It will be no easy test, University of New Mexico head football coach Bob Davie said, when his Lobo team hosts the Liberty Flames on Saturday for its homecoming game.
Liberty, an independent FBS program, is coming off of a loss to North Texas, in which it was routed 47-7 at home. Prior to that the Flames lost on the road to Army, but won their season opener over Old Dominion, 52-10.
It was Liberty’s dominating victory to start the season that impressed Davie, especially because Old Dominion recently defeated a much bigger program in Virginia Tech. Last year, Liberty went into Waco, Texas and defeated Baylor on the road in its season opener.
“This starts Mountain West Conference play to me, because this is absolutely a Mountain West Conference team,” Davie said regarding the message he delivered to his players in preparing for the game. “(They’re) coming in here with a really good quarterback and really good receivers — and the confidence that they know what it takes to win big games.”
The Lobos (2-1) are coming off of a 42-25 win over in-state rival New Mexico State nearly two weeks ago before entering a bye week which probably helped the team address some health concerns.
It was the first time the Lobos defeated the Aggies in two years — and they did so without their starting quarterback, redshirt sophomore Tevaka Tuioti, who missed that game after he sustained a concussion against Wisconsin the week prior. It was Tuioti’s second concussion stemming back to last season.
However, on Wednesday, Davie said that Tuioti will get the start against Liberty.
“You know, I’m not sure yet,” Tuioti said when asked if past injuries and being sidelined has given him better experience to lead the charge on offense for New Mexico. “That’s for you guys to tell when the game comes.”
Junior transfer Sheriron Jones, in his first start for the Lobos, had his first pass of the game intercepted and returned for a touchdown by the NMSU defense. But after falling behind 14-0 to start the game and 17-7 after one quarter, Jones and his UNM offense were able to outscore the Aggies 35-8 the remainder of the game. Jones finished with 127 yards, no touchdowns and one interception.
The comeback was due in large part to the Lobos’ defense, which had five interceptions on the night, which led to 21 points. It was the most picks in a single game by a UNM defense in more than a decade.
It was also UNM’s running game that played a key role in the victory. Redshirt senior running back Tyrone Owens rushed for a game-high 110 yards and a touchdown, while junior running back Ahmari Davis had four rushing touchdowns on 74 yards.
In UNM, Liberty will be facing a Mountain West program for the first time in its existence. Junior quarterback Stephen Calvert is at the helm of the Flames’ offense. In three games this season, he has thrown for 874 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions.
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Calvert has been a starter for Liberty since his freshman year, starting in 21 games since October 2016.
“He is as good as most quarterbacks we’re gonna play — I mean that,” Davie said of Calvert. “He is a really good player, No. 12.”
Kickoff for UNM’s homecoming game is at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 29. The game will not be televised, but can be heard on the radio on 95.9 FM locally in Albuquerque.
Matthew Narvaiz is a sports beat reporter and senior writer for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers football and also contributes content for other sports. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @matt_narvaiz.
