Bearkats to open 2022 in Aggieland

Game 1 • College Station • Kyle Field
Saturday, September 3
11:00 AM at FBS No. 6 Texas A&M

TV: SEC Network • Watch on SECN+
RADIO: KSAM 101.7 FM • Listen Online
HOW TO FOLLOW: Live Stats • @BearkatsFB on Twitter
GAME NOTES: Sam Houston • Texas A&M
GAMEDAY INFO: Know Before You Go (from Texas A&M)

Series vs the Aggies: Texas A&M leads 12-0 • Full Series History

HUNTSVILLE – The Sam Houston Bearkats will kick off the 2022 season against one of the top-rated teams in the country on Saturday morning when they battle FBS No. 6 Texas A&M at Kyle Field.

The game will be aired live on the SEC Network and is available online on SEC Network+. Dave Neal and Deuce McAllister will be on the call in the booth, with Andraya Carter on the sidelines.

Fans can also tune into KSAM 101.7 FM with Carlos Zimmermann and Brian Adams on the radio call both over the air and online. Live stats are also available and updates via social media will be available throughout the day by following @BearkatsFB on Twitter and Instagram.

BEARKAT BASICS
The game will mark the beginning of a 9-game season that will be the last in SHSU's history at the FCS level. The team will compete as a member of the WAC in for its second straight season in 2022 before joining Conference USA for the 2023 campaign.

Saturday's game will be the first FBS opponent for the Kats since falling at New Mexico to start off the 2019 season. It will be the first ranked FBS opponent Sam Houston has seen since opening up the K.C. Keeler era in 2014 vs No. 12 LSU.

With Texas A&M ranked No. 6 in the AP poll, it marks the a tie for the highest-ranked FBS opponent the Kats have ever faced. The Aggies were also ranked No. 6 when the Kats faced them in 2013.

BEARKAT BYTES
- The Kats currently have 9 games on the schedule in 2022 as the transition process to the FBS will not allow Sam Houston to be eligible for a spot in the FCS playoffs, despite competing as an FCS institution this year. Sam Houston will also not be eligible for a WAC or WAC/ASUN Challenge title in 2022 and Stats Perform has announced that the Kats will not be included in the weekly national polls.

- Sam Houston will compete as an FBS school in 2023 in Conference USA, but will not be bowl eligible until 2024.

- Sam Houston has been busy filling its future schedules for its time in the FBS, both at home and on the road. Since officially making the move to C-USA for 2023, the Kats have announced home-and-home series with Hawai'i, Colorado State, Georgia Southern and most recently Troy in addition to single road games at both BYU (2023) and UCF (2024).

- Sam Houston will be kicking off 2022 after a historic 2021 calendar year. The Bearkats won 21 games in 2021, running its overall win streak to 22 games dating back to 2019, before falling in the quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs to Montana State. The 21 wins in 2021 is the most in the history of college football for a calendar year and included an FCS national title, Southland Conference title, WAC title and WAC/ASUN Challenge title.

- The game vs the Aggies will be the 10th game in K.C. Keeler's career vs an FBS opponent. He is currently 2-7 vs FBS opponents, including 0-3 as the head coach of the Kats. Of his 9 previous FBS games, 5 were against Navy during his time as the Delaware head coach, including both wins in 2003 and 2007.

- The Bearkat roster boasts a number of FBS transfers, but only 1 player on the current roster has ever squared off against Texas A&M. Transfer running back Dezmon Jackson is in his first year with the Kats after his career at Oklahoma State. While there as a freshman in 2018, Jackson got on the field for the Cowboys in the 2019 Texas Bowl, a 24-21 loss to the Aggies at NRG Stadium.

- Saturday will serve as a homecoming for the Williams brothers for SHSU. Linebacker Trevor Williams and wide receiver Tony Williams have both been on the team since 2019 and starred in high school at A&M Consolidated High School. Their sister, Taylor, is also a student manager with the team.

- Bearkat football has very much been a family affair in recent years with 4 sets of brothers on the 2021 squad. But this year's team has one-upped it with the Williams being just 1 of 5 sets of brothers on the team including: Chrests (Cody, Jaxon, Nick), Murrays (Lloyd, Chris), Morgans (Seth, Kaden) and Haglers (Ethan, Garret).

- SHSU's 11-1 record in 2021 was the 11th time in program history the Kats have finished with 10+ victories and the sixth time in eight seasons under K.C. Keeler.

- With its 11-1 record last season, the Bearkats enter 2022 riding a streak of 12 consecutive winning seasons, a mark tied with North Dakota State for the second longest current streak in the FCS. The longest streak is held by Eastern Washington who enters this season with 15 straight winning seasons.

- One of the primary additions to the Bearkat defense is the addition of safety BJ Foster, who spent the past 4 seasons at Texas. The Angleton native earned all-Big 12 honorable mention honors last year after leading UT with 3 interceptions, but joins the Bearkats where he has deep family roots. In addition to his sister also attending SHSU, his mother - Yolanda Royston - is one of the top volleyball players in Bearkat history. She is a member of SHSU's Hall of Honor and still ranks in the all-time top 25 at SHSU in those categories.

- In addition to a large number of new faces on the field, the Kats brought in a bevy of new coaches, headlined by offensive coordinator John Perry who was most recently at Rutgers but spent a number of years professionally with the Houston Texans. On the defensive side, Joe Morris will take over calling the defense after Clayton Carlin was elevated into a role as Associate Head Coach.

Bearkats to open 2022 in Aggieland

Players Mentioned

BJ Foster

Dezmon Jackson

Tony Williams

Trevor Williams

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