Washington State and Texas State both bet on the rebuilt Pac-12 this year, and by Saturday, November 21 the conference race — and the growing pains — will be fully on display in San Marcos.
Bush’s Picks
WSUTXST
WSUTXST
OverUnder
Best BetTexas State
Texas State brings back its top three offensive pieces and a coach who's already won a bowl game with this roster, while Washington State is still installing a brand-new staff. That continuity gap is the whole ballgame here, and it points toward the Bobcats as the side to trust to win outright.
Washington State
+Seven-plus wins in four of last five seasons
+Veteran, deep offensive line
−Brand-new coaching staff under Kirby Moore
−Thin, undersized defensive front
Texas State
+Brad Jackson, Sparks, Dawn Jr. all returning
+Coach Kinne is program's winningest ever
+Armed Forces Bowl blowout win to close 2025
−First season facing tougher Pac-12 competition
−Nearly 20 new transfers still need to gel
This one's a first-ever meeting, and it comes with a real storyline attached: Washington State enters Year 1 under Kirby Moore, the former Missouri offensive coordinator hired just a week after Jimmy Rogers bolted for Iowa State. Texas State, meanwhile, is running it back with quarterback Brad Jackson, who returns after a redshirt-freshman season that produced 3,741 combined passing and rushing yards and 34 touchdowns on 71.3% completion.
The roster picture cuts in Texas State's favor early. Jackson's top two targets, Beau Sparks and Chris Dawn Jr., are both back after all-conference seasons, and coach G.J. Kinne — the winningest coach in program history — layered in nearly 20 transfers, eight of them from Power Four programs, to reinforce a group that led the Sun Belt and ranked 5th nationally in yards per game a year ago. Washington State's answer is a veteran, deep offensive line, but the Cougars are thinner up front on defense and don't have an obvious anchor yet.
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WSU Washington State
TXST Texas State
Both programs are chasing the same thing here: proof the conference jump was worth it. Texas State closed last season by throttling Rice 41-10 in the Armed Forces Bowl, its first-ever FBS bowl win, while Washington State has posted seven or more wins in four of the last five seasons despite constant instability at the top. By late November, this game could carry real weight for bowl positioning in a brand-new Pac-12 race.
Washington State Cougars
Nov 14?vs Colorado State—
Oct 31?@ San Diego State—
Oct 17?@ Oregon State—
Oct 9?@ Utah State—
Oct 3?vs Fresno State—
Sep 26?vs Arizona—
Sep 19?vs Duquesne—
Sep 12?@ Kansas State—
Sep 6?@ Washington—
Texas State Bobcats
Nov 14?vs Fresno State—
Nov 7?@ Oregon State—
Oct 31?@ Boise State—
Oct 15?vs Colorado State—
Oct 3?@ San Diego State—
Sep 26?vs Incarnate Word—
Sep 19?vs North Texas—
Sep 12?vs UTSA—
Sep 5?@ Texas—
Recent form.
Home field matters here too — this is a Texas State home date, and after breaking in so many new pieces, the Bobcats will want the friendly building as they measure themselves against Power Four-caliber competition for the first time. Washington State, still finding its footing under a first-year staff, will need its non-conference gauntlet earlier in the year to have toughened it up rather than worn it down by the time this one rolls around.
