It was going to take more than a little rain and lightning to stop the Lobos from achieving the win that would make them bowl-eligible for the second year in a row.
New Mexico took a 35-26 win over the Nevada Wolf Pack on Saturday night. Or, more accurately, Sunday morning, as the team began heading back into the locker room at 1:10 a.m.
With the victory, the Lobos are now 6-3 overall, 4-1 in Mountain West Conference play. They are also on a four-game winning streak for the first time since 2004. New Mexico is tied for second place in the conference with Boise State, just one game behind the first place team, Wyoming.
“Where do you start? It feels like the first half (of the game) was yesterday,” head coach Bob Davie said with a smile.
“It was,” someone responded at the postgame press conference.
The Lobos got on the scoreboard with 9:45 on the clock after a 3-yard touchdown rush from Richard McQuarley on the team’s opening drive, followed by a Jason Sanders extra point to go up 7-0.
The Lobos were in good shape to put more points on the board after senior safety Ryan Santos’ first career interception, but Nevada’s Elijah Mitchell intercepted Lamar Jordan’s third-down pass in the endzone. The Lobos finished the first quarter with a 7-0 lead.
The Wolfpack didn’t wait long to get on the board in the second quarter. James Butler scored on a 9-yard touchdown pass with 13:36 remaining. Spencer Pettit added the PAT to tie things up at 7-7.
Nevada’s Gangi threw a 12-yard pass to Wyatt Demps later in the quarter after another Lobo turnover to go ahead 14-7 at the 6:13 mark.
Tyrone Owens helped the Lobos get back on track with a 25-yard rushing touchdown with 2:17 left on the clock.
The kick that followed was between the posts, but there was a 5-yard penalty on Charlie Grammel after an illegal formation. Sanders still made the re-kick to help New Mexico tie 14-14.
At halftime, the Lobos held a 250-96 advantage in rushing yards, though Nevada passed for 120 yards, while holding New Mexico to just four.
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Nevada also benefited from scoring 14 points off two Lobo turnovers, while New Mexico did not cash in on the Wolfpack’s lone turnover.
Halftime was longer than usual. Rain and lightning surrounded University Stadium, creating a weather delay that lasted nearly two hours. The official attendance announced at 8:26 p.m. was 17,290.
But when the teams took the field for the third quarter, that number had dwindled down to several hundred.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for the people that came back in and stuck around,” said linebacker Dakota Cox.
With 5:50 left in the third quarter, the Lobos regained the lead on a 4-yard quarterback keeper by Jordan.
New Mexico scored again with 1:16 on the clock. Emmanuel Harris recorded his first career touchdown thanks to a 44-yard touchdown pass by Austin Apodaca, and the team enjoyed a 28-14 lead at the end of the quarter.
The fourth quarter began with a Nevada touchdown. Gangi sent a 19-yard pass to Brandon Scott with 13:19 left on the clock. On the extra point, Pettit was flagged for a false start. The penalty proved costly as the subsequent try was blocked by Santos, leaving the score at 20-28.
Less than two minutes later, the Wolfpack got six more points when wide receiver Ahki Muhammad caught a 57-yard pass from Gangi. The two-point conversion failed and the score remained 28-26.
A 4-yard touchdown run by Apodaca with 2:54 remaining, and a successful kick by Sanders, gave the Lobos a nine-point lead, at 35-26, which ended up being the final score.
Apodaca said getting four wins in a row gave him and his team a sense of confidence. However, he knows it’s crucial to remain focused on the remaining schedule.
“We don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves because we still have a long way to go this season,” he said. “We have three tough games left. But we'll enjoy this win and get back to it on Tuesday.”
Davie said this victory helped him and his team build some of the momentum they’ll need for the upcoming Utah State and Colorado State road games, which he admitted won’t be easy challenges. For now, the coach said he can see the program is heading in the right direction.
“We're still building. We aren't there, but there is some fight and there is some pride,” he said.
The Lobos’ next test will come Saturday at 8:15 p.m. when they hit the road to face Utah State. A win would give New Mexico its seventh victory of the year for the second season in a row, and five straight wins this season.
Isabel Gonzalez is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. She mainly covers men’s soccer and basketball. She can be reached at sports @dailylobo.com or on Twitter @cisabelg.
