UTSA enters 2026 — the 7-6 record and top-quintile returning production contrast with the 62nd SP+ rank, highlighting the tension between momentum and the challenge of sustaining it under Jeff Traylor.
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American Athletic · Jeff Traylor, year 7 (55-27) · Alamodome · 36,582 · 33,403 avg in 2026
LastL 6–30 at Texas · Sat Sep 19 · Brandon Tucker Jr. 1 sacks, 1.5 TFL, 11 tackles
Nextvs Colorado State · Sat Sep 26 · 12 pm ET · Alamodome · UTSA by 13 · series 1-2 · Game preview
Updated Tue Sep 22 · through week 3
| Wk | Date | Us | Opp | Line | Opponent | Result | Record | Conf |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sep 5 | #18 | #138 | -28.5✓ | UT Rio Grande Valley | W 45–16 139 | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| 2 | Sep 12 | #16 | #30 | +1.5✓ | @Texas State | W 31–26 154 | 2-0 | 0-0 |
| 3 | Sep 20 | #14 | #4 | +29.5✓ | @Texas | L 6–30 130 | 2-1 | 0-0 |
| 4 | Sep 26 | #11 | #76 | -13 | Colorado State | |||
| 5 | Oct 3 | #11 | #144 | @Rice | ||||
| 6 | Oct 8 | South Florida | ||||||
| 7 | Oct 17 | Navy | ||||||
| 8 | Oct 24 | @Tulane | ||||||
| 10 | Nov 6 | @Florida Atlantic | ||||||
| 11 | Nov 14 | North Texas | ||||||
| 12 | Nov 21 | @UAB | ||||||
| 13 | Nov 28 | Tulsa |
| Date | Opp | Result | Yds | TO | TOP | EPA/play | Success% | Explosive% | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 20 | @Texas | L 6–30 | 142 | 1 | 23:09 | -0.171 | 28.3% | 55.7% | Season-low EPA/play |
| Sep 12 | @Texas State | W 31–26 | 398 | 0 | 28:20 | +0.229 | 45.9% | 109.2% | Defense's roughest night |
| Sep 5 | UT Rio Grande Valley | W 45–16 | 525 | 0 | 25:11 | +0.514 | 63.3% | 110.0% | Season-high EPA/play |
| Season average (3 games) | 355 | 0.3 | +0.191 | 45.8% | 91.6% | ||||
UTSA is the program San Antonio willed into existence in a decade — no football before 2011, a 12-2 ranked season by 2021, and a third straight bowl win to prove the city's team is permanent.
The fanbase's chip isn't aimed at a rival or the media — it's the founding insult, the years outsiders assumed San Antonio's seventh-largest-city market would never field a real team. Every bowl win…
The season in chapters
What fans said
Real posts from the day of the game, chosen by community score · usernames not shown
What it is like to watch them2025 · 7-6 · last season
✓ measured from 13 games · ranks are among American Athletic teams the same season
Recent form · last 10 games · incl. 2025
Mixed. 6-4 over the last 10, and lost the last one.
Next Sep 26
vs Colorado State · at home
~ our read on style
Market outlook
Sportsbook consensus · best odds across multiple books · 2026-09-22
the open questionwhere does it go from here?
UTSA enters 2026 — the 7-6 record and top-quintile returning production contrast with the 62nd SP+ rank, highlighting the tension between momentum and the challenge of sustaining it under Jeff Traylor.
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David Amador II produces at a notably higher rate when his team is an underdog than when favored, and his per-target value rises too, not just raw catches.
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Devin Mccuin is a legitimate money-down target -- his 3rd-down conversion rate ranks among the position's best, and his per-target value holds up in that spot too.
our readdeveloping
Jeff Traylor begins his 7th season at UTSA with a 7-6 record, but coordinator changes and an uneasy fanbase signal tension ahead as the program seeks to build on its 2021 conference title.
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David Amador II is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
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Devin Mccuin is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
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Houston Thomas is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
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Jamel Hardy is used almost exclusively underneath -- a low share of his targets are downfield shots.
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Will Henderson III: a closer signal screened this season.
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Will Henderson III: a garbage time merchant signal screened this season.
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UTSA enters 2025 at No. 62 in SP+ — the 7-6 record and top-quintile returning production under Jeff Traylor challenge the gap between SP+ and on-field reality.
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Outcome band · UTSA · 2026
Floor, base and ceiling come from the season-path projection, which plays out conference title games and the CFP — so a ceiling can run past 12 games.
UTSA enters 2026 rated No. 62 in 2025 SP+ (+3.7). It is top-quintile returning production in FBS — 1% of production comes back. SP+ describes what the program HAS done, not what it will do. The season is the field test. Preview coverage is split — believers and skeptics are reading the same data differently.
The off-field storyline driving the noise right now. Not analysis — the soap opera, and that's the point.
The 'the projection is underselling us' read -- fans betting the season beats the preview number.
The 'the model has seen the tape' counter -- efficiency ratings reward what a program has actually done, not hope.
This event was in 459 of 2643 board posts (17%) over the last 60 days — a fanbase consumed by it. Fan text shown verbatim, attributed to the community not the individual poster.
The boards ≠ the fanbase: a vocal, self-selected slice.
The off-field storyline driving the noise right now. Not analysis — the soap opera, and that's the point.
The optimistic read: momentum, and the 'this is real' takes.
The analytical counter: rankings, results, and 'the hype is ahead of the tape' takes.
This event was in 459 of 2643 board posts (17%) over the last 60 days — a fanbase consumed by it. Fan text shown verbatim, attributed to the community not the individual poster.
The boards ≠ the fanbase: a vocal, self-selected slice.
Fan mood index · most recent r/cfb data
More in this tab
UTSA is the American Athletic program whose 2011 program founding + 2021 12-2 Jeff Traylor Conference USA championship + Alamodome NFL-grade venue define what most-recent-FBS-newcomer-ascent looks like.
QB Mark Wiepert transfers from Oregon to UTSA
Lugo's gone and the portal board had zero QB additions — Wiepert doesn't have to be a star, he just has to be the guy Traylor can hand a rising SP+ offense to while everyone else is still figuring out the AAC.
UTSA releases depth chart for opener
Depth chart drops with the DL still under a microscope — a #79 class doesn't fix a pressure problem overnight, and Traylor's opener against UTRGV is the first real evidence of whether the pieces are sorted.
UTSA player Jacob Graner dies at 28
Jacob Graner was 28 years old — Jeff Traylor's program pauses everything today, and that's the only story that matters.
Top 3 commits
Recruiting Footprint · 2026
TX leads the 2026 class with 13 commits. National footprint reaching 8 states.
Where they recruit · 2023-2026
73 signees across 17 states, 2023-2026. TX leads the pull.
Miles from home · 2026 roster
The median UTSA player grew up 231 miles from campus.
Half this roster came from closer than that; half came from farther.
Straight-line distance from each player's listed hometown to Alamodome. Hometowns are placed at city-centroid precision, not street address — fine at this scale, but a player's true door-to-door number can differ by a few miles. 155 of 163 listed players have a geocoded hometown. Source: CFBD roster hometowns.
Top community posts · last 12 months · r/cfb
Among the stronger offseasons on record for this program
73rd percentile among FBS programs
Recovering 20% of the fumbles they've forced — running cold vs. the ~48% league rate.
1 of 5 forced fumbles recovered, 2026 only.
Converting 25% of pass disruptions into takeaways — well above the ~19% league rate.
4 interceptions of 16 disrupted passes (12 deflected, 4 intercepted), 2026 only.
Losing the penalty battle: 34 penalties committed vs. 30 drawn on opponents, a 62-yard deficit.
345 penalty yards committed vs. 283 drawn on opponents, 2026 season total.