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January 28, 2025
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TikTok ban affects San Marcos
By Candace Taggart News Reporter
The national ban on TikTok cvaused the app to go dark for over 10 hours before it was accessible again Jan. 19, impacting small businesses that rely on the app.
As per President Donald Trump’s executive order on Jan. 20, TikTok is available to U.S. residents for 75 days. This comes after the app was down for a few hours on Jan. 18-19 with the following text displayed when users opened the app, “A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now.”
Formerly known as Musical.y and rebranded in 2017 when Bytedance bought it, TikTok is a social media application and platform that allows users to create, view and interact with short-form videos, carousels and live streams. With an approximate 170 million U.S. users according to TikTok Inc v. Garland, the app became a place for users to learn and connect, especially college-age students.
David Calderon is a barber at Kings Korner at 249 North LBJ St., and started using TikTok to reach a wider audience and client base in 2021. Calderon’s TikTok account @wavydavii has over 35,000 followers and he said it has changed his life.
“The effect was crazy; I was charging like $30 a haircut, and within a one-and-a-half to two-year
time frame, I was able to go up and charge $75,” Calderon said. “I was making probably about $2,000 a month, and I make close to like 10k a month now.”
According to Calderon, out of his approximate 30 clients a week, only a few are from San Marcos and the rest travel from neighboring cities. He said if the ban is upheld after the extension, he doesn’t think his local clients will increase and he would still rely on clients traveling to him.
Stephanie Valdez, interior design senior, has over 14,000 followers on TikTok and focuses her content on college life at Texas
State. Valdez said the majority of her audience are Texas State students.
Bird flu cases found in Texas wildlife near San Marcos
By Lesdy Hernandez News Reporter
Bird flu outbreaks in Texas wildlife have been spotted, but human health risk remains low.
On Jan. 9, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department confirmed that ducks found in the Austin area tested positive for Avian Influenza.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Avian Infleunza is a viral infection that spreads in wild birds, poultry and other animals. However, human cases are rare.
“Avian Influenza is not the same as influenza within humans, avian influenza is specifically within
avian species, and the current species of influenza that is currently circulating is called H5N1 virus,” Matthew Gonzalez, department manager for the Hays County Health Department said.
There have been 67 confirmed reported human cases in the U.S. with one death associated with H5N1 avian flu infection. There has been one case reported in Texas and no reports on person-toperson spread cases.
“I’ve been able to connect with a lot of students and help them in terms of giving them advice on things to do as a student and how to put themselves out there, how to get involved on campus,” Valdez
Valdez said young adults prefer
Google because the short videos make it easier to use by keeping
Theater student provides space for comedy
By Megan Weise Life and Arts Reporter
When Averleigh Fisher, performance and production senior, learned about community-based theater in her theatre in the community class, she created her own comedy community called San Marcos Live (SML).
According to Fisher, a community-based theater is a form of artistic inspiration that supports different communities as they express their own artistic expressions. Part of the requirement for her class was to create her own community-based theater, and her love for comedy inspired her.
“I was just thinking about how I could support... the group of aspiring stand-up comedians and sketch writers and comedy actors,” Fisher said. “The more time I spent with the project [of SML], the more I just became inspired by it.”
Fisher’s professor for the class supported her idea and encouraged her to move the organization outside of the classroom. From there, she began to satisfy the requirements to allow SML to become an official club at Texas State.
Fisher started this endeavor by creating the official SML Instagram page, which amassed over 200 followers since its creation in early December.
Band acknowledges truck drivers with musical debut
By Sydney Seidel Life and Arts Contributor
Bikini Truck Stop’s debut single, “Black Ice,” arrives with a heavy, brooding intensity that echoes the treacherous and unpredictable realities of life on the road.
Bikini Truck Stop released its first track on Jan. 24, kicking off its mission to highlight what it believed to be an overlooked profession: truck
drivers. The name “Black Ice” was created after members of the band described the song as having an ominous and dangerous tone. This realization led it to settle on that title, recognizing black ice as one of the most dangerous hazards faced by drivers, especially during the winter months.
The band comprises sound recording seniors Bella Sera, drummer, and Garrett Stacha, guitarist/ bassist. The two formed the band after they recognized how underrepresented the trucking profes-
sion is, despite neither having prior knowledge of or personal ties to the industry. Bikini Truck Stop built these connections along the way and aims to raise awareness through its music of the profession.
“We are trying to get the average driver to listen to the song and understand the fear that some of the people they share the road with experience in these conditions,” Stacha said.
MANDALYN LEWALLEN | MULTIMEDIA EDITOR
A bird sits on the railing outside Sewell Park, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024.
SOPHIA GERKE | ASSISTANT DESIGN EDITOR
2025-26 FAFSA form improves on past issues
By Elizabeth Redman News Contributor
After a three-month delay of the Free Application for Student Aid (FAFSA) 2024-25 rollout, the 2025-26 form officially opened on Dec. 1, 2024 with fewer holdups, according to Dede Gonzales, Texas State’s assistant vice president for Financial Aid and Scholarships.
Though the 2024-25 form had many issues, such as lack of communication from the Department of Education and inaccurate aid estimates, Gonzales said Texas State has processed over 21,000 2025-26 FAFSA applications since the form became available.
“While [the FAFSA] was slightly delayed, it’s far better than last year,” Gonzales said.
The 2025-26 form, initially slated to open on Oct. 1, was not made available to students until Nov. 21—and even then, only in beta testing. This meant it was available to everyone but still being monitored for issues and improvements. From Oct. 1 to Nov. 20, 2024, the new form went through four gradually expanding beta testing periods with a final nationwide total of 223,163 student participants.
improvement compared to the 91 day delay experienced during the 2024-25 cycle, with the form delayed by 51 days for 2025-26.
process, students may still face issues with the FAFSA due to mitigating factors, such as the loss of a job.
According to Gonzales, the financial aid office can assist with these circumstances through TXST One Stop by re-evaluating the amount of aid that students are awarded.
year ago and answers for four offices: financial aid, billing office, student business services and undergraduate admissions and registrar. know which office they need to call if they have questions, you used to have to know to ask separate
questions before and call those separate offices,” Gonzales said. “Now a student just calls one stop and they’re holistic, so they can answer all of those even before you knew to ask them.”
Gonzales encouraged students to fill out the FAFSA as soon as they can. The priority deadline is Feb. 15 and the final deadline is June 30.
“It’s better this year, so don’t be afraid to do it, and do it early,” Gonzales said. “We’re already ready to take them and process them, so fill them out early.”
The 2024-25 delay was largely due to the issues with the FAFSA Simplification Act, which involved several overhauls to the 40-year-old formula.
Gonzales said while the 2024-25 FAFSA was difficult for students, it also weighed on university staff.
“The reason we’re in financial aid, the reason we do what we do, is to help people achieve their goals and go to school,” Gonzales said. “We got in situations where we couldn’t help them either, so it was back and forth between the federal government. But, fortunately, we are not
over 46% were Pell Grant eligible.
Additionally, Gonzales said students can apply for scholarships in the Bobcat Online Scholarship System (BOSS) to get the most aid possible. The BOSS application can be used to apply for multiple scholarships at once.
Jorge Martinez-Lopez, computer science and psychology senior, spoke on his experience with both the 2024-25 and 2025-26 FAFSA forms.
“It was a little easier, because this time, they had information on file from last year. So, they were able to just kind of carry that over,” Martinez-Lopez said. “This time it went a lot smoother, I was able to finish it [in one] day.”
The 2024-25 FAFSA form presented issues for students with parents who are not U.S. citizens to complete, due to the lack of an option to add a guardian who does not have a Social Security number.
“My biggest concern [with 202425] was if they were going to ask my mom’s citizenship status because my mom’s not a U.S. citizen,” MartinezLopez said. “Even though my dad’s a
citizen, it was still very difficult.”
Martinez-Lopez said completing last year’s FAFSA involved reaching out to multiple government agencies, such as the IRS and the Department of Education.
According to Federal Student Aid (FSA), the 2025-26 FAFSA form accelerates several processes. The FSA website now has a tool to help students figure out if their parent qualifies to fill out the FAFSA, solving problems for students with non-citizen parents.
“We modernized FSA by bringing on new leadership and experts in IT project development as well as strengthening our project and program management protocols to ensure contractor accountability for meeting key deadlines and achieving results,” FSA wrote.
According to Gonzales, Texas State gave out a total of over $423 million in financial aid in 2024, with this number expected to increase in 2025.
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TANNER BROWN | DESIGN EDITOR
TXST partners with schools to address fentanyl crisis
By Ryan Claycamp Assistant News Editor
Texas State faculty are working with local school districts to create educational materials about the dangers of fentanyl and how to respond to poisonings.
The initiative, part of the Fentanyl Education, Support Training, and Awareness (FESTA) Program, fulfills requirements outlined in Tucker’s Law, a 2023 Texas law named after Tucker Roe, a 19-year-old from Leander who died of fentanyl poisoning.
According to Kelly Clary, FESTA project director and assistant professor of social work, the first two school districts FESTA will work with are Wimberley ISD and Dripping Springs ISD.
“Since January 2022, Hays County has had over 70 fentanyl overdoses, and we know that 40% of those fentanyl [poisonings] are those under age 18,” Clary said. “So with the mandate for Tucker’s Law, and then knowing that Hays County has fentanyl overdose issues, this program is really in place to help schools reach that mandate.”
To comply with Tucker’s Law, the
FROM FRONT SOCIAL MEDIA
Valdez said young adults prefer going to TikTok for questions, recipes or issues other than Google because the short videos make it easier to use by keeping viewers engaged.
“If I have any questions about how to do something, how to make this certain recipes or fashion advice, I immediately go to Tiktok and scroll to research and educate myself that way,” Valdez said. “I’m also a visual person, so being able to see like a quick 30-second video on how to make a recipe is a lot quicker than reading a whole essay on Google.”
Valdez acknowledged using TikTok can cause some negative habits, like how she gets stuck doom scrolling instead of doing homework, but she has seen how her content has inspired her peers.
According to Valdez, she doesn’t plan on moving to another social media platform if the ban is upheld, but TikTok has helped her grow as a person.
“Freshman year I was very shy and introverted, and it took a lot of time for me to come out of my comfort zone, so with TikTok, I’ve been able to be more outgoing and connect with more people and grow my community,” Valdez said.
However, since December 2022 students, faculty and staff could
FROM FRONT HEALTH
educational material must be provided for grades six through 12, with a focus on four aspects: suicide prevention, prevention of fentanyl abuse and overuse, awareness of local school and community resources and how to access them and health education about substance abuse, including youth substance abuse.
“We’re looking at vaping, nicotine, tobacco, different types of drugs and their different effects, thinking about, specifically Texas and what’s happening in regards to fentanyl being in any potential drug that you buy on the street,” Clary said.
According to a Texas State press release, FESTA, along with their community partners, are also working outside of schools to help combat the fentanyl crisis through Narcan training.
“So far, in collaboration with Hill Country MHDD, the team has supported two naloxone trainings for community members in Wimberley and Dripping Springs, with over 40 total attendees,” the press release read. “Two additional naloxone trainings are scheduled for March 2025.”
Clary said the current goal is to begin implementing the programming
not access TikTok on any Texasowned device or while connected to Texas State’s Wi-Fi as per Gov. Greg Abbott’s order.
Biden signed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act into law April 2024. The law prohibits mobile application stores like Google or Apple from hosting applications controlled by a foreign adversary. TikTok’s parent company Bytedance is Chinese owned.
The Supreme Court upheld the TikTok ban in TikTok v. Garland. In a unanimous decision, the Court acknowledged that the ban could restrict users’ freedom of expression. However, it prioritized concerns over China’s relationship with the U.S. and the potential risk of China accessing U.S. user data, over the potential limitations to the First Amendment.
“When people say it might be a violation of their First Amendment rights, they’re really talking about the access to information, so [the ruling] doesn’t mean that [the TikTok ban] isn’t constitutional, but it’s open for interpretation,” Gilbert Martinez, professor of instruction in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication said.
Trump set a 75-day deadline for the app with the condition that the
Rodney Rohde, College of Health Professions professor and chair for Texas State’s Medical Laboratory Science Program said symptoms of avian flu include fever, sore throat, fatigue, muscle aches and vomiting or diarrhea.
“One of the things that’s kind of popped up in this bird flu that we’ve been seeing in humans is conjunctivitis, so some eye infections,” Rohde said.
Rohde said avian flu in birds can also lead to outbreaks in poultry and dairy cows around the country.
“Typically, right now, the [CDC] and most public health departments continually are talking about this being a kind of a low public health risk for humans,” Rohde said. “But as with any flu virus, we watch that constantly, because the virus can mutate and change,”
Avian flu can be categorized into two groups: Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza (LPAI) and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). Rohde said avian flu is HPAI, meaning it is more likely to cause severe disease compared to LPAI viruses.
In June 2024, Austin Public Health reported the discovery of traces of H5N1 found in AustinTravis County’s wastewater.
“It is important to note that current trends are low and the detection of influenza viruses in wastewater does not necessarily indicate undetected human cases,” APH wrote in the press release.
Gonzales said people most susceptible to contracting H5N1 are individuals who work in
in Wimberley in April or early May.
“So we have to have it finalized by about early March so that we can present it to the school board and we can get official approval before actually implementing,” Clary said “Then, based on getting approval and implementing with Wimberley ISD in the spring, we plan to then implement for Dripping Springs in October of this year.”
Clary said she would like to see FESTA work with other school districts as well. She said they have already spoken with Hays CISD and are hoping to speak with San Marcos CISD about the program. She also said FESTA could potentially expand to schools outside of Hays County in the future, but that their current funding only covers schools in Hays.
According to Clary, FESTA’s programming is trying to be different from past drug education campaigns in schools, such as DARE. The Department of Justice found that past programs, such as DARE were not effective in preventing or reducing drug use.
The education mandated by Tucker’s Law requires the educational material to be “evidence-based.”
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), evidence programming can be effective at reducing drug use and related issues.
“I think some things that we’re trying to do different is focus on that fentanyl piece,” Clary said. “We’re really going to be mindful of what is currently happening in the community, so that we can share that with students.”
According to Clary, the education will be provided once per academic year, which is in line with the requirements of Tucker’s Law.
“Each school district shall annually provide research-based instruction related to fentanyl abuse prevention and drug poisoning awareness to students in grades 6 through 12,” Tucker’s Law states.
Clary said FESTA is currently conducting a survey to understand the needs of the community and what they would like to seek in terms of community outreach events. The survey can be completed on FESTA’s website.
animal health or agriculture, including working with cattle and poultry.
“If [people] work with any type of animal, they should take concern of interacting with
wildlife or with animals who’ve been exposed to wildlife,” Gonzales said. “They should wear more proper PPE [Personal Protective Equipment], whether that’s mask, gowning, goggles, whatever is most recommended in their line of work for their professional space,” Gonzales said.
The CDC advises people to properly cook poultry products and refrain from consuming raw milk. People should also avoid direct contact with wild birds and other animals to prevent infection.
Gonzales said while Hays County residents don’t need to worry about direct human-to-human transmission of bird flu, its impact on the ecosystem remains a significant concern.
“As the effects are currently harming it, we can see how it impacts our health and our life in different ways such as the increased cost of dairy and poultry products,” Gonzales said.
For more information, residents can contact the Hays County Health Department at 512-393-5520 or visit its website.
TANNER BROWN | DESIGN EDITOR
TANNER BROWN | DESIGN EDITOR
Tuesday, January 28, 2025
Opinions in The University Star are not necessarily those of our entire publication, Texas State University’s administration, Board of Regents, School of Journalism and Mass Communication or Student Publications Board.
Creative efforts allow for sustainability to thrive
By Hannah Nunez Opinions Contributer
Spending $50 on an organic linen t-shirt isn’t as eco-friendly as you might think.
“Greenwashing,” “sustaniababble” and “green sheen” are all phrases used to describe corruption within the sustainability movement. What began as a form of environmental protection is now poached by big companies that prioritize profit, leaving consumers questioning authenticity and sustainable company values.
While the expenses that go into certified sustainable production are ethical and valid, a majority of consumers are still hesitant to choose sustainability over affordability.
The Capgemini Research Institute conducted a consumer demand survey in 2022 and found 54% of global consumers prioritize a product’s price over materials.
While there is a market for eco-friendly clothing, balancing living expenses, personal finances and grocery budgets leaves little room for struggling college students to make optimal environmental choices.
Maintaining sustainability without breaking the bank is possible but requires a bit of creativity.
Liv Bain, advertising junior, said she felt pulled between affordability and sustainability. She said she wanted to rethink her consumption altogether. In January 2024, Bain co-founded a vintage resell shop called CockyGirlVintage with her friend Alyssa Trevino.
The shop serves as a way to
encourage consumers to look toward the hidden gems already produced, rather than participate in fast fashion.
“Fast fashion facilitates the idea that once you have acquired everything that is trending, the next step is to look for the next best thing,” Bain said. “This leads to perfectly good clothes being discarded after only a short period, contributing to waste and encouraging constant consumption.”
The mass production of fast fashion is too much for consumers to keep up with, the Copenhagen Fashion Summit reported out of the 100 billion garments produced annually, 92 million tons end up discarded in landfills.
Rather than contribute to waste, Bain said she hopes to inspire locals in the community to practice responsible consumption and DIY habits that reconnect them with their clothing.
“One sustainable habit we practice frequently is up-cycling,” Bain said. “This habit is especially meaningful to us because it personalizes the item, making it feel truly ours and as a result, we’re less likely to part with it.”
Maintaining your wardrobe through simple alterations and at-home sewing allows you to get creative before throwing a piece away. Just because a piece has been worn and loved doesn’t mean its life has to come to an end. Fix up holes in fabric by learning how to sew patches or alter your favorite pair of jeans after a growth spurt. Not only is this a sustainable practice, but it shows that we’re capable of maintaining quality pieces for future generations.
Texas State’s Alkek One
MakerSpace invites students to enter the workshop to get hands-on experience with sewing machine operation. The Making With Fabric workshop guides students through a basic sewing demonstration that creates a foundational understanding of up-cycling and inspires personalized fashion.
Bain utilizes the community to maintain sustainability on a budget. Rather than giving into trends, Bain encourages clothing swaps with friends as a way to invest in timeless pieces and give clothing a new life.
“We’ve always felt that fast fashion
trends are just cheap reinterpretations of what’s already been done,” Bain said.
These habits are not only sustainable practices, but they help reshape our perception of consumerism. Having more stuff has never equated to a unique connection with your personal style. We have to keep fashion centered around creativity and resourcefulness, not abundance.
Main Point: TikTok ban will cause more harm than good
By Editorial Board
On Jan. 18, TikTok went dark for 14 hours in the United States.
Though the ban is delayed for 75 days due to an executive action, many users who deleted the app from their phones or got new phones cannot access it on app stores. The ban directly infringes upon free speech, and should not be taken lightly.
Discussions around a potential TikTok ban began in 2020 when President Donald Trump said his administration was considering banning the app as “one of many ways” to get back at the Beijing government for its handling of COVID-19.
Since then, there have been ongoing discussions around the app and the “threat” it poses to national security.
TikTok was blocked at Texas public universities when Gov. Greg Abbott banned the app from all government devices on Dec. 7, 2023. Because of this, students still can’t access the app while on school Wi-Fi.
According to a study from Pew Research Center, about 4 in 10 adults under 30 consume news on the app. While users may not be actively seeking news, TikTok has been an important tool in keeping people informed since Black Lives Matter protests in 2020.
According to the American
Civil Liberties Union, banning TikTok would be “unprecedented, unconstitutional and un-American.”
It would also set a precedent that the U.S. government could create other restrictions on online speech. This wouldn’t just impact apps, media sources like The University Star rely on social media platforms to connect to our audience. It would negatively impact our outreach and daily practices.
In 2024, TikTok posts from The Star accumulated 249,000 views and 10,000 likes. Without this platform, hundreds of users would have missed out on content from our platform.
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In addition to news outreach, TikTok also has become a lifeline for local small businesses.
David Calderon, a barber at Kings Korner in San Marcos, is proof of how transformative it can be. His TikTok account, @wavydavii, has grown to over 35,000 followers since 2021. Thanks to the app, he’s been able to raise his haircut prices from $30 to $75 and increase his income from $2,000 a month to nearly $10,000.
Most of Calderon’s clients aren’t even local — they travel from cities like Austin and Houston because they’ve seen his work on TikTok. But now all of that is at risk. If TikTok
gets banned, businesses like his lose their biggest tool for reaching new customers. And this isn’t just about one barber.
According to TikTok’s 2024 Economic Impact Report, the app garnered $15 billion in revenue for small businesses in the U.S. in 2023. TikTok has given countless small businesses the chance to thrive. Taking it away would hurt entrepreneurs everywhere, stripping them of the visibility they’ve worked so hard to build.
TikTok has become somewhat of a search engine for college users. With videos on the platform ranging from math problem guidance to college-friendly recipes, students rely on the app as a valuable information source. While many Texas State students found ways to dodge the campus ban, a national ban would be unavoidable.
In addition to lifestyle content, many college students use TikTok as a way to share and consume news. Without the platform, so much communication would be lost.
Censorship is frightening, but it seems as though the U.S. government is becoming more and more comfortable with the idea. After TikTok, what’s next?
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Letters become the property of The Star and may be republished in any format. The letter may be edited for length and clarity. An editor will contact the letter writer if their letter is a candidate for publication. The Star will not run letters that are potentially libelous, discriminatory, obscene, threatening or promotional in nature.
Letters can be submitted to staropinion@txstate.edu or by mail to Attn: Opinion Editor, The University Star, 601 University Drive, San Marcos, TX, 78666.
-Hannah Nunez is a journalism senior
The Main Point is an opinion written by The University Star’s Editorial Board. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of our entire publication.
LUNAR NEW YEAR
Student-run business brings Louisiana flavor to San Marcos
By Cara Cervenka Life and Arts Reporter
Last spring, two Texas State sophomores turned a shared craving for better crawfish into a bold business venture. Jagger Lechler, agricultural business and management sophomore, and Riley Mella, finance sophomore, took a risk and pulled their combined finances to found Bobcat Crawfish Co.
The crawfish company was costly to start between equipment, gas and travel the pair were uncertain if their business would break even. Though the company quickly gained popularity Jagger said they never intended for the business to be a financial venture but rather a fun passion project.
“We were both very broke college students... we realized that the crawfish around us is either very expensive or not very good,” Lechler said.
This realization sparked a conversation between him and Mella about providing the San Marcos community with quality, affordable crawfish in the area. Their personal connections to the culinary world fueled their desire to provide locals with better seafood.
“My family’s from Louisiana, [Lechler’s] family’s in the restaurant business as well and has a lot of ties to seafood... so we already kind of knew what we were getting ourselves into,” Mella said.
The company quickly began making waves in the San Marcos community, with Bobcat Crawfish Co. becoming a go-to choice for crawfish boils. The pair catered graduation parties, sorority events and boat parties.
Both Mella and Lechler’s fathers have played
FROM FRONT MUSIC
After forming a band and producing an EP, Sera and Stacha committed to releasing a single every month leading up to the EP’s launch. Stacha, who wrote the band’s debut single in February 2024, felt strongly that the track deserved a place in its upcoming project.
Throughout their process, Sera and Stacha visited the New Braunfels Travel Center and Black Bear Diner frequently to connect with truck drivers stopping by and station workers. They took the opportunity to talk with them, hear their stories and gain a deeper understanding of the profession.
Chance Womack, a truck driver for Central Texas Equipment, was initially confused about how a song could represent trucker drivers. He was also shocked to learn that students, of all people, wanted to honor his community.
“It is nice to know that people understand being a trucker is more than just driving sometimes,” Womack said.
FROM FRONT CLUB
“I saw San Marcos Live on Instagram, and I realized that the president of San Marcos Live is someone I know,” Paige Denman, criminal justice freshman, said. “I had no idea that she was also a fan of comedy and stand-up, so I followed the account and then I saw that she was having officer... applications.”
After submitting her application, Denman became the social media head of SML. Although Denman is pursuing a career in criminal justice, she still loves theater and wants to stay involved in the performing arts.
“There’s almost like science that goes into [comedy],” Denman said. “You really have to be smart to make your audience laugh, because when you’re in front of a crowd of people you’ve never seen before, you don’t know their kind of humor... I just love how intricate comedy is.”
Fisher wishes to provide an environment where people feel safe to practice comedy through a supportive group of people. The club offers three different positions for membership: stand-up comedy, comedic acting and sketch writing.
“My ultimate goal for this group
a significant role in their success, offering advice based on their own experiences. Although the pair has other jobs, they do everything possible to reinvest their earnings into the business, hoping to grow in success.
“Crawfish is just one season out of the year... so it can be really hectic trying to get everything in order just because you never know how much it’s
Bikini Truck Stop’s music is instrumental and rooted in the progressive (prog) metal genre. Sera and Stacha draw inspiration from other prog artists and bands, such as Buckethead, Animals as Leaders and The Aristocrats.
For Stacha, writing instrumental music feels more natural than crafting lyrics. He sees it as a way to express himself, describing it as his most direct form of communication. While Stacha and Sera understand that this genre isn’t always what some listeners typically gravitate toward, they believe anyone listening will be able to interpret a story from it.
“I think that there is an emotional depth-ness that can be almost a little harder to convey through simply an instrument for most listeners,” Sera said. “So, if we pull it off in a well enough manner, listeners will be able to feel what we are feeling, and that’s our goal.”
Bikini Truck Stop’s single “Black Ice” is available on all major music streaming platforms.
really gonna cost until a few days before the week of,” Mella said.
Lechler and Mella involve their fraternity brothers from Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE), giving them the opportunity to earn some extra money and learn valuable business skills. Although Greek Life helped the business grow, many of the brothers volunteered to help out without pay to be involved and have a good time.
“The goal was never just to sell food — it was to create a space where people could come together, share a meal and feel like part of a family,” Lechler said.
The SAE brothers’ plan is to expand Bobcat Crawfish Co. and affiliate it with Texas State with aspirations of eventually franchising to other schools.
“I think it’s gonna actually be insane,” Lechler said. “Like the amount of money that we’ve already made and we haven’t even started. Like it’s pretty crazy.”
Carson Geis, construction science sophomore, started his journey with the business as a freshman when he rushed SAE and became the go-to guy for corn and potatoes at crawfish boils.
He said the upcoming season will be bigger and better, with a chance to grow it outside of San Marcos. To promote the business, Geis’ built connections with local organizations, including Texas State’s sports teams like Texas State baseball.
“No matter what, we will take care of you... We will take the benefit of the doubt and just do whatever is best to our abilities just to see smiles on faces,” Geis said.
is creating a space where people feel comfortable and open enough to share what’s inside of them,” Fisher said.
“Because comedy is very personal, especially for stand-up because a lot of it is telling stories about yourself in a comedic light... turning tragedy into comedy and kind of wrestling with that.
For Sydney Lafferty, performance and production junior and vice president of SML, comedy is an escape. It provides a space for those who enjoy
comedy to practice and learn with their club mates.
“I’m a big laugher, so anytime I can laugh and make people laugh, it makes me happy,” Lafferty said. “The people that are on the board and the people that we’re hoping to have in this organization are gonna be people that are okay to stumble and fall on because we’re gonna pick you right back up.”
While the club is not officially registered under Texas State as of Jan.
26, SML is wrapping up its auditions and will proceed with the next steps to register. Under the university, it can receive the funding necessary to continue the program.
“I’m overjoyed because this is something I’m insanely passionate about and would not only be beneficial for others but be very beneficial for me,” Fisher said. “As I’ve said, I’ve loved comedy, but I’ve never pursued it outside of the comfort of my own mind.”
According to Fisher, a large part of being a performer is trusting yourself and your instincts, which is a part of why she founded SML. She hopes the space created within SML will help others pursue comedy as she has.
“I hope that it becomes a very intimate environment where we just learn each other’s quirks and the way that we perform very well so that the showcase is truly a showcase of the people in the group and just highlights their strengths,” Fisher said.
By the end of the semester, SML plans to showcase a mix of stand-up acting and comedic actors performing what the sketch writers have created.
ERIC WENDT | COURTESY PHOTO
Bikini Truck Stop guitarist/bassist Garrett Stacha (Left) and drummer Bella Sera (Right) film promotional material for their upcoming single release, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, at the TA Travel Center in New Braunfels.
RILEY MELLA | COURTESY PHOTO
Bobcat Crawfish Co. founders Riley Mella (Left) and Jagger Lechler (Right) stir crawfish, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024, in San Marcos.
SOPHIA GERKE | ASSISTANT DESIGN EDITOR
FOOTBALL
Texas State football conference outlook
By Ayden Oredson Sports Contributor
In recent years, the entire landscape of collegiate athletics has drastically reshaped due to intense conference realignment.
Schools are jumping conferences at an unprecedented rate, with new rumors appearing everyday detailing what new school might be on the move.
Among these rumors lies Texas State, a school ripe with potential. Texas State is not new to conference realignment, having competed in six different conferences since 1922. With the continually changing world of college sports, where will Texas State inevitably end up?
The Mountain West & Pac-12
The first early signs of realignment talks occurred on Sept. 28, 2024, when ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Texas State had received a verbal offer to join the Mountain West Conference. The Pac-12 also expressed interest but made no offer.
The Mountain West experienced a mass exodus of some of its biggest schools, including Boise State, Fresno State, Colorado State, Utah State and San Diego State leaving for the Pac-12 prior to inviting the Bobcats. Talks heated up between Texas State and the Mountain West when UNLV and Air Force committed to staying in the Mountain West.
The Mountain West and Pac-12 need eight schools to maintain FBS
status. If there had been a move to the Mountain West, the Bobcats would’ve been its seventh full-time member. Texas State will have to pay the Sun Belt Conference an exit fee of $5 million if it intends to join another conference regardless.
One of the main reasons for the Bobcats potentially leaving the Sun Belt, a conference they have resided in since 2013, would simply be money from television deals. The Sun Belt’s payout under its current media deal is $2 million, compared to the significantly larger Mountain West’s $4 million and the Pac-12’s $8 million. However, the Pac-12’s media deal is ongoing and undetermined at this time.
It didn’t take long for Texas State to make a decision on their Mountain West invitation. Just a few days after initially receiving an offer, the Bobcats informed the Sun Belt Conference that they would be staying put, according to Director of Athletics Don Coryell.
Rumors of the Bobcats joining a new conference have persisted since then, especially one big rumor of a potential move to the Pac-12. Reporter Keff Ciardello confirmed on a recent episode of his podcast, ‘Win Now or Get Bent’ that based on what he’s heard behind the scenes, some are confident that Texas State is already unofficially a new member of the Pac-12.
If Texas State joins the Pac-12, it will be a full-time member and the conference’s eighth team, keeping its
FBS status.
Staying in The Sun Belt
Joining a new conference does have its benefits, but is it the best idea for Texas State?
It may seem enticing to move conferences, especially in terms of building a brand. However, remaining in the Sun Belt Conference could arguably be one of the safer routes to take, not only for establishing success but also for traveling.
The Sun Belt Conference is on the rise among its other mid-major counterparts, having continually sent more
schools to the NCAA Tournament in a variety of sports. It can be argued that Texas State should continue to build its athletics in the Sun Belt to establish and maintain that success for potential future opportunities to receive an invitation from bigger and more prestigious conferences.
The Bobcats are already the most outer-west member in the Sun Belt. If they did move to join a conference, especially one more geared to the pacific coast, they would not only continue to be isolated, but they would be even further away from their peers than they already currently are.
Sports betting culture replaces fandom
By Jackson Kruse Sports Editor
The ability to instantly bet on professional and collegiate sports is impacting the average fan experience, for better or worse.
“[Sports gambling] enhances the thrill of watching [games], putting some money on it and making it a little more intense [means] something more is at stake rather than just the thrill of my [favorite] team winning,”
John Gorres, music education junior, said. “If I put five bucks on it and end up winning 60-70 bucks, it just makes it that much more enjoyable.”
Even though platforms such as FanDuel and DraftKings are prohibited in Texas, apps like Underdog, PrizePicks and Fliff allow people across the state to place legal bets on sports within seconds. In the past, less accessible illegal forms of gambling were the only option.
According to a 2023 NCAA study, 67% of 18 to 22-year-olds on college campuses have indulged in sports betting. With these new-age platforms being legal and easily obtainable, there’s no question that the number of people who bet on sports has increased.
The online sports gambling era has created a landscape where sports fans view games much differently
than before.
“[As a fan], the highs are so much higher and the lows are so much lower… [sports betting has] had a major negative impact on my life,” Dylan Hudson, business senior, said.
To many, the idea that betting on sports can be addictive seems absurd, however, 1-800-GAMBLER exists for a reason. According to a National Council on Problem Gambling study, 16% of online sports gamblers meet the clinical criteria for gambling disorder and another 13% show signs of gambling problems.
“Whenever you’re not betting on the sport, it’s not as fun, so [gambling] hinders [the fan experience]. It’s addicting. You have to keep on doing it to keep that thrill,” Gorres said. “But the positive is, if you bet on your team to win, [and] they [do] win, you cash a parlay.”
Since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, a law preventing states other than Nevada from allowing sports betting, in 2018, total sports betting revenue rose from $430 million that year to $11.04
billion in 2023, according to Statista. While some people might spend their last $10 on a parlay, sports betting companies are experiencing unprecedented profit.
“[Sports betting] makes your budget a little bit more tight, [it’s] just sometimes harder to do things,” Zach Terry, film sophomore, said. “I could spend this $25 at the bar, or I could spend it on Lebron over. It definitely affects you socially.”
Sports betting affects how people watch sports and live their lives. But does it affect the product on the field?
The NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL all have business partnerships with sports betting companies, creating speculation among fans.
“I 100% think games are rigged for sports betting reasons,” Gorres said. “I think the most recent example is Texans-Chiefs in the divisional round game that just happened. The Chiefs were 9.5 point favorites, and they took a last-second safety that had no impact on their ability to win the game.”
There is no known evidence that professional sports leagues rig games, but these leagues’ financial benefits from sports gambling make fans wonder. That speculation, along with the ups and downs of sports betting, has created an entirely new outlook for sports fans.
Who will be Texas State’s starting QB?
By Max Martinez Sports Reporter
The Bobcats decided their next quarterback will have to work for the position. After signing three transfer quarterbacks and getting two commits out of high school, head coach G.J. Kinne knows making these young men compete for the starting job is the only way to get them better.
Austin native and Lake Travis High School alumnus Nate Yarnell committed to Texas State after spending three seasons as the backup quarterback behind Eli Holstein at the University of Pittsburgh. The junior only played in six games in his first two seasons at Pittsburgh, but due
to a Holstein injury he was able to suit up for nine games in 2024. Last season, Yarnell had 98 completions for 1,056 yards, 10 touchdowns and five interceptions. Originally from Gladewater, TX, Colt Sparks is a 6-foot-4-inch, 210-pound quarterback and tight end who had previously committed to Texas Tech. He is a true dual-threat quarterback, with over 3,000 passing yards and over 1,600 rushing yards in high school.
Fort Worth native Gavin Parkhurst is coming to Texas State after initially being committed to Rice University.
The 6-foot-3 inch, 195-pound quarterback led his high school team to an undefeated season, putting up nearly
4,000 total yards.
Gevani McCoy is transferring from Oregon State, where he started the final seven games, throwing for 1,300 yards and three touchdowns with six interceptions. The junior quarterback spent his first three seasons at the University of Idaho, where he started every game in 2022 and 2023, throwing for 5,654 yards, 42 touchdowns and 15 interceptions between those two seasons.
Holden Geriner is a sophomore transferring over from Auburn, where he spent three seasons and has seen minimal playing time, not starting a single game as the third-string quarterback. Coming out of high school, Geriner was one of the top-rated
quarterback prospects, having put up over 7,100 passing yards and 71 touchdowns in his career. The 6-foot-3 inch, 205-pound QB led his high school team to a state championship his senior year, where he won MVP, throwing for 3,377 yards and 36 touchdowns that season.
All of these new Texas State quarterback additions have different levels of experience, which should make the competition between them interesting. Yarnell and McCoy both have the most experience, having started multiple games in college, so they should be the most likely to get the start going into the season, but that could change.
JARELL CARR | ILLUSTRATOR
MEG BOLES | ASSISTANT MULTIMEDIA EDITOR
Texas State junior defensive end Kalil Alexander (22) and head coach G.J Kinne lead the football team onto the field to face North Texas at the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl, Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, at Gerald J. Ford Stadium.
Texas State environmental studies sophomore Isabel Houle and health studies sophomore Sophie Grisamore look at jewelry from local vendors at the San Marcos Farmers Market, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Hays County Courthouse.
Texas State social work sophomore Georgia Nordberg buys a herbal blend from Syd Beacham owner of Beached Souls at the Free Range Farmers Market, Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, at the Wake the Dead Coffee House.
THIS WEEK IN SMTX
(Left to right) Texas State computer information systems freshman Desiree Oladipo, criminal justice sophomore Taysha Richardson and pre-vet freshman Jaden Glaze participate in casino night, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, at LBJ Student Center.
Texas State theatre performance and production junior Dietrich Calhoun plays original music during George’s Open Mic Night, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, at the LBJ Student Center.
ROBERT STEPHANSON | STAR PHOTOGRAPHER
A local resident brings their pet snake to the San Marcos farmers market to meet Texas State students, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025, at the Hays County Courthouse.
LAURA WALKER | STAR PHOTOGRAPHER
LAURA WALKER | STAR PHOTOGRAPHER MAYA CONTRERAS | STAR PHOTOGRAPHER
Texas State film sophomore Oliver Barnfield plays Midnight Hills an original song, during George’s Open Mic Night, Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025, at the LBJ Student Center.
MAYA CONTRERAS | STAR PHOTOGRAPHER
ROBERT STEPHANSON | STAR PHOTOGRAPHER
A snowman stands outside of Laurel Hall, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, at Texas State.
MARISA NUNEZ | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF