Texas State defeated Nicholls 35-3 in the "Battle for the Paddle"
Brad Jackson threw for 180 yards and rushed for two touchdowns as Texas State defeated Nicholls 35-3 in the “Battle for the Paddle,” the Bobcats’ 2025 home opener Saturday night at UFCU Stadium.
The game drew 31,500 fans — the fourth-largest home crows in program history. It marked the first time more than 30,000 attended a Texas State home game since Sept. 23, 2017, when 31,333 saw the Bobcats face UTSA.
Straight to the house➡️ pic.twitter.com/Fj7IWRdMz2
— Texas State Football (@TXSTATEFOOTBALL) September 21, 2025
All five of Texas State’s touchdowns came on the ground, the second time this season that three or more Bobcats scored rushing touchdowns. Running back Lincoln Pare led all runners with 64 rushing yards.
While no receivers scored, Kylen Evans led the Bobcats with 88 receiving yards on four catches, while Beau Sparks added six receptions for 63 yards.
Head Coach G.J. Kinne said the performance was not perfect.
“I thought we were a little sloppy at times,” Kinne said. “You could feel that as the game goes [on]. That [is] usually what happens in games like this.”
Jackson said it was important for the team to rebound from last week’s loss.
“I think it definitely was really big for us,” Jackson said. “We were kind of talking about, you know, the entire week the only way to kind of get that loss [to Arizona State] out of our mouth is to go out there and dominate…ultimately get a win.”
Jackson added that the team respected Nicholls but did not take anything for granted.
After the first quarter, Texas State just led 7-3. The Bobcats’ second scoring drive began with 1:51 left in the opening quarter.
Defensive lineman Kalil Alexander, who recorded five tackles and one sack, echoed Jackson’s comments about taking every opponent seriously.
“You got to treat all your opponents the same,” Alexander said. “It never matters who we’re playing the upcoming week, we just got to come out and do our job.”
Although the coaching staff had not planned to rely heavily on Jackson’s legs, Kinne said that quarterback’s athleticism made it hard not to.
“He’s just really dynamic with his legs,” Kinne said. “That just tends to happen, you know, he is really talented. He can run the ball. He can throw the ball.
Full house 🏟️ pic.twitter.com/HINPIBAHav
— Texas State Football (@TXSTATEFOOTBALL) September 21, 2025
Texas State will get some time to heal some of the lingering injuries, as the Bobcats have next week off. They return to the field on Oct. 4 when they open their final Sun Belt slate on the road against Arkansas State.
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