The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros are set to kickoff their inaugural season of football in 2025 in the United Athletic Conference (UAC).
UTRGV was initially announced as a member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) before the league partnered with the ASUN Conference and later rebranded as the United Athletic Conference.
Beginning with UTRGV’s first year of competition, the Vaqueros will be recognized as a full member of Division I FCS, eligible for the FCS Playoffs, and will play a full UAC schedule. The Vaqueros plan to play an exhibition season in the Fall of 2024 that will not count towards NCAA records.
Ahead of UTRGV’s football launch, the school has scheduled its first Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) contests, which is a home-and-home series with the Houston Christian (HCU) Huskies. The agreement for the games was entered into on July 7, 2023, according to a copy of the contract obtained from UTRGV via a state public records request.
In the first game of the series, UTRGV will travel to face HCU at Husky Stadium in Houston, Texas, on Sept. 27, 2025. The Vaqueros will then host the Huskies the following season on Sept. 12, 2026 at either their Brownsville or Edinburg campus.
The Vaqueros plan to play at least one football game per season at Memorial Stadium in Brownsville, Texas. The remainder of their home games will likely be contested at HEB Park in Edinburg, Texas. HEB Park, which has a seating capacity of 9,735, is the home of the Rio Grande Valley FC Toros soccer team of the USC Championship.
Football Schedules
This school immediately eligible for FCS playoffs, but a JMU has to wait two years to be eligible for a bowl game?? NCAA powers are clueless. it’s when you DROP DOWN you should have a 2 or 3 year wait.
This isn’t a transition situation, because UTPA (this school’s predecessor) was a founding member of D-I. Any D-I member can start an FCS football program and immediately be eligible for the postseason.
Thanks for adding this comment, didn’t think to mention it.
Bring back the UTPA Broncs!!!