SAN ANTONIO — UTSA (4-4, 3-2 C-USA) will kick off a three-game road trip to start the month of November this weekend when it heads to Middle Tennessee (6-2, 3-1 C-USA) for a Saturday matchup in the Volunteer State. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium in Murfreesboro.
The Roadrunners, who never have played three consecutive contests away from the friendly confines of the Alamodome, are coming off last Saturday's 31-17 victory against North Texas.
Saturday will mark the 67th all-time game in school history, the 32nd of which that will not be played in the Alamo City.
UTSA returned 41 letterwinners from last year's squad, including 14 starters (seven offense/five defense/two kickers).
TUNING IN: Saturday's game will be broadcast live on ESPN3 and it will be available online at ESPN3.com or with the WatchESPN app. Jake Rose (play-by-play), Alex Myers (analyst) and Paige Patton (sidelines) will call all the action. The contest also can be heard live in San Antonio on Ticket 760 AM (pregame show) and 92.5/93.3 FM The Bull (full game/postgame show). Andy Everett (play-by-play) and Jay Riley (analyst) will handle the call. The pregame show will begin at 11:30 a.m. and there will be a 45-minute postgame show. The broadcast also can be heard live online at goUTSA.com or on your mobile device with the free iHeartRadio app.
SCOUTING MIDDLE TENNESSEE: Middle Tennessee (6-2, 3-1 C-USA) will bring a two-game winning streak into the weekend matchup after posting road victories the past two weeks at FIU (42-35/Oct. 29) and Missouri (51-45/Oct. 22). The Blue Raiders, who have won five of their last six games overall, also own victories against Alabama A&M (55-0/Sept. 3), Bowling Green (41-21/Sept. 17), Louisiana Tech (38-34/Sept. 24) and North Texas (30-13/Oct. 1) this fall. Middle Tennessee's two losses this year have come at Vanderbilt (47-24/Sept. 10) and against Western Kentucky (44-43/Oct. 15). The Blue Raiders are led by 11th-year head coach Rick Stockstill, who has posted an all-time mark of 70-63 (.526) at the school. Middle Tennessee returned 40 letterwinners, including 14 starters, from last year's squad that went 7-6 overall (6-2 C-USA).
SERIES HISTORY: Saturday will mark the second all-time meeting between UTSA and Middle Tennessee. The Monarchs handed the Roadrunners a 42-7 setback last Nov. 28 in the inaugural meeting between the two squads.
UTSA BOUNCES BACK AGAINST NORTH TEXAS: Jalen Rhodes and Jarveon Williams rushed for 74 yards apiece to help lead UTSA to a 31-17 victory against North Texas in Conference USA action last Saturday night at the Alamodome. The running backs led a balanced offensive attack by the Roadrunners, who registered their third all-time win in four tries against the Mean Green. Rhodes piled up his 74 yards on just nine carries (8.2 avg.) and added a pair of touchdowns to increase his team-leading totals to seven on the ground and eight overall this season, which ranks second on the school's single-season lists. Meanwhile, Williams increased his program-leading career rushing-yards total to 1,964. Dalton Sturm completed 10-of-19 passes for 142 yards and two TDs, pushing his season total to 15, which stands second in program history. The defense forced a season-high four turnovers (two fumbles/two interceptions) and was led by the trio of La'Kel Bass, Marcus Davenport and Nate Gaines, who each recorded eight tackles.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO COACH FRANK: UTSA first-year head coach Frank Wilson will celebrate his 43rd birthday on Saturday.
FIRST-TIME STARTERS: UTSA has seen a total of 21 first-time starters (11 defense/10 offense) take the field in the opening eight games of the season and that figure ranks fourth in the country (Illinois leads with 25, while Bowling Green and Missouri are second with 24). In the season opener against Alabama State, the Roadrunners' starting lineup featured a total of nine first-time starters, five on defense and another four on offense. Defensive first-time starters included junior CB N'Keal Bailey, redshirt freshman DT Baylen Baker, junior LB La'Kel Bass, senior S Jordan Moore and redshirt freshman LB Josiah Tauaefa. Meanwhile, offensive first-time starters included senior OT Gabriel Casillas, senior OT Jevonte Domond, sophomore RB Halen Steward and junior WR Josh Stewart. The Colorado State contest saw junior WR Brady Jones make his first career start in the slot and junior OG Stefan Beard, freshman CB Teddrick McGhee and junior WR Marquez McNair drew starting assignments against Arizona State (Sept. 16). Senior DE Ben Kane and junior TE Shaq Williams were in the starting lineup for the first time at Old Dominion (Sept. 24) and the Southern Miss (Oct. 8) game saw redshirt freshman WR Matt Guidry, junior CB Austin Jupe and senior RB Andrew King draw their inaugural starts. UTSA's lone first-time starter at Rice (Oct. 15) was sophomore S C.J. Levine, redshirt freshman DT King Newton draw his first start against UTEP (Oct. 22) and last Saturday saw sophomore WR Larry Stephens line up on the first play of the game against North Texas.
FBS Leaders — First-Time Starters
Team — No.
1. Illinois — 25
2. Bowling Green — 24
Missouri — 24
4. Colorado State — 21
UTSA — 21
BROTHERLY LOVE: Junior WRs Josh Stewart and Kerry Thomas Jr. became the first set of brothers to start the same game on offense for UTSA in its six-year history in the season opener against Alabama State (they have gone on to start the five of the past seven contests together). Bennett (defense) and Evans (offense) Okotcha both started the 2013 season finale against Louisiana Tech (Nov. 30), but they did so on opposite sides of the line of scrimmage.
RED ZONE SUCCESS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE BALL: UTSA currently is one of six teams that rank among the top 20 nationally in both red zone offense and red zone defense. The Roadrunners have been successful on 24 (20 TD/4 FG) of their 26 trips (92.3 percent) inside the 20-yard line. Meanwhile, the UTSA defense has limited its opposition to just 23 scores (17 TD/6 FG) in 31 trips in the red zone (74.2 percent).
FBS Red Zone Leaders — Teams In Top 20 (Offense & Defense)
Team — Offense — Defense
Central Florida — t-19th — 15th
Georgia State — 8th — 16th
Iowa — t-11th — t-5th
Maryland — 9th — 8th
Troy — t-11th — 3rd
UTSA — 13th — t-19th
STURM WINS QUARTERBACK BATTLE: In a fall camp quarterback competition that went down to the wire, incumbent starter Dalton Sturm was under center to open the season and he responded with one of the best games of his career. The junior from Goliad connected on 20-of-25 passes for a career-high 274 yards and two touchdowns in the season-opening 26-13 victory against Alabama State (Sept. 3). The former walk-on who earned a scholarship this summer completed throws to 10 different receivers and also rushed three times for 52 yards and another score in his eighth consecutive starting assignment dating back to last fall's Louisiana Tech contest (Oct. 10). His 51-yard touchdown run in the second quarter was one-yard shy of a career best, a 52-yard non-scoring jaunt last season at UTEP (Oct. 3), and his 51-yard pass to junior TE Shaq Williams in the third quarter also was the second-longest in his three years as a Roadrunner. Sturm, who split time with senior Jared Johnson in the second half at Colorado State (Sept. 10), completed 15-of-23 throws for 176 yards and two more scores against the Rams. He connected on 19-of-37 throws for 229 yards and three touchdowns and added a career-high 82 rushing yards and another score, a 34-yarder in the third quarter, on 15 carries against Arizona State (Sept. 16). In the 55-32 victory against Southern Miss (Oct. 8), the 6-foot-2, 195-pounder was an efficient 10-of-12 for 193 yards, including a 71-yard TD to junior WR Kerry Thomas Jr. on the game's third play from scrimmage. At the time, it was second-longest passing play in program history, but he then connected with Thomas' brother, junior WR Josh Stewart, for a 77-yard catch-and-run on the first play of the following possession. Sturm completed 17-of-25 throws for 209 yards, including TD passes of 75 (third-longest passing play in school annals) and 28 yards to Stewart, at Rice (Oct. 15) and he was 18-of-34 for 214 yards and three scores in addition to rushing for 74 yards and another TD against UTEP (Oct. 22). He has completed 60.9 percent of his passes (117-of-192) for 1,540 yards and 15 scores (No. 2 on UTSA's single-season chart) through the season's first eight contests.
UTSA Single-Season Passing Touchdowns
Player (Year) — TDs
1. Eric Soza (2012) — 20
Dalton Sturm (2016) — 15
STURM AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS: Junior QB Dalton Sturm currently ranks just outside of the top 20 in the Football Bowl Subdivision in passing efficiency, as he stands 21st nationally with his mark of 149.9.
HOT STARTS: Junior QB Dalton Sturm has made a habit of hot starts in six of the season's first eight games. Sturm was an efficient 7-of-8 to open the UTEP contest (Oct. 22) and that came on the heels of a 9-of-11 start in the 14-13 victory at Rice (Oct. 15) and a 10-of-12 performance in the 55-32 triumph against Southern Miss (Oct. 8). He completed his first six attempts and eight of his first 10 overall against Arizona State (Sept. 16), was 5-of-6 to open at Colorado State (Sept. 10) and 14-of-15 to start the season opener against Alabama State (Sept. 3). Those starts have helped Sturm rank 21st nationally in passing efficiency (149.9).
Dalton Sturm's Hot Passing Starts
Date — Opponent — Comp-Att
Sept. 3 — Alabama State — 14-of-15
Sept. 10 — at Colorado State — 5-of-6
Sept. 16 — Arizona State — 8-of-10
Oct. 8 — Southern Miss — 10-of-12
Oct. 15 — at Rice — 9-of-11
Oct. 22 — UTEP — 7-of-8
SPREADING THE WEALTH: UTSA's two quarterbacks have distributed their 130 completions to a total of 14 pass-catchers this season. Leading the way is junior brother tandem of WRs Josh Stewart and Kerry Thomas Jr., who both have 19 receptions. A total of eight Roadrunners have caught a TD pass this fall and six players have completed at least one pass.
BIG PLAY THREAT: Junior WR Josh Stewart leads UTSA with 440 receiving yards on just 19 receptions through the season's opening eight contests and he ranks fourth nationally in yards per catch (23.2). Stewart finished with a career-high 103 yards on the strength of touchdown catches of 75 and 28 yards in the 14-13 victory at Rice (Oct. 15). They were the first two TDs of his career and the 75-yarder stands as the third-longest passing play in program history. That came on the heels of team highs of two receptions for 85 yards in the 55-32 victory against Southern Miss (Oct. 8), a performance that included a 77-yarder that was the second-longest passing play in school annals. The walk-on who calls College Station home hauled in team highs of four catches for 80 yards at Old Dominion (Sept. 24) and four more for 84 yards, including a 21-yard TD, last Saturday against North Texas. Stewart has totaled 15 receptions for 373 yards (24.9 avg.) and three scores in his past five outings.
FBS Leaders — Yards Per Reception
Player, Team — YPR (Rec-Yds)
1. Jalen Robinette, Air Force — 25.9 (24-622)
2. Jeff Badet, Kentucky — 24.8 (20-496)
3. Mikah Holder, San Diego State — 23.9 (15-358)
4. Josh Stewart, UTSA — 23.2 (19-440)
UTSA All-Time Longest Passing Plays
Yards — Name — Opponent (Date)
82t — Kenny Bias (from Eric Soza) — at New Mexico State (Sept. 29 2012)
77 — Josh Stewart (from Dalton Sturm) — Southern Miss (Oct. 8, 2016)
75t — Josh Stewart (from Dalton Sturm) — at Rice (Oct. 15, 2016)
71t — Kerry Thomas Jr. (from Dalton Sturm) — Southern Miss (Oct. 8, 2016)
THOMAS SETS RECEIVING TOUCHDOWN MARKS: Junior WR Kerry Thomas caught his school-record sixth touchdown pass of the season last Saturday against North Texas and he now has a UTSA-record 11 during his three-year career. He led UTSA with five receptions for 89 yards, including touchdown catches of 53 and nine yards, against UTEP (Oct. 22). That tied the program's single-game record shared by five other players and it pushed his season total to a school-record-tying five while setting a new program mark with 10. He previously shared the career record with current Minnesota Viking and 2015 All-America TE David Morgan II. The College Station native hauled in a 71-yard touchdown pass on the third play from scrimmage against Southern Miss (Oct. 8) and the eighth scoring catch of his career also stands as the fourth-longest passing play in school history. The 6-foot, 205-pounder has a team-leading 19 receptions for 289 yards (15.2 avg.) this fall. UTSA's leading receiver from a year ago, Thomas Jr. is coming off a sophomore campaign that saw him catch a school-record 52 passes for 541 yards and four TDs en route to honorable mention All-Conference USA accolades. He opened his third season as a Roadrunner with three receptions for 41 yards, including a 25-yard score in the fourth quarter, against Alabama State (Sept. 3). Thomas Jr. added four catches for 41 yards and his second TD in as many weeks, a 10-yarder on UTSA's opening possession, at Colorado State (Sept. 10).
UTSA Single-Season Receiving Touchdowns
Player (Year) — TDs
1. Kerry Thomas Jr. (2016) — 6
2. David Morgan II (2015) — 5
UTSA Career Receiving Touchdowns
Player (Years) — TDs
1. Kerry Thomas Jr. (2014-present) — 11
2. David Morgan II (2011-15) — 8
WILLIAMS BREAKS UTSA'S ALL-TIME RUSHING RECORD: Senior RB Jarveon Williams became UTSA's all-time leading rusher three weeks ago in the Roadrunners' 14-13 victory at Rice (Oct. 15). After rushing for 74 yards on 18 carries last Saturday against North Texas and another 104 on 21 attempts (5.0 avg.) the previous week against UTEP (Oct. 22), the local product out of Converse Judson High School now has amassed for 1,964 yards during his four-year career and that has eclipsed David Glasco II's previous program record of 1,752 established from 2011-14. Williams racked up a season-best 122 yards and two touchdowns on just 15 carries (8.1 avg.) against Southern Miss (Oct. 8), including a 92-yarder late in the contest that was the longest play in school history. He now owns six of the 14 100-yard games in school annals. That came on the heels of a 93-yard effort at Old Dominion (Sept. 24). The 5-foot-9, 200-pounder rushed for just 38 yards on 24 carries in the opening three contests while dealing with an ankle injury sustained in the opening half of the season opener against Alabama State (Sept. 3). Williams set new career highs of five receptions for 81 yards against Arizona State (Sept. 16). He became the first 1,000-yard rusher in program history last fall after running for 1,042 yards and eight touchdowns on 173 carries (6.0 avg.), which was an average of 94.7 per contest. All of those numbers were UTSA single-season records and he was an honorable mention All-Conference USA selection.
UTSA Career Rushing Yards
Player (Years) Yards
1. Jarveon Williams (2013-present) — 1,964
2. David Glasco II (2011-14) — 1,752
UTSA Career 100-Yard Rushing Games
Player (Years) — No.
1. Jarveon Williams (2013-present) — 6
2. Evans Okotcha (2011-13) — 3
3. David Glasco II (2011-14) — 2
UTSA Career Rushing Touchdowns
Player (Years) — TDs
1. David Glasco II (2011-14) — 20
2. Eric Soza (2011-13) — 16
3. Evans Okotcha (2011-13) — 14
Jarveon Williams (2013-present) — 14
RHODES HAS BREAKOUT PERFORMANCE: Sophomore RB Jalen Rhodes set career highs with 165 rushing yards, the third-best performance in program history, and a school-record-tying three touchdowns on just 14 carries (11.8 avg.) in the 55-32 victory against Southern Miss (Oct. 8). He had scoring runs of four, 80 and three yards and his second score was the fourth-longest rush in program history. Rhodes is the third player in school annals to rush for three touchdowns, as Evans Okotcha accomplished the feat on Sept. 15, 2012, at Georgia State and Eric Soza matched him on Nov. 11, 2012, at Idaho. The Rowlett native racked up a game-high 79 yards on 18 attempts in the 14-13 victory at Rice (Oct. 15) and 84 more on 15 carries (5.6 avg.) against UTEP (Oct. 22). He added 74 yards on just nine totes, including TDs of nine and 19 yards, last Saturday against North Texas. Rhodes now has a team-leading 599 yards and seven TDs on 102 caries (5.9 avg.) this season. He also has hauled in 13 receptions for 130 yards (10.0 avg.) and another score. He ranks second on the program's single-season charts for total touchdowns (eight) and third in rushing TDs.
UTSA Single-Season Rushing Touchdowns
Player (Year) — TDs
1. Evans Okotcha (2012) — 8
Jarveon Williams (2015) — 8
3. Jalen Rhodes (2016) — 7
Eric Soza (2013) — 7
UTSA Single-Season Total Touchdowns
Player (Year) — TDs
1. Evans Okotcha (2012) — 11
2. Jarveon Williams (2015) — 8
Jalen Rhodes (2016) — 8
UTSA Single-Game Rushing Performances
Player (Game) — Yds (Att)
1. Jarveon Williams (at Charlotte/Nov. 14, 2015) — 186 (19)
2. Jarveon Williams (Colorado State/Sept. 26, 2015) — 170 (13)
3. Jalen Rhodes (Southern Miss/Oct. 8, 2016) — 165 (14)
UTSA Single-Game Rushing Touchdowns
Player (Game) — TDs
1. Evans Okotcha (at Georgia State/Sept. 15, 2012) — 3
Jalen Rhodes (Southern Miss/Oct. 8, 2016) — 3
Eric Soza (at Idaho/Nov. 11, 2012) — 3
TAUAEFA LEADING DEFENSE IN DEBUT SEASON: Redshirt freshman LB Josiah Tauaefa is leading UTSA's defense through the season's opening eight contests. Tauaefa racked up 15 tackles at Old Dominion (Sept. 24), one shy of Cody Rogers' UTSA single-game record, and he added another 12 against Southern Miss (Oct. 8) en route to Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week accolades. The 6-foot-1, 230-pounder racked up 10 more in the 14-13 victory at Rice (Oct. 15), another seven against UTEP (Oct. 22) and four last Saturday against North Texas. That has pushed his team-leading total to a Football Bowl Subdivision freshman-best 79 in his inaugural season and he also has a team-best four sacks and seven QB hurries to go along with 6.5 TFLs and an interception. His 9.9 stops per game currently rank 16th nationally. Tauaefa had a debut to remember in the season-opening 26-13 victory against Alabama State (Sept. 3). The former defensive end, who made the transition to linebacker this past spring, racked up a team-high 13 tackles (9 solos), including a pair of sacks. Tauaefa proceeded to add nine stops in each of the next two outings at Colorado State (Sept. 10) and against Arizona State (Sept. 16). He is on pace to shatter UTSA's single-season record of 95, which was established by Brandon Reeves back in 2012 (Tauaefa projects to have 119 this year).
FBS Freshman Leaders — Total Tackles
Player, Team — TT (G)
1. Josiah Tauaefa, UTSA — 79 (8)
2. Bryan London, Texas State — 73 (7)
Josiah Tauaefa Tackles Tracker
Date — Opponent — TT
Sept. 3 — Alabama State — 13
Sept. 10 — at Colorado State — 9
Sept. 16 — Arizona State — 9
Sept. 24 — at Old Dominion — 15
Oct. 8 — Southern Miss — 12
Oct. 15 — at Rice — 10
Oct. 22 — UTEP — 7
Oct. 29 — North Texas — 4
Total — 8 games — 79
EGWUAGU SETS NEW CAREER BEST: Senior S Michael Egwuagu, a preseason All-Conference USA selection, racked up a career-high 12 tackles at Colorado State (Sept. 10). That topped his previous best of 10, which came against the Rams in last year's meeting that took place on Sept. 26 at the Alamodome. Egwuagu, who had 10 more stops against Arizona State (Sept. 16) and another nine at Rice (Oct. 15), ranks second on the squad with his 57 tackles this season, three of which have gone for loss. He also has four pass breakups, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
BASS ROUNDING INTO FORM: Junior LB La'Kel Bass has been a force on the second level the past four games, as he has totaled 37 tackles, including a career-high 12 at Rice (Oct. 15). The 6-foot-1, 225-pound weak-side linebacker currently ranks third on the squad with 56 stops this season. His seven tackles behind the line of scrimmage leads the team and his three sacks rank second.
DAVENPORT MOVING UP CAREER SACKS CHART: Junior DE Marcus Davenport opened his third campaign against Alabama State with two sacks and he got back on the board with a half sack last Saturday against North Texas, which has pushed his career total to 9.5. He ranks second on UTSA's career list, trailing only Jason Neill, who racked up 14 from 2011-15. Davenport also has 38 tackles and six QB hurries this fall.
UTSA Career Sacks
Player (Years) — Sacks
1. Jason Neill (2011-15) — 14
2. Marcus Davenport (2014-present) — 9.5
BIG-TIME SACK ATTACK: UTSA registered a program-record six sacks in the season-opening 26-13 victory against Alabama State (Sept. 3). That broke the previous mark of five that had occurred six times (last: at Marshall; Oct. 5, 2013). Leading the way was the duo of junior DE Marcus Davenport and redshirt freshman LB Josiah Tauaefa, who both recorded two each.
PLENTY BACK ON DEFENSE: The Roadrunners may return just five starters on defense, but they welcome back three of their top five tacklers from the 2015 season. Junior S Nate Gaines (76), junior LB Marcos Curry (74) and senior S Michael Egwuagu (62) ranked third through fifth, respectively, last fall.
SPECIAL TEAMS TURNOVERS LEADING TO POINTS: UTSA came up with its fifth special teams turnover in the 14-13 victory at Rice (Oct. 15) and that led to junior WR Josh Stewart's 28-yard touchdown catch from junior QB Dalton Sturm. The Roadrunners previously recovered a fumble on the opening kickoff of the season against Alabama State (Sept. 3), a pair of muffed punts against Arizona State (Sept. 16) and another mishandled punt against Southern Miss (Oct. 8). UTSA has scored a total of 30 points (four touchdowns/one field goal) following their opponent's special teams miscues this season.
KICKOFF COVERAGE AMONG NATION'S BEST: UTSA has limited the opposition to an average of 16.9 yards on 26 kickoff returns and that figure ranks 10th in the country.
FBS Leaders — Kickoff Coverage
Team — Avg. (No-Yds)
1. Memphis — 15.0 (15-225)
2. Bowling Green — 15.8 (24-380)
3. Arkansas State — 16.1 (26-419)
Clemson — 16.1 (23-371)
5. Duke — 16.3 (31-506)
6. Troy — 16.4 (28-459)
7. Old Dominion — 16.6 (40-662)
8. Central Michigan — 16.8 (30-504)
Western Kentucky — 16.8 (46-774)
10. UTSA — 16.9 (26-438)
SECOND-TO-LAST: UTSA became the second-to-last Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) team to attempt a field goal when Victor Falcon connected from 26 yards out with 9:41 remaining in the third quarter at Old Dominion (Sept. 24). UNLV was the last remaining FBS program to attempt a field goal this season, but the Rebels successfully connected on three later that night against Idaho. Falcon has yet to miss on any of his three field goal attempts this season and he owns a long of 45 yards, which came last Saturday in the 55-32 victory against Southern Miss.
THREE ROADRUNNERS LAND ON PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE USA TEAM: Senior S Michael Egwuagu, senior RB Jarveon Williams and junior DE Marcus Davenport were named preseason All-Conference USA in a vote by the league's head coaches, the conference office announced on July 20 prior to its annual season kickoff event in Dallas. Egwuagu appeared in all 12 games (11 starts) last fall and registered 62 tackles (37 solos/25 assists), including 3.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks, as well as placing second on the squad with three interceptions and he added eight pass breakups. Meanwhile, Williams is coming off a junior campaign that saw him become the first 1,000-yard rusher in program history. The team captain played in the first 11 games (nine starts) before missing the season finale against Middle Tennessee. He posted school records of 1,042 yards on 173 carries (6.0 avg.) on the strength of four 100-yard games, averaged 94.7 yards per outing and also tied the program's single-season record with eight rushing touchdowns. Davenport started 11 contests but missed the Colorado State tilt due to injury a year ago. The San Antonio native recorded 49 tackles (30 solos/19 assists) and ranked second on the team with 7.5 TFLs and four sacks. He also racked up four QB hurries, three pass breakups and a pair of forced fumbles.
FOUR 2015 ALL-CONFERENCE USA PERFORMERS RETURN THIS FALL: The Roadrunners return four All-Conference USA honorees from a year ago — Marcus Davenport (Jr., DE), Michael Egwuagu (Sr., S), Kerry Thomas Jr. (Jr., WR) and Jarveon Williams (Sr., RB). All four earned honorable mention accolades from the league's head coaches.
GRADUATE TRANSFERS FILL OUT ROSTER: There are five senior graduate transfers among the many new faces on UTSA's roster this fall. OT Jevonte Domond, LB Ronnie Feist and S Jordan Moore all earned degrees from LSU before coming to the Alamo City, while QB Jared Johnson and TE Jordan Jones walked across the stage at Sam Houston State and Gardner-Webb, respectively.
MORE ABOUT THIS YEAR'S ROSTER: UTSA's 113-man roster features 22 seniors, 34 juniors, 24 sophomores and 33 freshmen. Meanwhile, 85 players hail from Texas, while another six call California home. There also are four players from both Florida and Mississippi, three from Louisiana, two each from Georgia, Illinois, Oklahoma and Tennessee and one from Arizona, Kansas and Missouri.
WILSON NEW MAN IN CHARGE: A new era of UTSA Football began on Jan. 15 when the Roadrunners hired Frank Wilson as their new head coach. Widely considered one of the most valuable assistant coaches in all of college football, Wilson came to the Alamo City following a successful six-year stint as the running backs coach and recruiting coordinator at LSU from 2010-15, where he also served as associate head coach for his final four seasons with the Tigers. He also has been an assistant coach at Tennessee (2009), Southern Miss (2008) and Mississippi (2005-07). While at LSU, he was recognized as the nation's top assistant coach at his position in 2011. Wilson also was named the 2011 Recruiter of the Year by Rivals.com, the 2014 NFL.com Top Recruiter in College Football and the 2015 Scout.com SEC Recruiter of the Year. As the recruiting coordinator at LSU, Wilson led the Tigers to back-to-back top-five recruiting classes in 2014-15 among five total groups that ranked among the top 10 nationally. He served as the lead recruiter for a long list of prominent players and has coached or recruited 25 individuals who have made it to the National Football League.
BROADCASTING THE BIRDS: Eleven of UTSA's 12 games this fall have been selected for broadcast across six different networks. The Roadrunners, who have seen their last 44 outings appear over the airwaves, will see that streak increase to at least 46 this season, as the first 10 contests have been picked for broadcast. The Nov. 19 tilt at Texas A&M is the only game that has yet to be selected, but the Southeastern Conference typically waits until 12 days out to announce its television selections, so UTSA's streak very well could increase to 48 by the end of the fall.
SEASON-OPENING SUCCESS: UTSA picked up its fifth season-opening victory in six tries when it downed Alabama State by a score of 26-13. The Roadrunners saw their four-game winning streak in season openers come to an end with last year's 42-32 loss at No. 22 Arizona. UTSA previously had won all four of its lid-lifters dating back to its inaugural 2011 campaign. The Roadrunners downed Northeastern (Okla.) State at the Alamodome by a score of 31-3 in the program's first-ever game back on Sept. 3, 2011, and the next three years saw them open the fall on the road. UTSA picked up its first-ever Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and road victory with a come-from-behind 33-31 triumph at South Alabama on Sept. 1, 2012. The Birds then outlasted New Mexico by a count of 21-13 on Aug. 31 in its 2013 opener and the following year saw the Roadrunners stun Houston by a score of 27-7 on Aug. 29 in the first-ever game at brand-new TDECU Stadium.
All-Time Season Openers (5-1)
Date — Opponent — Score
Sept. 3, 2011 — Northeastern (Okla.) State — W, 31-3
Sept. 1, 2012 — at South Alabama — W, 33-31
Aug. 31, 2013 — at New Mexico — W, 21-13
Aug. 29, 2014 — at Houston — W, 27-7
Sept. 3, 2015 — at #22 Arizona — L, 32-42
Sept. 3, 2016 — Alabama State — W, 26-13
HOME SWEET HOME: This year's season opener marked UTSA's first at home since its inaugural 2011 campaign, which coincidentally also took place on a Sept. 3. The Roadrunners downed Northeastern (Okla.) State by a score of 31-3 that afternoon.
FBS STREAK COMES TO AN END: The season opener against Alabama State, which competes in the Football Championship Subdivision, ended a streak of 38 consecutive FBS opponents for UTSA. The Roadrunners previously played a non-FBS foe back on Nov. 10, 2012, when it downed McNeese State by a score of 31-24. The Roadrunners were in their first and only season as a member of the Western Athletic Conference that season.
UP NEXT: UTSA will return to the road to face C-USA West Division leader Louisiana Tech (6-3, 4-1 C-USA) next Saturday, Nov. 12, at Joe Aillet Stadium in Ruston. The fifth all-time meeting between the two programs is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. and the game will be televised locally on KMYS-CW 35.
