New Mexico football had more turnovers that it did points on Saturday evening, getting thoroughly dominated by Wyoming in an embarrassing road loss.
The Lobos (3-5, 1-4 MW) finally got on the board early in the fourth quarter with a Jason Sanders field goal, but all it did was prevent the team from getting shut out for the second consecutive time on the road.
The University of New Mexico committed seven turnovers in the game, and the Cowboys cashed in on almost all of them, scoring five touchdowns off takeaways on the way to a 42-3 slaughter in Laramie, Wyoming.
It is probably fair criticism to suggest New Mexico lacks an identity as a team. And even though nothing seemed to be clicking on offense, the apparent shift in philosophy to pass the ball more frequently is not paying dividends.
“We thought we would have to throw it around to win, but we’re past the point now of trying to be something we’re not,” UNM head coach Bob Davie said in a release. “I think we’re done with that now — we’re not going to let this happen again.”
New Mexico had plenty of success in the ground attack last year against Wyoming but passed the ball 25 times for a meager 69 yards this time around — and going to the air backfired for the Lobos consistently throughout the night.
The first quarter was relatively uneventful until quarterback Lamar Jordan threw an interception that Wyoming nearly returned for a touchdown. Quarterback Josh Allen rushed for a 1-yard touchdown run for the first score, near the end of the quarter, to put the Cowboys up 7-0.
Rushing the ball wasn’t particularly effective for New Mexico either, as the team ran the ball for less than three yards per carry. And the inability to sustain a drive finally started to catch up to UNM.
In the second quarter, the wheels fell off for New Mexico as the Cowboys put up 35 points in the frame, with everything seemingly going their way.
A Tevaka Tuioti interception early in the second quarter set up a short field for Wyoming. The Lobos had a chance to limit the damage to a field goal, but Allen connected with Austin Fort on third down for a 4-yard touchdown to go on top 14-0.
Wyoming recovered a fumble on a punt return and scored another touchdown two plays later for a 21-0 advantage, and the Lobos looked shell-shocked.
The Cowboys weren’t done though, as they drove the length of the field for another score and tacked on another touchdown following a Lobo interception to snag a 35-0 lead.
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With the Lobos trying to sustain a drive and pick up some points before halftime, Tuioti threw his third interception of the quarter. If it hadn’t already landed, Wyoming went for the knockout blow as Allen aired it out and found C.J. Johnson for a 38-yard touchdown pass, making the score 42-0 heading into halftime.
Davie said he had never seen a first half unfold quite like that, and it was a pretty tough situation to be in, sitting in the locker room.
“It was a numb feeling, and that was the challenge at halftime,” the head coach said. “Everyone is wondering what just happened, and you realize you have to go play another 30 minutes of football.”
The defense seemed to play well overall, particularly in the second half — although Wyoming may have let off the gas with the game as well in hand at that point.
Allen ended the game with 234 passing yards and four touchdown tosses but benefitted greatly from good field position following the plentiful Lobo turnovers.
Although New Mexico can still mathematically earn a postseason berth, the odds will be very much against it.
UNM will try to get back on track at home on Nov. 11 when it hosts Utah State at 3:30 p.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.
