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A small Texas school has reportedly submitted paperwork to become a D1 college football program

Ryan Williamson

By Ryan Williamson

Published:

The number of Division I college football programs continues to grow. The latest member of that club comes out of one of the biggest states for football, Texas.

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley has reportedly submitted a letter of intent to play in FCS by 2024 at the latest, though it seems like 2023 is a more likely option. The school is part of the return of the Western Athletic Conference.

That’s all according to TexasFootball.com’s Shehan Jeyarajah:

The WAC previously operated as a football conference but has most recently not and homed teams in every sport but football. However, it appears that the conference is set to add 13 teams and break into two divisions.

Additions for football reportedly include Lamar, Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston State, Abilene Christian and Tarleton.

The Vaqueros appear to be part of college football for the first time in their history. It’s a smaller school but located in a football hotbed. As of Fall 2019, the school’s undergraduate population is 24,634. Currently, the school offers most of the other popular collegiate sports including basketball, baseball, soccer, volleyball, tennis and track & field.

Ryan Williamson