TXST Bowl Bound for First Time in Program History

Texas State Football is bowl bound for the first time in school history. Despite being bowl eligible in its first and second year of full membership in the FBS, the Bobcats were left out in 2013 (6-6) and 2014 (7-5). 2023 is very different though. With 41 bowl games, 5 Sun Belt bowl tie-ins, and only 79 FBS teams with a 6-6 or better record, the Bobcats are guaranteed a bowl bid this year. 

With that in mind, TXST fans are looking forward to finding out where the Bobcats will land come “Selection Sunday” on December 3rd when bowl selections are announced. 

Several media sites have already begun releasing their Bowl Predictions. However, predicting where all 82 teams will land is notoriously difficult and often results in a few ridiculous predictions. Examples from this year include multiple Sun Belt vs Sun Belt matchups and predicting Navy in a bowl game when they did not become bowl eligible. So, we won’t be doing that here… What we will be looking at are the most likely landing spots for the TXST Bobcats including a few of the more probable predictions from various media sources. 

As mentioned earlier, the Sun Belt has 5 tie-ins this year including three spots in ESPN pool bowls (determined amongst the G5), the R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl, and finally the 68 Ventures Bowl. 

The order in which the bowls will be selected for the Sun Belt are as follows:

1. ESPN Pool Bowl
2. R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
3. ESPN Pool Bowl
4. ESPN Pool Bowl
5. 68 Ventures Bowl

The ESPN Pool Bowls include the following:

• Camellia Bowl vs C-USA or MAC
• Cure Bowl vs Group of Five
• Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl vs Group of Five
• RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl vs Group of Five 
• Myrtle Beach Bowl vs American Athletic or MAC

Also, with 12 bowl eligible teams from the Sun Belt, there will be 7 Sun Belt teams called on to fill at large bids in bowl games where the conference tie was unable to fill. The Sun Belt currently has ties to the following if they are unable to fill them with teams from their primary tie in conference:

• Famous Idaho Potato Bowl vs MAC or Mountain West
• New Mexico Bowl vs C-USA or Mountain West

Now, let’s look at the most likely destinations for TXST.

Going back to even before TXST officially became bowl eligible, one of the more popular predictions was for the Bobcats to land in the Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl. 

There’s not much to do in Frisco, however, it’s just 30 minutes outside downtown Dallas. So, there are plenty of places to stay and things to do nearby. Not to mention, it’s just under 4 hours from San Marcos and close to major TXST alumni hubs in the DFW and Houston areas. 

Another possible destination is the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. This one might be more of a long shot with teams like Troy and ULL also being bowl eligible. If Troy is not selected by ESPN for one of the pool bowls, they may get selected by R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl since they pick next. If Troy isn’t available, ULL may be the next choice due to proximity and having a history of bringing a good crowd of fans. However, if the Bobcats can find a way into this bowl, New Orleans is a great destination for its first ever bowl game. 

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl

• Saturday December 16, 2023 | Kickoff 1:15 PM CT
• New Orleans, LA
• Payout: $900,000
• Caesars Superdome
• Capacity: 73,208
• The record attendance of 54,728 was set in 2013 when ULL defeated Tulane.

The Bobcats have also seen predictions placing them in the Isleta New Mexico Bowl. The New Mexico Bowl is held in Albuquerque, NM which is just an hour away from Santa Fe, NM and just 2.5 hours away from Taos and snow skiing/boarding. The area is also known for its Southwestern style cuisine. 

Isleta New Mexico Bowl

• Saturday December 16, 2023 | Kickoff 3:45 PM MT/4:45 PM CT
• Albuquerque, NM
• Payout: $1,050,000
• University Stadium
• Capacity: 37,457
• The record attendance of 34,111 was set in 2006 when San Jose State defeated New Mexico

While TXST has not been specifically predicted to go to either the Servpro First Responder Bowl nor the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl, other Sun Belt teams have been predicted to fill those spots. If either of those two bowls decide to pull from the Sun Belt to fill a vacancy, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that they would choose an instate Texas State over other out of state Sun Belt teams. 

Servpro First Responder Bowl

• Tuesday December 26, 2023 | Kickoff 4:30 PM CT
• Dallas, TX
• Payout: $824,545
• Gerald J. Ford Stadium (SMU)
• Capacity: 32,000
• Since being held in Gerald J. Ford Stadium, the attendance record is 15,241 in 2021 when Air Force defeated Louisville.

Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl

• Saturday December 23, 2023 | Kickoff 2:30 PM CT
• Fort Worth, TX
• Payout: $1,350,000
• Amon G. Carter Stadium (TCU)
• Capacity: 50,000Record attendance of 44,738 was set in 2018 when Army defeated Houston.

Where do you want the TXST Bobcats to end up for their first bowl game ever? Join the conversation on the forum.