jackson CB★★★from Missouri
Deven Wright DE★★★from Boise State

And 25 more, lower-rated or unrated.

Transfers out 24

Dalton Cooper OT★★★★to Oklahoma State
Davon Sears DL★★★★to Oklahoma
Levi Bell DL★★★to Professional
Kyle Hergel OL★★★to Boston College
Micah Hilts TE★★★to SMU
DeJordan Mask S★★★to UCF
Ahmirr Robinson WR★★★no new school on file
Bernock Iya CB★★★no new school on file
David Hensley OL★★★no new school on file
DeOnte Washington DL★★★no new school on file
Demarcus Gregory WR★★★no new school on file
Isaiah Nixon LB★★★no new school on file

And 12 more, lower-rated or unrated.

2023 Sun Belt Conference standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
James Madison7–⁠111–⁠2
Troy7–⁠111–⁠3
App State6–⁠29–⁠5
Coastal Carolina5–⁠38–⁠5
Old Dominion5–⁠36–⁠7
Texas State4–⁠48–⁠5
South Alabama4–⁠47–⁠6
Arkansas State4–⁠46–⁠7
Georgia State3–⁠57–⁠6
Georgia Southern3–⁠56–⁠7
Marshall3–⁠56–⁠7
Louisiana3–⁠56–⁠7
Southern Miss2–⁠63–⁠9
UL Monroe0–⁠82–⁠10

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.