Unless overtime is involved, most football games are decided in four quarters. The Lobos have 12 regular season games on the schedule, and with a quarter of those already in the books, it seems like a good opportunity to take a closer look at things some may have missed along the way.
Abilene Christian
New Mexico won its season opener 38-14 over Abilene Christian, but many people may not realize it was the first loss dealt to first-year Wildcat head coach Adam Dorrel in quite a while. Dorrel was the previous head coach at Northwest Missouri State, a team he guided to back-to-back undefeated NCAA Division II Championship seasons in 2015 and 2016.
The week-one loss to UNM was Dorrel's first since Nov. 22, 2014 when his Bearcats gave up a big fourth-quarter lead and fell to Minnesota by a score of 25-21 in the first round of the playoffs. Dorrel also coached Northwest Missouri State to an undefeated championship season in 2013.
Another thing that may have flown under the radar was that one of the other ACU coaches made a return to New Mexico. Former UNM football player Jacori Greer joined the Wildcat coaching staff, working with the defensive line.
Greer said he was really locked in on preparing for playing against New Mexico, so he didn't really reach out to anyone when he came back to Albuquerque. But he said he sought out head coach Bob Davie after the game to give him praise for the offense's evolution since he took the helm.
The former Lobo said he was pleased with his team's effort, and while he doesn't buy into moral victories, he believed in growth. Abilene Christian seemed to have success shutting down the dive portion of the Lobo triple option attack but had a few breakdowns that allowed UNM to put some distance between the teams on the scoreboard.
Running back Romell Jordan led the Lobos with 65 yards on just three carries in his first game back on the field in approximately 20 months. He tore his ACL during spring practice last year and was later dealt another blow after learning about the death of his mother.
Romell Jordan said he wouldn't have been able to make it back where he needed to be without the support of his teammates. He said things were very difficult at times and staying mentally strong was probably the hardest part.
"It's been a tough, tough road coming back," he said. "It was a real gut check. It was just like, 'Is this really for me?'...and then you see all the people you have around you — all the love — and it's just like, 'This is for you.'"
After the game, Davie said the Wildcats had a good scheme and execution, adding that he felt ACU was trending in the right direction.
Since facing UNM, Abilene Christian has posted a 1-1 record, defeating Houston Baptist 24-3 in its conference opener last week.
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New Mexico State
The Lobos scored 23 fourth-quarter points, but it wasn't enough to complete a comeback bid against the Aggies, as NMSU held on for a 30-28 win.
New Mexico hadn't scored 20 plus points in a fourth quarter since Sept. 24, 2011, which coincidentally was also a loss. UNM scored 21 points in the final frame to force overtime against Sam Houston State, but eventually lost 48-45.
Despite the Lobos' dominance in the overall series, the teams have been evenly matched as of late. New Mexico holds a 70-33-5 head-to-head advantage, but the teams have split the last 10 meetings.
Boise State
Boise State entered the game in a similar situation to what the Lobos left with. Broncos quarterback Brett Rypien was ruled out due to being in the concussion protocol and backup Montrell Cozart got his first start in the 28-14 victory over UNM.
Lobos quarterback Lamar Jordan was knocked out of the game late in the second quarter, which is expected to result in the first start for Coltin Gerhart in the team's next game against Tulsa.
New Mexico threw an interception and lost a fumble in the game. It was the fourth consecutive regular season game in which the team committed at least one turnover dating back to last season — and third straight multi-turnover game.
The loss dropped the Lobos to 1-2.
New Mexico has started with a 1-2 record in each of the six seasons Davie has been leading the team. The last time UNM had a better record through three games was the 2007 season with a 2-1 start.
New Mexico will start the second quarter of its season when it squares off against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane on Sept. 23 at 11:30 a.m.
Robert Maler is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers basketball, football and tennis. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @Robert_Maler.
