Let’s Try This Again: GJ Kinne aims to put Bobcats’ trying history in the rear-view mirror.
At some point, things have to go right, right?
The same adage has been echoed around college football in the state of Texas for 10 years – if Texas State could figure it out, they’re going to be a force.
Three head coaches and over 10 seasons in the FBS without a bowl and it’s still the same story. A new administration has turned a new leaf in San Marcos with athletic director Don Coryell and new pro-athletics president Kelly Damphousse. The duo made their first marquee hire in December in G.J. Kinne to be the next head coach. He became the first native Texan head coach in San Marcos since Brad Wright in 2011.
Kinne was tied to other jobs, including his alma mater at Tulsa, after leading Incarnate Word all the way to the FCS semifinals in his very first season as a head coach.
“I wanted to be at Texas State, I chose to be at Texas State,” Kinne said in his introductory press conference. “I’m from Texas and that was important to me.”
And he quickly highlighted why Coryell and Damphousse made him their top target for the job: “We are going to recruit Texas high school football.”
Texas State only signed four high school players in the 2021 and 2022 signing classes, opting for a derided transfer-centric approach.
“My goal was to hire someone with demonstrated leadership experience, success as a head coach, established relationships with Texas football coaches, and success with recruiting and developing players,” Damphousse said in a statement.
At times, the transfer policy wasn’t an illogical one. With the portal and NIL playing essential roles in college football, holding on to players for four years that you recruit out of high school is far from a guarantee.
“I don’t think that’s necessarily a bad train of thought, I just don’t think it’s sustainable in Texas,” Kinne said. “Like you can’t do that in Texas. There are too many good coaches, there’s too many good players. I think you got to have those guys that you can develop.”
Kinne exudes a quiet confidence and charm, not unlike his mentor and former head coach at Gilmer, Jeff Traylor, now at UTSA. His goal was to become an FBS college head coach by the time he turned 35. He accepted the Texas State job the day before he turned 34. Even after stops in the NFL as an assistant under Doug Pederson with the Philadelphia Eagles, college was where he saw himself. The “ball” aspects of the NFL were right up his alley, but when it came down to it, he missed the relationship-building of the recruiting scene as well as constructing a roster to his liking.
“I think if I went back to the NFL ever, I’d want to be like a GM,” Kinne said.
For someone with Kinne’s confidence, he’s open in his desire to win – at any costs. He took the UIW job with the intention to call plays on offense, but soon delegated that to offensive coordinator Mack Leftwich, whom he brought with him to Texas State. But his most prominent hire came in the form of an established icon. Former Texas State player and head coach David Bailiff was tabbed as the program’s special assistants to the head coach. Bailiff was part of the program’s recent most successful run from 2004 to 2006.
“I’ve already leaned on him heavily just for advice,” Kinne said. “It’s one of those deals where it’s a sounding board.”
As for his relationship with Traylor? The two still talk … but there’s a looming Week 2 occasion that’s lessened the communication just a tad.
“I was calling him once a week, now it’s like probably once a month,” Kinne laughed. “… After Week 2, it’ll be back to normal.”
DCTF'S TAKE
Texas State’s issue last season wasn’t necessarily talent as it was execution and polish. G.J. Kinne imported a lot of playmakers from his UIW team as well as some significant help at skill positions. Is that enough to give the Bobcats a boost like they’ve never seen in FBS?
OFFENSIVE BREAKDOWN
With GJ Kinne at the controls and playmakers galore, Bobcats’ offense could ignite
It’s go-time, both literally and figuratively.
Texas State’s tenure in the FBS has been marred by putrid offense. The Bobcats have never had a quarterback throw for 3,000 yards and have only had one rusher eclipse the 1,000-yard mark.
The architects of the best offense in the FCS last season - head coach G.J. Kinne and offensive coordinator Mack Leftwich - hope to ignite a massive change. Helping out will be an offensive line that was essentially entirely imported from Incarnate Word. Five offensive linemen, including FCS All-American Nash Jones, lead the revamped unit.
“Out of the places I saw, this one just felt like home,” Jones said. “I know (OL) Coach ( Jordan Shoemaker). I know the system and I know what is asked of us. I really agree with the philosophy here and the people here.”
But the biggest coup for the program was behind center. UIW’s offense was in large part as explosive as it was due to quarterback Lindsey Scott Jr. . So, whomever Kinne brought in would have a lot on his plate. Naturally, that led him to acquiring perhaps the most explosive athlete in the transfer portal, former Arkansas quarterback Malik Hornsby out of Fort Bend Marshall.
“I believed in Coach G.J. and Coach Leftwich,” Hornsby said. “They believed in my talent, to come showcase my talent as a quarterback instead of playing receiver or anything like that.”
With Hornsby comes a ton of unproven talent in CJ Rogers and Ty Evans, who have yet to take a meaningful in-game snap. Leading returning receiver Ashtyn Hawkins (587 yards, 7 touchdowns) announced he was entering the portal before withdrawing his name. He’ll work under new receivers coach and passing game coordinator Craig Stutzmann, who previously served as offensive coordinator at Utah Tech where he called one of the more open offenses (No. 6 in passing) in college football, the “Spread-N-Shred”. Kinne isn’t hesitant about surrounding himself with other offensive-minded individuals.
The base of the offense is a mix of air raid with Gus Malzahn-adjacent run concepts. But those expecting a complete replication of the top offense in FCS will need to pump the brakes. Yes, Kinne inherited a fairly talented group of veteran playmakers and recruited one of the best quarterbacks in the country. But surrounding them is a lot of inexperience.
“We’re going through some bumps in the road,” Leftwich said. “Any time you install a new offense, it’s new for the quarterback, new for the receivers, there’s a lot of growing pains that go with that.”
OFFENSIVE MVP
Malik Hornsby: The former standout at Fort Bend Marshall and transfer from Arkansas looks poised to take the controls of G.J. Kinne’s high-powered attack.
KEEP AN EYE ON
How Texas State’s wideouts come along. Obviously all eyes will be on the quarterback position, but with the exception of Ashtyn Hawkins last season, wideouts struggled to create separation consistently.
OFFENSIVE DEPTH CHART