The 2005 season was my first season as a student at TXST. I transferred from a community college in Waco down to TXST in January ‘05. Just so happens TXST played Baylor the season in Waco so I was able to go to my first TXST game in ‘04. We weren’t all that good so I didn’t have very high expectations going into the ‘05 season.
It’s been so long now that I don’t remember who I went to the first game with, I’m pretty sure it was the Delta State game. I went to the game as someone who loved college football but wasn’t really a fan of TXST, yet. I just remember having a lot of fun at those early games even though the stadium was pretty empty. I seriously considered going to the A&M game but decided against it at the last second. My friends and I got together to watch it on TV. Even though we lost, that game changed all of our minds and made us TXST fans. We went to just about every home game after that, watching the team get better and better, and watching the stands get fuller and fuller. I remember being stunned that we lost to Nicholls, it almost seemed that we were guaranteed to win every game by that point. Then the Sam game. From what I remember it was a sell out (if not it seems like it was close to a sell out). When we scored during OT to win, it was if then entire student section reacted without thinking twice about rushing the field. Being the klutz that I am, I jammed my toe jumping down from the stands onto the track, but I didn’t care I ran onto the field as fast as I could. I would definitely hurt myself if i tried that today, lol.
When the playoffs came, I remember ESPN showing up early in the week to setup at Bobcat Stadium. They had a giant crane with with extra blinding lights that peaked out from above the press box because our lights must have been too old and too dark for their cameras. The first game against GASO was Thanksgiving weekend so the stadium wasn’t sold out, but it was still a good crowd. It was awesome watching us come from behind to beat the crap out of them. We then played Cal Poly at a sold out BCS. Then came UNI. I remember the tailgate leading up to the game. My friends and I were shooting flaming Dr Peppers back at our apartments at Bobcat Village. It’s was really really cold. I’m trying to remember if I had to buy tickets or if I was lucky enough to get fee tickets (I think they were free). When they opened the gates to the stadium we all rushed up the ramps to try and get good seats. The students were in the stadium during warmups for what seemed like an hour before the game, chanting and getting rowdy. We stood on the bleachers for the entire game, never sitting and rarely getting quiet. I even made plans with other students I had never met to go to the Championship Game (I’m pretty sure it was In Chattanooga at that point). The memory from the playoff games that stood out to me was just how electric the atmosphere was. The cheerleaders took the giant maroon Supercat flag on top of the press box getting the fans riled up. And of course the back and forth Texas State chant that we were actually able to execute properly. I heard that you could hear us chanting that all the way across town. UNI didn’t go the way we wanted, but we all know that story.
My take away from the 2005 season was that I believe this was the point the school and students truly began to embrace the Texas State name. Even though I hadn’t been a student very long, before that season nobody seemed to care about TXST and there still seemed to be hard feeling about the name change. But the vibe I got on campus was that we were proud to be Texas State and we embraced it. That season solidified me at a life long bobcat, no matter what. I can’t wait for us to bring that magic back to San Marcos.
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