Something magical happened at The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) when new Vice President and Director of Athletics Chasse Conque announced his intention to “Rally the Valley” during his introductory press conference in August 2019.

“Rally the Valley” not only became a cool social media hashtag for athletics, but it also became a rallying cry to support the university and the surrounding communities. The residents of the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) have responded with overwhelming support for the Vaqueros, as evidenced by the baseball program setting a season attendance record this year.

Anticipation has been building throughout the RGV since the university announced it was starting a football program. Their opening game inside an enhanced Robert & Janet Vackar Stadium, formerly home to the Rio Grande Valley Toros soccer franchise, is scheduled for August 30 against Sul Ross.

How excited is the RGV to finally have a college football team to support? All 6,000 season tickets have been sold, and the overwhelming demand led the university to add 2,000 general admission seats, 184 premium seats, and 19 loge boxes in the north end zone of Vackar Stadium.

Head coach Travis Bush said the support has been a tremendous help in recruiting players to UTRGV.

“To know that our home games are sold out months in advance of the season has been a big piece in recruiting,” Bush said. “I don’t know if the fans realize how much their support is helping us recruit. Guys getting on campus and seeing the facilities, and then feeling the excitement from the fanbase to have football in the Valley is special.”

When the Vaqueros take the field in front of a sold-out crowd in August, it will mark the end of a three-year process for Bush. The process began with putting together a coaching staff. Finding enough players to practice for a whole year without playing a game came next, and it also received an overwhelming response.

Bush said the goal was to have 60 players on campus for practice last year. The staff ended up closing the roster at 90 players despite only having 17 scholarships, including 75 true freshmen. UTRGV added another 25 transfers at midterm to help balance the roster.

“The caliber of some of the freshmen we were able to get that would’ve been scholarship guys in previous years at this level was impressive,” Bush said. “We were also pleasantly surprised with some of the transfers we were able to bring, so everything is trending in a positive direction.”

Former UTSA quarterback and Sharyland Pioneer High School standout Eddie Lee Marburger transferred home and will lead the offense in 2025. Marburger was selected to the 2020 Whataburger Super Team after setting the Rio Grande Valley’s all-time passing touchdowns record.

“He’s exceeded our expectations. We knew he could play, but he came in and quickly picked up the offense, having total command by the end of spring practice,” Bush said. “You see the light bulbs going off, and he’s creating explosive plays. His leadership and maturity in the quarterback room have been a huge asset for us.”

Regarding on-field expectations for the Vaqueros, Bush believes the transfer portal will allow him to build a competitive program faster than previous startup programs.

“Honestly, I don’t know yet for this year. Once we see our final roster and what we look like in training camp, I think we’ll have a better idea of what to expect this year. Everyone says it’s going to be a process, and we understand that. But we now have the transfer portal,” Bush said. “Depending on how quickly we can balance our rosters with upperclassmen in the right positions and bring those guys together as a team, will determine how fast we can speed up the process. The mentality in our building is to speed up the process and start winning in a couple of years.”

Cory’s Take

It’s challenging to think of a better resume to start the UTRGV program than Travis Bush. His father, Bruce, is a member of the RGV Sports Hall of Fame, and Bush was a key member of Larry Coker’s staff when UTSA started its program in 2010. Bush noted that UTRGV has the best setup for a startup football program, considering they have the resources and facilities that were initially missing at UTSA.

Still, it will take some time for UTRGV to be competitive in the Southland Conference. But when the Vaqueros are competitive, the Rio Grande Valley will be electric, and UTRGV will already own one of the best home-field advantages in FCS this season. That alone will lead to a few wins.

- Written by Cory Hogue