Recapping the 2026 Texas State Football Spring Showcase

G.J. Kinne almost always looks pensive. 

The calm and confident 37-year-old fourth-year Texas State head coach is a modern stoic. 

There is never a hitch in his stride as he jogs onto the field, shakes hands with fans, greets media members and salutes administrators on the field. 

It’s not an act, it’s who he is. He eats, sleeps and breathes football. There is nowhere else he would rather be than on the field. 

Behind his polarized sunglasses, he is the same guy. No frills, no persona. He is a football guy’s football guy. He doesn’t do distractions and leads his team by one motto: Habits reflect the mission. 

Leading up to the team’s spring football showcase, however, one distraction dominated headlines. 

Greg Burrell, the junior running back from Las Vegas, who was poised for a starting role, was arrested and kicked off the team after shooting a rifle near a highway earlier this month. 

According to police, Burrell was arrested and charged with deadly conduct after firing several gunshots toward I-35, near the Tanger Outlets in San Marcos. 

Investigators say just before 2 A.M. on April 16th, witnesses say a man dressed in all black was shooting a rifle near an apartment complex toward a tree line. Behind the tree line is I-35, which had active traffic at the time. After firing the weapon, the man got into a black Audi and drove away. 

Burrell was stopped in his car near the scene. The San Marcos police department says officers found a number of rifle casings at the scene, a rifle, and ammunition that matched the casings.

Kinne used 37 words responding to media members about the incident. He was stone-faced, confirming Burrell’s separation from the team. 

“Uh yeah, no longer with us, wish him nothing but the best,” Kinne said. “Excited about the running back group we got.” Those guys are super talented. They came out with the right mindset, really the whole team did.” 

Feeling the heat, but never flinching from the fire, feels like the best way to describe the head coach who is poised to lead his Bobcats into the reformed PAC-12 in 2026. 

The Bobcats open their 2026 campaign on the road at Texas and then host UTSA and North Texas at home in back-to-back weeks. The team will hit the road to take on the Aztecs in San Diego and again when they play Boise State, racking up travel miles to play West Coast teams throughout the regular season.

Ahead of what is likely the strongest test for Kinne and his Bobcats, the team essentially held an open practice and hosted a little over 400 recruits and their families. 

The spring game has lost some meaning over the years with the advent of NIL checks and the transfer portal. In some ways, it feels like one chapter’s end and another chapter’s beginning. 

This year’s slate of activities felt more like a family reunion. Loose, no real structure, but if you went you got to see Bobcats playing football. No numbers, no depth chart, just football. If you’re looking for a storyline, there really isn’t a whole lot beyond that. 

It feels like Texas State is attempting to make its spring game mean more for fans, alumni, donors and the conference as a whole. Texas State was part of the first group of schools to unveil the new PAC-12 logo. 

The greater Hill Country area had been soaked with rain for a week, making the literal atmosphere for the 2026 edition of Texas State’s spring showcase feel like the inside of a steam room. 

“It’s been rainy and cold and all that and you wake up today and it's muggy and hot and it's good to practice in different conditions,” Kinne said. “And you know me, I want them as hot and muggy as possible and I feel like this was a good way to end it.” 

Kinne says the day went about as well as it could have. 

“Unbelievable day, super excited about the team we got. We stayed healthy. I think we had one cramp. It was hot, we haven't had this weather,” Kinne said. “We did a pre-game, just like it is on game day. Had those young guys nervous, dropping some passes in pre-game. I thought the defense came out, you all saw it, obviously, got after us, two picks, one pick six to start the scrimmage. That's good. We need that. Got into some red zone work and then I thought the offense really came alive. Right, really challenge the offense. So, that was good to see. Got the kicker some really good work, got the punter some really good work. So, overall, a really productive day to cap off a really productive spring.” 

I think I got the most out of the day, talking to returning quarterback Brad Jackson. I dubbed him the king of spring. Jackson was an early enrollee at Texas State immediately following his senior year at San Antonio Reagan. 

Jackson was in Rattler green again, this time for quarterback safety, when I asked him about his own development in the springtime.

“Yeah, it’s crazy how this its like my third spring ball, and it’s like just crazy to think about, like I've already been here two and a half years,” Jackson said. “Like it’s just nuts how time flies by. But it’s just like, each spring ball has been its own unique kinda journey. When I come here as a high schooler, I’m still going to prom. I’m just trying to catch the snap. I’m struggling to even like ID the coverage and to really operate. And then last year, ‘okay, I’m competing for a starting job.’ And this year, ‘okay, we’re just refining everything.’ So, each year, there's been a different journey, a different mentality each spring. But, every spring is just trying to get better each and every day.”

I think maybe that’s the takeaway. The team is getting better. Very far away from commenting on the Texas game though, a few other reporters asked and got nowhere with it.

I still don’t put a lot of stock into the spring game, but it is my one real chance to put my eyes on some football and shake hands with the people who make it all move.

Now, I just need them to come on the podcast.

More this week!

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