Dan welcomes Andrew Riedell of College Baseball Central to Around the Bird Bath to check in on the status of American Conference baseball heading into the fall ball season. Andrew provides an absolute wealth of knowledge around the conference and the sport as a whole, including some great inside information gleamed from on-site visits to several programs. Dan and Andrew discuss which teams are winning in the transfer portal, and Andrew shares his pick for the preseason favorite for 2026.

Jeff Traylor's UTSA program has failed to show up in three games under Traylor's tenure. All three have been in rivalry games, with the most recent being a disgusting 55-17 beat down from the UNT Mean Green. This is the type of loss that points to deep cultural issues, as the head man himself ate his own cheese following an impressive but anticipated big win against Rice. The program is quickly heading into a death spiral without drastic change.

00:00 UTSA's Current Struggles

05:09 Fan Sentiment and Engagement

10:00 Coaching Accountability and Performance

19:34 Execution and Discipline Issues

23:55 Unraveling Culture at UTSA

30:24 Offensive Struggles and Quarterback Concerns

31:57 Defensive Failures and Missed Tackles

34:21 The Turning Point of the Game

40:42 Injuries and Team Performance

42:14 Rivalry Dynamics and Future Implications

Video: https://youtu.be/VofRX_T6nP8

The Roadrunners let some steam loose on the Rice Owls with a record-setting performance that saw UTSA knock three different Rice quarterbacks out of the game. UTSA's offense found a new level of explosiveness thanks to some home run plays through both the ground and the air. Meanwhile, UTSA's defense wouldn't be left out of the scoring party as they pitched in 16 points of their own. We recap this impressive blowout while looking ahead to a huge game against a 5-1 North Texas rival.

00:30 UTSA's Dominant Victory over Rice

10:58 Analyzing the Impact of the Win

31:21 Rivalry Overview: UTSA vs UNT

36:22 Analyzing UNT's 2025 Season

39:42 Key Players on the UNT Roster

52:19 Score Predictions

Video: https://youtu.be/V5iW4uJADtg

The Roadrunners looked to have corrected some issues coming out of the bye week, then halftime happened. Temple Head Coach K.C. Keeler ripped into his team at the half then took control of the contest to overcome an 11 point deficient. UTSA looks to be in deep trouble as the toughest part of the conference slate looms. Can the Roadrunners turn things around against a new look Rice offense? We introduce Scott Abell and his gun choice option.

0:00:00 UTSA disappoints on the road once again

0:05:09 Third quarter adjustments issues point to systemic problems with the program

0:20:49 Breaking down the highs and lows from the loss to Temple

0:41:02 Previewing Scott Abell's Rice Owls

0:57:08 Score predictions

Video: https://youtu.be/2BkTdmRt06U

Both the Roadrunners and Owls will be fresh off of bye weeks on Saturday as they get the pads popping to begin conference play. UTSA has looked shaky through their 2-2 start, while Temple hasn't played an evenly-matched opponent yet. We break down the names and tendencies to know heading into this conference match up.

00:00 Introduction to Conference Play

03:14 UTSA's Performance and Expectations

11:56 Surprises of the Season

14:44 Previewing Temple's New Era

39:02 Game Predictions and Expectations

Video: https://youtu.be/tS7h5wjUVg4

Enjoy a very special episode of Around the Bird Bath as Dan is joined by three alumni from UTSA's highly successful 2013 team - Mike Warren, Jaryd Hodgson, and John Bormann. The guys recollect on their journey to UTSA, culminating in a trip to regionals against Oregon State. All three guys are now very involved in bolstering support for the program today as the Roadrunners seek to build the facilities that the baseball program deserves.

Road wins against FBS opponents are never something to take for granted, but man was this offensive performance was hard to swallow. UTSA returns almost all of their offense, yet they look less cohesive than the defense where zero starters returned. We break down the performance against the CSU Rams and what needs to change in the bye week.

00:00 Introduction and Season Overview

03:08 Game Recap: UTSA vs. CSU Rams

06:09 Defensive Performance Analysis

09:06 Offensive Struggles and Concerns

11:57 Key Player Performances

15:00 Quarterback Challenges and Future Outlook

23:38 Mental Struggles and Team Cohesion

31:46 Special Teams Woes

38:10 Coaching Challenges and Future Outlook

42:34 UTSA's Area Code Guys Are Not Showing Up

Video: https://youtu.be/nREGBsOddy8

The Roadrunners handled business against Incarnate Word with a boring offensive game plan and a knack for generating turnovers against an overmatched opponent. Now UTSA has to build off of their first win with a challenging road trip to face an opponent they are 0-2 against historically. CSU's passing offense is in shambles, and UTSA has one of the worst secondaries in the country. Something's gotta give.

00:00:00 UTSA did what they had to do against UIW

00:06:58 Defensive Performance and Turnovers

00:10:54 Offensive Strategy and Passing Game

00:25:07 Defensive Adjustments and Coverage Issues

00:28:14 Emerging Talents in the Defensive Line

00:32:12 Linebacker Performance and Team Discipline

00:36:27 Special Teams Areas for Improvement

00:41:38 Introduction to Colorado State University Rams

01:01:11 Predictions

Video: https://youtu.be/eU7SlY3ZDas

For the second straight year, Texas State looked like the better coached and more well prepared team in the I-35 rivalry. It was the Bobcats who stepped up each time a big play was needed, and never wavered in the face of adversity from the Roadrunners. Jess Loepp's secondary was torched, while the offense struggled with consistency. Where do things go from here? The answers are harder to find on the defensive end.

00:27 Texas State was the better team on the field, are they a better program now?

06:08 The Bobcats were so much more resilient in the heat of the contest

10:40 Pushing back on the narrative of the portal explaining UTSA's struggles

17:18 UTSA had some serious procedural complications on the offense

23:15 Let's be honest, this roster has some glaring holes

32:31 Special teams is a train wreck for UTSA

40:12 Highlighting positives for UTSA coming out of the loss

44:20 Previewing UIW ahead of the Hometown Showdown

55:40 UTSA's secondary will need to show improvement against a similar offense they struggled with last week

59:43 Score predictions

Video: https://youtu.be/_EhCBPCf0tA

While the Roadrunners weren't able to pull the upset against #19 Texas A&M, UTSA sure looked the part against an SEC foe. Winning in the trenches and mostly avoiding penalties, Jeff Traylor feels like his team has the right stuff to compete for a championship. UTSA will have a chance to prove their progression over the offseason this week as they welcome Texas State to the Alamodome for the home opener. Can UTSA avenge last year's awful loss in the I-35 Showdown?

04:20 A&M performance recap

34:08 Listener voicemails

46:03 Previewing the Texas State Bobcats

1:11:00 Score predictions

Video: https://youtu.be/9MGWFtoFNK0