Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Texans (Tarleton, not Houston) Remain atop FCS Top 25
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Texans (Tarleton, not Houston) Remain atop FCS Top 25
Tarleton State University probably isn’t the first sports team in Texas when you think of the nickname “Texans.” The NFL’s Houston Texans (which began play in 2002) were not the first athletics team in the state to adopt that moniker.
However, it is the 6-0 college football Texans which lead the SwampSwamiSports.com FCS small college Top 25 for the second consecutive week.
Where is Tarleton State?
Tarleton State University is located in Stephenville, Texas. The city and school are 70 miles southwest of Fort Worth via US Highway 377.
Like many Texas public universities, this school’s enrollment has been quickly growing as more people move into the region.
Tarleton State was founded in 1887 after a generous gift from (you guessed it!) John Tarleton. The college would later become part of the Texas A&M system.
There are now more than 20,000 students enrolled at Tarleton State University.
The agricultural institution’s yearbook was aptly named “The Grassburr” in 1916 for painfully obvious reasons.
The men’s athletics teams were originally given the unique nickname “Plowboys” by W. J. Wisdom.
He was the school’s head coach for football and basketball beginning in 1924. Coach Wisdom’s Plowboys’ men’s basketball team once held a national record with 84 consecutive wins between 1934 and 1938.
The year 1961 saw Tarleton State become a four year university. The school decided it was also time to update the athletic teams’ nickname.
The men became the Tarleton State Texans. The women’s athletic teams adopted the name “TexAnns” from 1961 until 2019. The women would change over to the “Texans” nickname starting in 2019.
Tarleton State competed in NCAA Division II for several decades. The Texans moved into the FCS division in 2024 and are their second season as a member of the United Athletic Conference.
Tarleton State is averaging an incredible 47.4 points per game this season. That is the fourth highest in the FCS this fall.
This year’s 6-0 start has featured a victory over the now 3-3 FBS Army 30-27. The strength of that win lifted Tarleton into the top position of the SwampSwamiSports.com rankings.
Potential FCS Game of the Week – 5-1 UT Rio Grande Vaqueros at 5-1 Lamar
Let’s remain in the state of Texas and look at what could be a potential FCS playoff elimination game this Saturday afternoon.
The surprising 5-1 Lamar University Cardinals (#12 this week in my rankings) will host upstart Southland Conference foe UT Rio Grande Valley (also 5-1 and ranked #9 this week) in Beaumont, Texas at 3PM on ESPN+.
Lamar’s football fortunes fell on hard times after its last appearance in the FCS playoffs in 2018. The Cardinals subsequently went 4-8, 2-4 (COVID-shortened 2020), 2-9, and 1-10 in 2022 prior to firing former head coach Blane Morgan.
New football coach Peter Rossomando has invigorated Lamar’s football program by posting a 6-5 record in 2023 and improving to 7-5 last season. This year’s 5-1 Cardinals were blown out of their opening game by rising FBS star North Texas (now 5-1).
Lamar has rolled-off five straight wins against FCS opponents. The Cardinals are 2-0 in the Southland Conference and are tied at the top with Southeastern Louisiana and Stephen F. Austin (both with 4-2 overall records).
The UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros’ only loss in 2025 came on the road three weeks ago in a 45-31 track meet at Southeastern Louisiana in Hammond. The two teams combined for more than 1,000 yards in total offense.
Lamar’s stats are a bit misleading. The Cardinals’ have scored 143 points in six games and given up 143 on defense.
Excluding the Cardinals’ 51-0 opening game loss at North Texas, Lamar is averaging 29 points on offense and allowing a meager 18 points per game defensively against five FCS foes.
Saturday afternoon’s game in Beaumont should be a dandy!
Will 5-2 Sacred Heart find a way to upset the 6-0 Montana Grizzlies?
Another top FCS game this Saturday features FCS independent team Sacred Heart Pioneers (5-2 and my #22 ranked team) traveling across country to play the team with one of the best home field advantages in the country.
The Big Sky Conference Montana Grizzlies are 6-0 (ranked #6 this week) and win an astonishing 89% of their home games in Missoula.
The team’s 25,000 seat stadium is always filled with very enthusiastic and noisy fans.
Interestingly, Sacred Heart plays its home games in a cozy 3,300 seat stadium in Fairfield, Connecticut.
The intimidation factor for the homestanding Griz is much like LSU’s extremely noisy Tiger Stadium for visiting teams. Home field advantage for Montana could make for a very difficult road trip for Sacred Heart.
The game kicks-off at 2PM CDT Saturday afternoon and may be seen via ESPN+.
Now, let’s take a look at this week’s SwampSwamiSports.com FCS Top 25 teams for the week ending Saturday, October 11, 2025:
The post Texans (Tarleton, not Houston) Remain atop FCS Top 25 appeared first on SwampSwamiSports.com.
View all episodes
By SwampSwamiSports.comTarleton State University probably isn’t the first sports team in Texas when you think of the nickname “Texans.” The NFL’s Houston Texans (which began play in 2002) were not the first athletics team in the state to adopt that moniker.
However, it is the 6-0 college football Texans which lead the SwampSwamiSports.com FCS small college Top 25 for the second consecutive week.
Where is Tarleton State?
Tarleton State University is located in Stephenville, Texas. The city and school are 70 miles southwest of Fort Worth via US Highway 377.
Like many Texas public universities, this school’s enrollment has been quickly growing as more people move into the region.
Tarleton State was founded in 1887 after a generous gift from (you guessed it!) John Tarleton. The college would later become part of the Texas A&M system.
There are now more than 20,000 students enrolled at Tarleton State University.
The agricultural institution’s yearbook was aptly named “The Grassburr” in 1916 for painfully obvious reasons.
The men’s athletics teams were originally given the unique nickname “Plowboys” by W. J. Wisdom.
He was the school’s head coach for football and basketball beginning in 1924. Coach Wisdom’s Plowboys’ men’s basketball team once held a national record with 84 consecutive wins between 1934 and 1938.
The year 1961 saw Tarleton State become a four year university. The school decided it was also time to update the athletic teams’ nickname.
The men became the Tarleton State Texans. The women’s athletic teams adopted the name “TexAnns” from 1961 until 2019. The women would change over to the “Texans” nickname starting in 2019.
Tarleton State competed in NCAA Division II for several decades. The Texans moved into the FCS division in 2024 and are their second season as a member of the United Athletic Conference.
Tarleton State is averaging an incredible 47.4 points per game this season. That is the fourth highest in the FCS this fall.
This year’s 6-0 start has featured a victory over the now 3-3 FBS Army 30-27. The strength of that win lifted Tarleton into the top position of the SwampSwamiSports.com rankings.
Potential FCS Game of the Week – 5-1 UT Rio Grande Vaqueros at 5-1 Lamar
Let’s remain in the state of Texas and look at what could be a potential FCS playoff elimination game this Saturday afternoon.
The surprising 5-1 Lamar University Cardinals (#12 this week in my rankings) will host upstart Southland Conference foe UT Rio Grande Valley (also 5-1 and ranked #9 this week) in Beaumont, Texas at 3PM on ESPN+.
Lamar’s football fortunes fell on hard times after its last appearance in the FCS playoffs in 2018. The Cardinals subsequently went 4-8, 2-4 (COVID-shortened 2020), 2-9, and 1-10 in 2022 prior to firing former head coach Blane Morgan.
New football coach Peter Rossomando has invigorated Lamar’s football program by posting a 6-5 record in 2023 and improving to 7-5 last season. This year’s 5-1 Cardinals were blown out of their opening game by rising FBS star North Texas (now 5-1).
Lamar has rolled-off five straight wins against FCS opponents. The Cardinals are 2-0 in the Southland Conference and are tied at the top with Southeastern Louisiana and Stephen F. Austin (both with 4-2 overall records).
The UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros’ only loss in 2025 came on the road three weeks ago in a 45-31 track meet at Southeastern Louisiana in Hammond. The two teams combined for more than 1,000 yards in total offense.
Lamar’s stats are a bit misleading. The Cardinals’ have scored 143 points in six games and given up 143 on defense.
Excluding the Cardinals’ 51-0 opening game loss at North Texas, Lamar is averaging 29 points on offense and allowing a meager 18 points per game defensively against five FCS foes.
Saturday afternoon’s game in Beaumont should be a dandy!
Will 5-2 Sacred Heart find a way to upset the 6-0 Montana Grizzlies?
Another top FCS game this Saturday features FCS independent team Sacred Heart Pioneers (5-2 and my #22 ranked team) traveling across country to play the team with one of the best home field advantages in the country.
The Big Sky Conference Montana Grizzlies are 6-0 (ranked #6 this week) and win an astonishing 89% of their home games in Missoula.
The team’s 25,000 seat stadium is always filled with very enthusiastic and noisy fans.
Interestingly, Sacred Heart plays its home games in a cozy 3,300 seat stadium in Fairfield, Connecticut.
The intimidation factor for the homestanding Griz is much like LSU’s extremely noisy Tiger Stadium for visiting teams. Home field advantage for Montana could make for a very difficult road trip for Sacred Heart.
The game kicks-off at 2PM CDT Saturday afternoon and may be seen via ESPN+.
Now, let’s take a look at this week’s SwampSwamiSports.com FCS Top 25 teams for the week ending Saturday, October 11, 2025:
The post Texans (Tarleton, not Houston) Remain atop FCS Top 25 appeared first on SwampSwamiSports.com.