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Bob Davie wasn’t angry or disappointed after the New Mexico football team’s 45-10 loss to Utah State on Saturday at University Stadium — he was humbled by the experience.
UNM’s second-year head coach said he thought the Aggies exposed how immature the Lobos are.
“It was humbling — give them a lot of credit,” he said. “The immaturity of our team showed big time both physically and just from a performance stand point. We got overwhelmed.”
As a team, the Lobos rushed for a season-low 160 yards on 43 attempts for a putrid 3.7 yards per attempt. The Aggies came into the game with the No. 1 rush defense in the Mountain West Conference, allowing just 129.1 yards per game.
The Aggies controlled the line of scrimmage and the Lobos were unable to find a rhythm on offense, finishing with just 300 yards of total offense.
“They were so much more powerful than us,” Davie said. “They played four-man front on us. They covered those guards and they played us like I would play us. They kind of engulfed us in there. We had a hard time running the ball.”
The loss also severely hampers the Lobos’ (2-5, 0-3 Mountain West Conference) chances for a bowl berth. UNM would have to win four of its five remaining games to secure a bowl bid. A team must have six victories or more to be eligible for a bowl game.
The Lobos’ last bowl appearance was in 2007, when UNM beat Nevada 23-0 in the New Mexico Bowl.
“We have five more games and we need four more wins to get to a bowl game,” senior linebacker Dallas Bollema said. “The expectations for the seniors are high. This is the second half of the season for us and we’re definitely not taking it lightly.”
USU (4-4, 3-1 MWC) dominated UNM from the start by taking a 17-0 lead in the first quarter. On the Lobos’ first possession, quarterback Clayton Mitchem fumbled on third down and the ball was recovered by the Aggies’ Connor Williams. The Aggies scored on the ensuing play thanks to an 8-yard touchdown run from running back Joey DeMartino.
DeMartino then gave the Aggies a 14-0 lead when he caught a 21-yard score from freshman quarterback Darell Garretson.
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After the teams traded field goals, USU increased its lead to 21 in the second quarter when DeMartino rushed for 72 yards in two plays. A 32-yard touchdown capped the drive.
“I thought we would execute better,” senior running back Kasey Carrier said. “We had a mistake getting the ball for the first time and everything from there went kind of downhill.”
Uncharacteristically, the Lobos’ special teams — a group that had been consistent all year long — struggled versus the Aggies.
UNM’s first special teams mishap occurred at the end of the second quarter when Utah’s Bruce Natson returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown, giving USU a 31-3 lead at halftime.
At the start of the third quarter, DeMartino scored his fourth touchdown of the night: a 38-yard run for a 38-3 lead over UNM.
DeMartino finished with 153 rushing yards on 12 attempts along with three receptions for 31 yards.
The Lobos’ second special teams blunder happened in the fourth quarter. USU punter Jaron Bentrude scampered 72 yards down the sideline for a touchdown to take a 45-3 lead.
No UNM players on punt return realized Bentrude had taken off until he had gone about 40 yards.
“The thing that’s been solid for us was special teams,” Davie said. “The immaturity showed.”
Carrier, who moved into fifth place in UNM’s all-time rushing list, tacked on a touchdown on a 2-yard run, cutting USU’s lead to 35 points with 6:21 left in the fourth.
USU finished the night with 492 yards of total offense (337 rushing yards, 155 passing yards). In his first career start, Garretson completed 15 of 23 passes for 144 yards and one touchdown.
Quarterbacks Clayton Mitchem, Cole Gautsche and David Vega combined to throw for 140 yards, completing 11 of 20 passes.
