ARLINGTON — College football media days signify the start of a new season.
At the inaugural United Athletic Conference football media day Friday at the Shift 4 Arena in Arlington, head coaches and players from the nine current UAC football programs shared their goals, ideas and thoughts on the upcoming 2023 season, which kicks off in August.
For UTRGV head coach Travis Bush and the Vaqueros, who will soon be the 10th football team in the UAC upon launching the Division I program in the Rio Grande Valley in 2025, it was a chance to lay out the road ahead as he and his staff continue building the team from the ground up.
“It’s been good, obviously overwhelming, crazy busy. Having been a part of it before at UTSA as an assistant 13 years ago has helped,” Bush said. “(UAC executive director) Oliver Luck said it best, starting things are fun. I think this time around, really embracing that process and enjoying the struggles and challenges we have starting out, it’s been great.”
In two short years, Bush will be joined by UTRGV football players at UAC media day to break down the first season in program history. The other nine UAC football programs are Abilene Christian, Austin Peay State, Central Arkansas, Eastern Kentucky, North Alabama, Southern Utah, Stephen F. Austin, Tarleton and Utah Tech. UTRGV will make it a single-sport conference of 10 when the Vaqueros kick off in 2025.
“It’s really the patience and understanding the process, and enjoying that piece and getting to start it from scratch,” Bush said. “Everything’s brand new. Looking for that first class, that first schedule, that first game and everything that comes with it is pretty special.
UTRGV will add to the coaching staff in the winter of 2023, and the first recruiting class in program history will begin signing around the same time. The current staff features Bush, defensive coordinator Brian Gamble, offensive line coach Jeff Bowen and defensive backs coach Adrian McDonald, along with director of football operations John Simmons.
“We’ll sign our first class in history this December and February and got a staff of five right now — a director of football ops and three coaches, and I’ll tell you what, those guys are studs,” Bush said. “They’re wearing a lot of different hats right now, but the four of us recruited the entire state this spring and hit over 500 high schools in six weeks. … There’s a lot that we have to do this first fall by ourselves until we finish the staff in December.”
Bush said there’s a palpable buzz around Division I football coming to the Rio Grande Valley in 2025. The first game in UTRGV history is estimated to fall on Aug. 30, 2025.
“We don’t play a game until 2025, and we got over 2,000 season tickets sold. I’m from down there, my family is down there and the region is just football fanatics,” Bush said. “I don’t think there’s a more passionate football fan in the nation than the Rio Grande Valley. The way they rally around the high school teams, the Cowboys, and now to have Division I football in their back yard, it’s just been phenomenal.”
