Could Texas State become a Pac-12 rival of San Diego State?

Anyone up for a San Diego State Aztecs-Texas State Bobcats rivalry starting in 2026?

There are some Texas-sized rumors and perhaps some subliminal messages floating around the world of college sports as the reconstructed Pac-12 Conference faces a July 1 deadline for adding at least one more football-playing school.

It’s been rumored for months that the Bobcats are in the mix to join the new-look Pac-12, and Texas State president Kelly Damphousse has taken to X recently to either troll sports fans or drop some hints.

On Tuesday, Damphousse retweeted a photo of two beavers swimming in the San Marcos River near Texas State’s campus, perhaps a subliminal nod to the Oregon State Beavers, who, along with the Washington State Cougars, are the two lone holdovers from the old Pac-12, which disintegrated in 2024.

Whichever direction the Pac-12 chooses to go with adding new members, it has to be done by July 1 to receive certification for the College Football Playoff starting in 2026-27.

SDSU and the other seven members of the reconfigured Pac-12 have signed their grant of rights and membership agreements, with a media rights deal expected any day now. 

The newcomers joining Oregon State and Washington State are SDSU, Boise State, Fresno State, Colorado State and Utah State from the Mountain West, and basketball powerhouse Gonzaga from the West Coast Conference. The Zags don’t play football, which is why the new Pac-12 needs at least one more football-playing member. 

An Aztecs-Bobcats rivalry might not have the same ring as Aztecs vs. the USC Trojans or UCLA Bruins, but SDSU’s long dream of joining the Pac-12 is finally happening. 

The Aztecs will be the only Pac-12 team from Southern California, and adding Texas State would stretch the conference halfway across the country to San Marcos, Texas, which is halfway between Austin and San Antonio (for what it’s worth, there’s a San Marcos in northern San Diego County).

Texas State had an enrollment of 40,678 for the 2024-25 academic year. It moved up to FBS in 2012 and plays in the Sun Belt Conference. 

Coach G.J. Kinne has guided the Bobcats to consecutive 8-5 seasons and appearances in the First Responder Bowl. 

In basketball, the Bobcats haven’t reached the NCAA Tournament since 1997 and finished 16-16 last season, including 9-9 in the Sun Belt.

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