Starting the search for football athletes

The National Collegiate Athletics Association has allowed the UTRGV Department of Intercollegiate Athletics to recruit for its football program through May 31.

The recruitment campaign is “On The Road To ’25,” which started with schools in the Rio Grande Valley and will continue through the state. 

Football head coach Travis Bush said the staff had to get organized and look at the map of Texas in order to plan out how they would approach visiting as many schools as possible. 

“Really mapping out our plan to cover the entire state, and hit as many schools as we can,” Bush said. “… As well as getting a preliminary list of guys, you know, schools that already have guys that we know about, and then evaluating on film before we go out as well.”

He said there is a lot of excitement for a new football program in Texas and there are a lot of student athletes looking for a home.

The athletics staff is looking to not only start finding recruits, but also start developing relationships and getting to know the football staff at the high schools and get UTRGV’s name out there.

The staff is looking at junior and senior prospects and started recruitment April 15. 

“The first signing class in February [2024] will be the current [high school] juniors right now,” Bush said.

He said recruitment starts with a list of possible student athletes for each position. They research the players and look at games, as well as talk to their coaches. 

“The first thing is athletic ability,” Bush said. “That’s what’s going to draw our attention to them. … The next thing is academics. … That goes into their discipline, their work ethic, their mental toughness.”

The staff has already visited 49 schools in the Rio Grande Valley, and has begun heading into the San Antonio, Waco and Austin areas. 

Edinburg High School Athletic Coordinator and Football head coach Rene Guzman said UTRGV gave them an invitation to attend practices when they begin.

Guzman said he was looking forward to having that opportunity closer to home and possibly seeing local athletes have a chance at the next level of play. 

“I was in high school, and there was talk of bringing college football to [legacy institution University of Texas-Pan American] at the time,” Guzman said. “It never got going, and now that it’s here, it’s a great thing.”

Senior Associate Athletic Director for Communications & Championships Jonah Goldberg said UTRGV looks for students who fit its culture, are good people and who will help win.

“You get to tell a new kid, ‘Hey, there’s nobody in front of you,’” Goldberg said. “‘You’re going to have a chance to play. You’re going to have a chance to compete for a starting job.’ And that’s not always the case with established programs.’”

He said UTRGV is making good efforts in starting the football program and they can show off the planning that has gone into the creation of it.

“What we can sell is ‘Look at the facility we’re building,’” Goldberg said. “And that shows the seriousness we are approaching this with.” 

He said they would sell the Rio Grande Valley as a great community to be a part of and the support for football is proven by the over 2,000 season tickets that have already been sold two years before kickoff.

The football season is set to start in Fall 2025.

In other UTRGV Athletics news, graduate pitcher Colten Davis has earned the title of Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week on April 24. Graduate outfielder and first baseman Brandon Pimentel earned the title of Collegiate National Baseball Player of the Week on April 10 and junior pitcher Angelo Cabral was named D1Baseball National Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 27.