RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The inaugural UTRGV football team set the standard by going 9-3, the best record ever by a brand-new FCS program.
 
Some of the top offensive players from that team have moved on, but as head coach Travis Bush was quick to point out to his team at the end of the first practice of training camp on Thursday at the Vaqueros Performance Center, all of the best players from the 2026 team were right there on the field.
 
That includes a defense that returns eight players who started more than half of the Vaqueros' games last season, including defensive backs Dorian Blackwell, TJ Neal, and Alijah Prosser, linebackers Jaiden Haygood and Spencer Rich, defensive linemen Jayden House and Nathan Huerta, and defensive end Hank Filamar. The Vaqueros also return multi-game defensive starters defensive back Marcus Heard Jr., defensive lineman Jaden Wincher, and defensive ends Ja'Marcus Anderson and Percy Jackson III.
 
That defensive unit that led the Southland in five statistical categories, ranking second in the FCS in fumbles recovered (13), sixth in defensive touchdowns (4), seventh in turnovers gained (25), 10^th in team passing efficiency defense (116.93), and 28^th in sacks allowed per game (1.50).

UTRGV was also 14^th in the FCS and third in the Southland in points allowed per game (18.8), 16^th in the FCS and third in the Southland in rushing yards allowed per game (119.3), 19^th in the FCS and fourth in the Southland in total yards allowed per game (328.4), 22^nd in the FCS and fourth in the Southland in passes intercepted (12), 22^nd in the FCS and fifth in the Southland in tackles for loss per game (6.5), 32^nd in the FCS and third in the Southland in fewest first downs allowed (221), 34^th in the FCS and fourth in the Southland in sacks per game (2.25), and 40^th in the FCS and third in the Southland in red zone defense (79.3%).
 
"It was a good first day of camp," Bush said. "Defense has the upper hand right now, especially in shorts. They flew around good – exactly where we expected to be defensively."
 
Offensively, the Vaqueros return a strong offensive line, led by returners Nick Hughes, Gannon Lauer, Abram Nicklas, and Wes Thompson. The offensive line allowed just 1.50 sacks per game, the 28^th best mark in the FCS and second best in the Southland last season.
 
Among the positions to watch on offense as training camp begins are quarterback, running back, wide receiver, and tight end, which feature impressive depth.
 
At quarterback, the Vaqueros feature Jaxon Baize, Atzel Chavez Jr., Aidan Jakobsohn, Jayden Paluseo, and Garret Rangel, the first four of which are returners. Jakobsohn saw the most time on the field of the returners last season, appearing in seven games off the bench. Chavez and Jackobsohn joined the team in the fall of 2024 for the practice season with Baize and Paluseo following in the spring of 2025 after graduating high school early. Rangel transferred from Virginia Tech this past spring after playing his first three seasons at Oklahoma State.
 
"There are some positions where we have to find out who the starters are," Bush said. "We feel good about the guys we've got. Looking at our schedule, we're probably going to have to have three guys ready because we're going to get banged up at times. We feel good about the guys and it's about who's going to take the reins in 30 days."
 
The Vaqueros have impressive depth returning at the running back position as well, including TJ Dement, who made three starts while primarily serving as the No. 2 running back last season, Fabian Garcia, who worked his way up the depth chart to appear in six games, and Brennan Carroll, who had a big spring with his blazing speed. The newcomers include LSU-transfer Malachi Lane and the program's first-ever three-star recruit, freshman Jackson Regan.
 
The Vaqueros have a strong mix of returners and newcomers among their 16 listed wide receivers. Tavian Cord (12 games, eight starts) and Hunter Luke (12 games) have the most UTRGV experience, just ahead of Kyran Lee (11 games, eight starts) and Cameron Glenn (11 games). The newcomers include Tulsa-transfer Alex Green, North Texas-transfer Jaydon Smith, and Southwestern-transfer Clint Thomas Jr.
 
At tight end, the Vaqueros have a pair of transfers, with Reid Mikeska (Florida Atlantic) and Garrison Curry (Presbyterian) and returners including Tyler Day, who moved to tight end from linebacker, and Mateo Grajeda, who appeared in all 12 games last season.
 
"Skill-wise we're looking for consistency across the board," Bush said. "It's the same place we were in last year. Last year at this time we didn't know much about our skill guys. We needed to see consistency from days one and that's going to be the challenge for these guys all camp."
 
UTRGV opens the 2026 season on Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. vs. UT Permian Basin at Robert & Janet Vackar Stadium.

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