The Bobcats enjoyed a rare second bye week of 2012 while preparing for their upcoming WAC matchup with San Jose State University. Now they are back to a normal routine, preparing for Saturday when the team faces the Spartans in San Jose.

The team utilized its off week in similar fashion as before, working on itself and correcting mistakes seen in recent games. Instead of coming off a loss like their first bye week, which followed the Texas Tech defeat, the Bobcats came into the week after a 38-7 blowout win over the University of Idaho.

“(The bye week) kind of goes both ways,” said senior quarterback Shaun Rutherford. “You want to (continue playing) but at the same time you get to chill on the victory a bit more. It’s unlike coming off of a loss.”

The Bobcats have experienced many different emotions during the opening half of their first season in the FBS. Senior linebacker Brian Lilly summed it up best when discussing the first loss of the season to Texas Tech.  

“We’ve gone from the highest of the high to the lowest of the low, so we’ve seen both spectrums,” Lilly said. “We’ve got to be constant and more consistent, more resilient.”

Yes, the quote is from the second week of the season, but it rings true even after seven weeks of football. Starting with the “highest of the high,” the Bobcats might have earned the greatest victory in Texas State football history, possibly in the entire sports program’s history. There have been some admirable baseball wins but they do not compare to the 30-13 win at Houston.

What NFL player do you model yourself after and why?

“I really like Steve Smith, Wes Welker and I just heard about a new guy named Danny Amendola. All three of them are great role models for me. I like watching them a lot.”

“I’ve always wanted to play defensive end. I’m obviously not that big, but I’ve always thought it might be fun going after the quarterback.”

“I played soccer my whole life until my junior year of high school (when) I started running track. I love soccer. I played baseball, football and a little bit of basketball, but soccer is probably my second favorite sport to play.”

Senior tight end Chase Harper stresses the teammates cannot “hang their heads.” “It (starts) with me and then all the way down to the opposite (side) tackle,” Harper said, regarding the offensive line struggles. “We have to be more physical and come off of the ball. I think there were times we felt sorry for ourselves and hung our heads (against New Mexico). We have to keep going and worry about the next play.”

The Bobcats football team spent Tuesday’s practice focusing on themselves.

The Bobcats’ (2-3) loss to the University of New Mexico last week was attributed to their rushing game, which produced a season-low 32 rushing yards. The team allowed five sacks on offense and turned the ball over four times, in addition to turning over the ball after a failed fourth down conversion.

During this week of practice, the players and coaches worked on correcting aforementioned mistakes, while adding in the necessary game plans for this week’s opponent, the University of Idaho Vandals.

The Bobcats will travel to Albuquerque this weekend to take on the University of New Mexico. Texas State has a current record of 2-2 after last week’s 34-21 loss against University of Nevada-Reno.

The Bobcats traveled to the University of Houston on Sept. 1, where they won against the Cougars. They will try to do the same against the University of New Mexico (2-3) in Albuquerque.

This will be only the second time these two programs have met, the first in 2003 when the Lobos defeated the Bobcats 72-8.

The Bobcat football team is striving for their third win as they travel to play the University of New Mexico, a team that just lost 32-29 to Boise State.

The Bobcats travel to New Mexico this weekend to take on the Lobos. Texas State has a current record of 2-2 after last week’s 34-21 loss against University of Nevada-Reno.

Heading into the game with the Lobos, the Bobcats will look to finish stronger during the fourth quarter and simply “play better,” according to Coach Dennis Franchione.

 “I think the bottom line is we need to coach better,” Franchione said. “We need to execute better. We need to do the little things better. We have got to play better. I wish it was something you could put your finger on and just fix, but it’s hard to pinpoint any particular thing.”

Not everyone is born or bred to be a football player—it takes a unique set of physical and mental skills. Even fewer are born to be leaders.

Brian Lilly might not have the fastest 40-yard time. He may not have the typical football player stature, standing six feet tall and weighing 230 pounds. However, there is something about the senior linebacker that stands tall among his coaches and teammates.

The Bobcats (2-2) capitalized on an early interception to grab the lead against University of Nevada-Reno (4-1), but were not able to secure a victory Saturday in their 34-21 loss.

Andy Erickson, junior wide receiver, had a career-best game with eight catches for 108 yards and a touchdown Sept. 29 at Bobcat Stadium. Texas State fell to Nevada 34-21.

Texas State entered the locker room at halftime with a 21-20 lead but did not score again during the second half. The offense’s inability to score or move the ball in the final two quarters destroyed any hope of beating a Nevada football team that has been to seven straight bowl games.

The Bobcats are fresh off of their first home victory of the season, taking down the Lumberjacks from Stephen F. Austin in a 41-37 thriller. Now Texas State awaits a team it has never faced before: the Nevada Wolf Pack.

Texas State football is preparing for this weekend’s game against University of Nevada-Reno at Bobcat Stadium. The Bobcats are 2-1 after last Saturday’s win against Stephen F. Austin.

The University of Nevada-Reno (3-1) has won two games in a row, including its Mountain West Conference debut at Hawaii, a blowout victory, 69-24. The week before its trip to the Islands, the Wolf Pack battled and beat Southland Conference’s Northwestern State 45-24.