SAN ANTONIO – A new season of Incarnate Word football is almost here, and on Thursday the team trotted out for their first organized practice of summer camp.
Coming off a lackluster 5-7 season in 2025, head coach Clint Killough said it’s important for the team to not get ahead of themselves, which was part of the problem last year. He said the team has mastered the techniques implemented throughout the offseason and is excited for their potential to get back to winning football.
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“We did a lot of intentional work this summer in terms of how to practice and how to be focused on the day — just the goal of being better every single day and not getting our eyes too far down the road,” Killough said.
According to Killough, the coaching staff doesn’t harp too much on how last year went. But that doesn’t mean the team isn’t motivated by what went wrong.
“I put together a little video just to perk the hair on the back of their neck up last night, just to give them a little bit of extra motivation,” Killough said. “But this is the 2026 football team. Every year is different in college football nowadays, so obviously they’re aware of the mistakes that that team made last year. But that was last year, and we’re focused on today.”
Defensive lineman Josh Gonzalez, who’s been with UIW since 2021, said he feels the team is back at the level it was in 2024 when the Cardinals reached the second round of the FCS playoffs and won the Southland Conference with an 11-3 record.
“It’s very exciting, especially that we’re going to show people what talent we have now since last year, and we’re ready to go,” said Gonzalez.
Like every team, the Cardinals are looking for a fast start, so Killough wanted to add “a little something” before practice to get the competitive juices pumping.
Tug of war.
Two players are matched up from each side of the ball, giving their teammates something to root for. The game appealed to Killough because it’s low-contact and doesn’t put players at risk of getting injured.
“Obviously there’s some rules around what we can do one-one-competition wise,” Killough said. “But I think it’s a great way to start practice off, and y’know, it’s one-v-one and who’s going to pull the other man.”
The team perhaps needed an injection of grit after losing a bit of their edge last season.
“From last year, we (were) kind of, I guess, comfortable,” wide receiver Isaiah Champagne said. “(Weren’t) really working as hard as we possibly could. I think this year the coaches are just pushing us to be better every day. That’s our motive, better every day, and just keep on working.”
With opening day one month away, every goal for the season is still within reach, and maintaining that clean slate to work from every day will be key to Incarnate Word’s long-term success.
“We get an opportunity to be present in the day,” Killough said, “and these guys are really embodying that.”
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