West Texas A&M football team revs up season with opening of fall camp

Strength in numbers. That’s what the West Texas A&M football team is banking on, heading into their 2025 campaign. 

When the Buffaloes converged onto the WTAMU Practice Fields on Monday in Canyon for their first fall practice, 143 reported in and 70 returned to the maroon and white. Those are numbers that head coach Josh Lynn likes to see.

“There’s a good group (of players) on offense and defense (who are) returning,” Lynn said. “Going into my third year, I’m really excited and I’m really happy about our retention.”

The most noticeable number of the lot comes from the quarterbacks. Overall, there are 10 within the room of signal callers. 

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Lynn has four in the mix for the starting job, before aiming to cut the field in half as practices progress. Right now, according to Lynn, the race is wide open.

“We went in and signed some really good, high school quarterbacks and we brought in a couple of transfers,” Lynn said. “We’ll come out of camp and see who’s the best.”

The favorites in winning the job are senior Sean Johnson and graduate transfer RJ Martinez, who spent 2024 with Texas State. 

Johnson was a dual threat for the Buffs last year, rushing for 400 yards and six touchdowns along with tossing for 146 yards and four more scores in eight games. Martinez played in four games for the Bobcats in 2024, reeling in 148 yards in 18 completions.

Even with a healthy quarterback competition, Lynn feels the urgency to win and win now. Under the watchful eye of the Eunice, New Mexico native, the Buffs improved from a 3-7 record in 2023 to a 5-6 mark last season.

Out of their final six games, the Buffs tallied four wins. Despite the solid finish, WTAMU was selected to take sixth in the Lone Star Conference’s pecking order at the league’s football media day, which took place on July 24 in McKinney.

“We need to take another step,” Lynn said. “The next step needs to be building off of what we did at the end of last year. We want to win more than we lose.”

The beginning of the 2025 campaign won’t be easy. 

On Thursday, August 28, the Buffs will head into the Centennial State to take on Western Colorado at the Mountaineer Bowl in Gunnison, Colorado. The Mountaineers, under the guidance of 15-year head coach Jas Bains, finished No. 11 in the final AFCA poll with an 11-2 record and runner-up status within the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.

WT then brings in another stellar program in Colorado School of Mines for its home opener, slated for Thursday, Sept. 5, at Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium.

“That’s what you got to do,” Lynn said of the pre-Lone Star Conference portion of the schedule. “Western Colorado is a great opponent to start out with, so is Colorado School of Mines. There’s no better way to get prepared than get two strong, non-conference opponents right off the bat before entering Lone Star Conference play.”

The Buffs will have leaders ready to go, though. Lynn spoke praises about his defensive players, most notably junior cornerback Cam Manahan and redshirt sophomore Javin Cash.

“He’s done a nice job, and he’s going to be a great player for us,” Lynn said of the Lubbock Coronado alumnus, before noting the former Canyon Eagle. “(Cash) is our inside linebacker, and he’ll be in the mix for some action this year.”

Lynn also acknowledged his offensive guys, particularly junior lineman Kanyon Ives and Johnson, redshirt freshman Knox Porter and Martinez. He also touched on a revamped receiver corps, which boasts 23 wideouts.

“There’s a bunch of new faces and a lot of length in that room,” Lynn said. “But, we have to figure it out (at fall practices).”