Okay, let’s talk about this Sam Houston State situation, because wow—this is not your run-of-the-mill rough season. This is the kind of college football disaster that feels like it needs a Netflix documentary.
We’re six weeks into the season and the Bearkats are sitting at 0-6. That alone is bad enough. But then you look at the stands—empty. Not just sparse. Empty. You could practically hear the echoes from the pregame warmups bouncing off the concrete. If there were crickets in Shell Energy Stadium, even *they* probably packed up and left before kickoff.
Now, to be fair, the team’s in the middle of a lot of change. They only just made the leap from FCS to FBS in 2023, and anyone who’s followed that kind of move knows it’s a massive jump in talent, infrastructure, and expectations. But that’s just the start of the story. K.C. Keeler, the coach who won 10 games last season and got this program a bowl win, left for Temple in the offseason.
The transfer portal? Absolutely cleaned house. And in walks Phil Longo, a guy with a shaky track record running offenses and zero real momentum coming in. Expectations were low, and somehow, they’ve still managed to fall short.
And while all this is going on, the school is literally rebuilding its stadium. Elliott T. Bowers Stadium in Huntsville is under renovation, so the Bearkats are stuck playing home games at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston—70 miles away.
It’s a logistical nightmare for fans. It’s like asking people to sit through a three-hour traffic jam just to watch a car stall out in the middle of the highway. Even if the team was winning, it’d be a tough sell. But with no wins on the board? Forget it.
The announced attendance was just over 5,400. That’s cute. Judging by the photos, it looked closer to a few hundred. It felt like a scrimmage played behind closed doors.
Then, to put the icing on this sad, sad cake: Sam Houston took the lead with under a minute left—finally, a chance to snap the losing streak.
But no. Jacksonville State marched right down the field, kicked a 52-yard dagger, and sent the Bearkats packing. Again.
You have to wonder how much longer this can go on. Longo’s seat isn’t just warm—it’s smoking. And unless something dramatic changes, it’s hard to see how he makes it to year two.
