EDINBURG — The sounds of college football rang out from Richard R. Flores Stadium on Monday night as the UTRGV football team took the field for its first full team practice open to the public. The sounds of helmets and shoulder pads colliding was accompanied by music from the UTRGV band and performances from the UTRGV cheer, dance and drill teams in front of a crowd of 2,478 on hand to catch the Vaqueros in action.

In one year, those sounds will be coming from Robert and Janet Vackar Stadium in Edinburg, the home of UTRGV Football, as the Vaqueros officially kickoff Division I football in the Rio Grande Valley on Aug. 30, 2025 against Sul Ross State.

“That was awesome to see that many fans here. It kind of reminded me of an NFL training camp practice,” UTRGV head coachTravis Bush said. “This is their team. This is the Valley’s team. Obviously our home facility being under construction right now limits us to getting a lot of open practices there, but to be able to come out here, especially right now with one of our first practices, to let them see that this is real and see those decals on the helmets and hear them cheering for the good plays. It was a cool atmosphere. I think our guys loved it. They were fired up. We had guys that said they never played in front of this amount of people in high school, so it was cool.”

Before the Vaqueros kickoff in 2025, Bush and the UTRGV coaching staff are building a program from scratch beginning with a roster of 92 for this year’s practice season, the majority of whom are true freshmen who were playing their senior season of high school football at this time last year.

“It was great. I guess I’m not familiar with the support from the Valley, but seeing them now, it’s real. They’re out here, forsure,” freshman quarterback Aidan Jakobsohn said. “It was definitely different compared to practice to be under the lights with the defense full-speed coming at you, but I thought we handled it well and we’re just going to keep working to get better.”

The practice began with special teams taking the field at 6:30 before the rest of the roster joined for warmups and individual/positional drills. The most noise from the crowd, however, came during 7-on-7 drills and 11-on-11 action that closed the show.

“It’s amazing, man. You gotta understand most of us have come from different places and we’ve never played with people this good, so now the fact that everyone is good and 100% at every position, it just makes everyone better every single day and it’s the greatest feeling,” freshman offensive lineman Roman Hernandez said.

Junior defensive back MJ Heard Jr. is one of the most experienced college football players on the UTRGV roster after spending the last two seasons playing at Davidson in North Carolina. He said his time in the Valley and getting to know his new teammates has been special.

“My first thought is family. They welcomed me with open arms and my family felt comfortable here,” Heard said. “It’s beautiful out here. I know it gets a little hot but it’s beautiful, just right. Also, the food — the fajitas, I love some fajitas. Man, the barbecue is pretty good, as well, so it’s been a good experience.”

The UTRGV roster also features 18 Rio Grande Valley high school football products after a few more players were added through walk-on tryouts: QB Sergio Aparicio, Fr., PSJA North; OL Mehkhi Blue, Fr., Harlingen MMA; K Jose Contreras, Fr., Los Fresnos; OL Gabriel Dougherty, So., McAllen Rowe; DL Abram Garcia, Fr., La Joya Palmview; DL Danny Garcia, Fr., PSJA North; OL Dante Garcia, Fr., PSJA North; RB Fabian Garcia, Fr., San Benito; TE Jake Garcia, R-Fr., Donna High; TE AJ Gonzaque, R-Jr., Mission Veterans; OL Frank Medina, R-Fr., San Benito; LB Horacio Moronta V, Fr., Mission High; OL Jamarion Owens, R-So., Mercedes; OL Jon Pitts, Fr., La Joya High; RB Jamal Polley, Fr., Edinburg Vela; WR Jaxson Shupe, Fr., Edinburg Vela; TE Nick Tovar, Fr., Brownsville Veterans; OL Joe Derek Vecchio, Fr., PSJA North.

The UTRGV football team will continue the 2024 season practicing Monday through Thursday at the Vaqueros PerformanceCenter in Edinburg. The Vaqueros will have two off weeks during that time with the last day of practice falling on Nov. 21.

“These guys are all in,” Bush said. “Going back to the last time we did this (at UTSA), guys would come in and guys would quit.We’ve added 13 guys, nobody is wanting to leave this thing, and we still got guys knocking on the door wanting to be a part of it but we’ve had to limit the numbers. These guys are just eating it up right now. They’re there everyday, they’re working their tails off, they’re all-in and it’s a fun group. Going back to the caliber of guys we were looking for in this first class and the leaders and the mentality of the guys that love to compete and work, that’s what you’re seeing everyday.”

EDINBURG — Bringing Division I college football to the Rio Grande Valley has been a process nearly a decade in the making, but the countdown to kickoff for UTRGV Vaqueros football is under 365 days and counting.

During the past year, UTRGV football has signed its first recruiting class, rounded out its coaching staff and has its first game in program history scheduled against Sul Ross State on Aug. 30, 2025, at Robert and Janet Vackar Stadium in Edinburg.

The team began strength and conditioning in mid-August and will officially hold its first practice open to the public at 7 p.m. Monday at Richard R. Flores Stadium in Edinburg, giving the RGV community its first chance to see the Vaqueros in action during their practice year. Gates open at 6 p.m. and there will be performances from the band, cheer, dance and drill teams.

Fans can enter for free by signing up for a practice pass at UTRGVTickets.com. Fans must show their practice pass to gain entry. Fans are required to follow the clear bag policy which can be found at GoUTRGV.com/ClearBag.

“The main thing (in Year 1) is setting the foundation and culture for the team. We have to build that from the ground up, and as far as practice, everyone’s going to be a true freshman, everyone’s going to redshirt,” UTRGV head coach Travis Bush said at Southland Conference Media Day on July 22 in San Antonio. “Anywhere else in the nation, they’re just playing scout team, but they’re going to have the opportunity to get every rep, learn the offense, learn the defense, compete for spots and really have that practice season to really develop. Coming in from Aug. 18 to the end of the season on Nov. 28, they are going to develop more than any other redshirt freshman in the nation, so really making sure we maximize that time and our efforts to develop them the best we can.

“As coaches, it’s about understanding the process, seeing who the guys that are going to come in and grow and develop, who’s going to take over what spot, that’s the fun part for us, just watching that competition every day and those battles on the field,” Bush said.

UTRGV football players had their first taste of the college football spotlight at Southland Conference Media Day on July 22 in San Antonio. Former San Antonio Roosevelt running back Brennan Carroll and former Smithson Valley linebacker Jaxson Maynard said they were excited to kick things off and began preparation for the 2025 season.

“I’m ready for it, ready to get down there and hopefully win some games for the Valley,” Carroll said. “I had never really been down to the Valley, but Coach Bush had a vision and he showed me his vision and I fully believed in it and trusted him, so I told him I’m ready to be a part of this first class. Seeing the school, seeing everything around there definitely played a big part in my decision.”

The 2024 roster during UTRGV’s practice year features 75-plus student-athletes and several Rio Grande Valley football products, and recruiting of the 2025 class in the RGV is already underway. McAllen High senior offensive lineman Maddox Braxton earned an offer from UTRGV after attending a UTRGV football camp earlier this summer.

“I’m just grateful for the opportunity. It’s amazing to see all the talent and UTRGV finally get recognized,” Braxton said. “It’s been a long time coming. There’s been ballers here in the Valley for many years, and it’s awesome to see some of the talent get noticed.”

One year from now, football fans across the RGV can spend their Thursday and Friday nights rooting for their favorite high school football teams, then flock to Robert and Janet Vackar Stadium on Saturdays to see the Rio Grande Valley’s Division I football team, the UTRGV Vaqueros, represent the entire region at the collegiate level.

Maynard, who played against Brownsville Veterans with Smithson Valley in the 2023 Class 5A Division I state semifinal at Buccaneer Stadium in Corpus Christi last December, already has a taste of the Rio Grande Valley football faithful. He hopes to see the energy translate as the Valley rallies behind the Vaqueros beginning in 2025.

“That was insane. At 2 p.m., (Brownsville Veterans) had over 300 fans lined up, and the game didn’t start til 7, and that just proves how dedicated those fans are and I can’t wait,” Maynard said. “We already have over 5,000 season ticket holders, that first game is going to be insane. We’re probably going to have over 10,000 people there, and for a first game for a new program, it’s going to be a crazy atmosphere.”

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