The 2025 season could not have gotten off to a better start for UT Rio Grande Valley’s football team. Making its college football debut, the Vaqueros sit at a perfect 4-0 record nearly a month into their
first campaign on the gridiron and the wins have been impressive. With two shutout victories, another 48-point drubbing and a nice come-from-behind win against their first FCS opponent a few weeks back, hope is abundant down in Edinburg. Now, though, as September draws to a close, UTRGV is set to turn another new page this weekend. Southland play begins and with it will come a much more telling test for the new kids on the block.
Travis Bush’s team will travel to Hammond, LA this Saturday evening for a date with Southeastern Louisiana and the true measure of his team will show itself one way or another. The Lions will not be nearly as easy to get the best of as some of the other non-DI teams the Vaqueros have seen up to this point. SLU has legitimate aspirations of hoisting a Southland trophy at the end of this thing, especially with preseason league favorite Incarnate Word faltering. They sit at 2-2 but with losses to a pair of FBS opponents in Louisiana Tech and LSU. It makes for a heck of a way to open conference action and, at the same time, presents a heck of an opportunity to make a statement.
The Vaqueros have been explosive this year on both sides of the ball to say the least starting with quarterback Eddie Lee Marburger. Marburger has already thrown for over 1,100 yards and ten touchdowns this year and has yet to toss a pick. That, complimented by a rushing attack that is averaging 282.5 yards per game, has made the offense particularly tough to deal with. Eight different ball carriers have ran for TDs and six have surpassed the 100-yard mark for the season. That group is led by Brennan Carroll and T.J. Dement, both of which have been exceptional out of the backfield.
Defensively, the team is playing at a high level as well, allowing just 8.5 points per contest and holding its opponents to under 150 passing yards a game. A big reason for that success has been their ability to create turnovers. Through four outings, UTRGV’s defense has forced seven fumbles, recovered six of those and picked off five passes. They’ve also stopped opposing offenses on fourth down seven times, which is just as good as a turnover.
Again, this has all been done mainly against non-Division I competition and it is unlikely once they get into the bulk of their FCS schedule that they will be able keep up quite that clip on both offense and defense. Still, though, it’s clear the Vaqueros have talent and talent that seems ready to keep pace with what the Southland will be throwing their way over the next couple months. This weekend will reveal where they truly fit into the mix and, it should be remembered that unlike new squads that move up from the lower ranks, UT Rio Grande Valley is postseason eligible right now. There is something to play for at the end and that adds just a little extra fire to a team that is already scorching.
Southeastern Louisiana, of course, will have something to say about it but they can’t take these Vaqueros lightly. It could be a good one on Saturday night. The game will kick off at 7:00 PM (ET).
