UTPB Athletics

EDINBURG, Texas (August 29, 2026) – The University of Texas Permian Basin football team kicked off the 2026 season against an upstart FCS opponent, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), and fell by a final score of 44-0 in "Week 0" action against the Vaqueros at Robert and Janet Vackar Stadium.

It was the fourth game in program history against an FCS opponent for UTPB (0-1 overall) and its first such game since 2021 at Abilene Christian University.

UTRGV (1-0) opened up the game with a five-play, 77-yard drive that lasted just two minutes. The drive was highlighted by a perfectly thrown 39-yard pass down the sideline despite the pressure on quarterback Aidan Jakobsohn by redshirt junior linebacker Eli Leiataua.

The UTPB offense went backwards on its first drive, but saw a nice diving catch for 14 yards by redshirt junior wide receiver Heston Kelly on a third-and-four pass from junior quarterback Nate TenBarge on its second drive.

UTRGV's third scoring drive to open up the game saw the Vaqueros go 92 yards in just four plays as their second quarterback to come into the game, Garret Rangel, completed another long pass down the sideline (42 yards) before coming back on the very next play and delivering a 29-yard touchdown pass.

On UTPB's third drive of the game, TenBarge rolled outside the pocket and hit Kelly just keeping his feet inbounds down the sideline for a big 45-yard pickup. However, the next play, the Falcons' first play in Vaqueros' territory, resulted in a diving interception at the 17-yard line.

The first play of the second quarter saw Rangel roll out and connect with his receiver 53 yards down field, but later in the drive, Rangel was chased down and tripped up from behind by redshirt senior defensive back Kendrick Jones for no gain on third-and-goal, resulting in the second field goal in the first four drives for the Vaqueros.

After a 50-yard kick by redshirt senior punter Matthew Sebade took a Falcons' roll, UTRGV opened up its next drive with its second pass completion of at least 50 yards in as many drives. However, also for the second drive in a row, the UTPB defense kept UTRGV out of the endzone as redshirt freshman defensive lineman/linebacker Nicholas Elko knocked the ball loose from the Vaqueros' running back at the one-yard line. The ball went through the back of the endzone for a touchback, resulting in the first time the Vaqueros failed to score in the game.

On the ensuring Falcons' drive, TenBarge completed his first three pass attempts and started the drive going 5-for-6 with a completion to four different receivers. The Falcons picked up four first downs on the drive as redshirt sophomore running back Cheno Navarrette opened the drive with an eight-yard reception and twice rushed for a first down, however, it was just not the Falcons' night as a 51-yard field goal attempt by junior kicker Diego Chavarria had plenty of leg but knocked off the upright.

UTPB allowed 305 passing yards in the first half while TenBarge was able to get over the 100-yard mark (102) during the Falcons' final drive of the half.

UTPB's second drive of the second half started with back-to-back completions of 17 and 22 yards from TenBarge to graduate student wide receiver Traylen Suel, but then a tipped interception by the Vaqueros' defensive back on the next play ended the drive.

In the fourth quarter, junior defensive back Leonard Adams did a good job to get his shoulder onto the football as he went to tackle the ball carrier, dislodging the ball and resulting in a fumble recovery for freshman linebacker Mason Van Sickle at the UTRGV 34-yard line. However, the Falcons would again be denied points as the 45-yard field goal attempt by Chavarria was wide left.

Making his Falcon debut, TenBarge finished by completing 14-of-34 passes for 151 yards and two picks while Suel led the team in both receptions (5) and receiving yards (63).

Sebade punted it seven times for an average of 41.9 yards per kick and put two kicks inside the opponents' 20-yard line.

Redshirt sophomore defensive back Nicholas Butler (6 solo) led the Falcons with 11 total tackles and was followed by Jones (5 solo) and redshirt senior defensive back Layne Horak (4 solo) both with seven total tackles.

UTRGV scored on eight of its first 10 drives of the game and finished with 675 yards of total offense, including 404 passing yards and 271 rushing yards. The Vaqueros also finished with 29 first downs and averaged 8.2 yards per play.

UTRGV went 9-3 in its inaugural season in 2025, becoming the first start-up program at the NCAA DI-AA/FCS level to win nine games in its debut season since Div. I college football split into two levels. The Vaqueros broke Florida International's record with six wins against NCAA DI-AA/FCS competition, the most for a first-year team. They were also the only inaugural team to go undefeated at home, finishing 7-0 at Robert and Janet Vackar Stadium.

"They were as good as we thought they were," spoke UTPB's new head coach, Chris Softley. "It was a bad matchup for us in game one. Their front seven is elite and that forces your hand on offense. Then we did not execute in the situational and scoring opportunities like we must moving forward. Every phase of the game had its moments, but we must grow in our consistency. There will be lots of teaching from this film, and we will grow from this."

After a "Week 1" bye week, UT Permian Basin will play its home opener on Saturday, September 12, taking on Western New Mexico University. The game is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. from Astound Broadband Stadium in Midland, Texas. The Falcons have won six straight games against the Mustangs by an average of 35.33 points, and have not lost at home against WNMU since their first season in 2016.