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Albuquerque Journal, N.M.
Everything you need to know as New Mexico opens Mountain West play against UTEP
- Story byAlbuquerque Journal, N.M.
- Everything you need to know as New Mexico opens Mountain West play against UTEP
Everything you need to know about New Mexico's game against UTEP, the Mountain West opener for both teams:
Who: New Mexico (3-1) vs. UTEP (1-3)
When and where: 2 p.m. Saturday at University Stadium. Because this game wasn't picked up by a major network, head coach Jason Eck was able to help decide what time it kicked off.
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"Good weather and (a) good time," he said Monday, "so (hopefully) we can get a great crowd in there."
How to watch/listen: MW+ – the Mountain West's new subscription-based streaming service – will carry UNM-UTEP with Robert Portnoy (play-by-play) and DonTrell Moore (analyst) on the call. J.J. Buck (play-by-play) and Ned James (analyst) will broadcast the game on the Lobo Radio Network (770 AM/96.3 FM).
Who's favored: UNM is listed as a 21-point favorite over UTEP, per DraftKings. The over/under is set at 48.5 points.
Top storyline(s): Yes, one of the more torrid finishes in program history nearly erased it from memory. But at least one person remembers how UNM started Mountain West play last season, Eck's maiden voyage with the program.
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In short: not very well.
"We started 0-2 in conference (play)," Eck said Monday. "So getting off to a good start and getting a win (this week), I think, is very important."
UNM will have the chance to notch its first 1-0 start to Mountain West play since 2018 against UTEP, one of the league's football newcomers. The Miners spent the last 21 years as full-time members of Conference USA before joining the Mountain West in the same capacity in July.
Led by third-year head coach Scotty Walden, UTEP has struggled against a nonconference schedule that's seen them lose 51-0 at Oklahoma, 52-17 at Michigan and 33-7 against Oregon State. The Miners' lone win came at the hands of FCS Texas Southern, a team UTEP piled up 491 yards on in a 51-10 rout.
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If the early results haven't been particularly impressive, Eck isn't putting too much stock into them.
"I think a lot of teams in our league might be 1-3 if they had their schedule," Eck said. "You certainly … can't take a team lightly based on scores with other (teams)."
UNM is also looking to keep getting improvement from its offense after a 42-18 win over New Mexico State, especially in "all aspects" of its passing game, Eck said.
"We're not turning the ball over, which I think is very good," he added. "That's something you gotta balance — like, I don't want to get to the point where we're trying to make every throw and that leads to more turnovers."
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Lobos to watch: After Eck ditched the multi-quarterback offense against the Aggies, all eyes will be on Toa Fa'avae entering Saturday. The 6-foot, 188-pound sophomore will continue to receive the bulk of UNM's practice reps with the first-team offense this week in an effort to keep speeding up his development.
One focus for Fa'avae? Making sure he takes fewer hits on the run.
"We gotta keep teaching him and going over things with that," Eck said. "It'lI be a process. I don't think he's gonna turn into Tom Brady and be perfect with his slides overnight."
Eck said he is also "hopeful" UNM can get wide receiver Massiah Mingo back. The 5-foot-9, 170-pound freshman has missed the last three games with an ankle injury.
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"We're expecting him to practice fully (Tuesday) and he needs a good week of practice just to get back in the speed of things," Eck added.
Miners to watch: Starting linebacker and former Lobo Jayden Wilson has made 30 total tackles through four games, the third-best mark among the Miners. Eck said he tried to retain the 6-1, 223-pound senior upon being hired at UNM, only for Wilson to end up committing to his hometown team.
Is there any bad blood between Wilson and his old school? Not in the slightest.
"I've joked with my teammates, like, I think that's just another home game added to my schedule," he said at Mountain West Media Days in July. "It means a lot (to come back). I'm excited — I love the people of Albuquerque and I love the environment. There's no hate there whatsoever."
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Incarnate Word transfer quarterback E.J. Colson has also done some nice things for the Miners, completing 43 of 65 passes for 496 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions. His 66.2% completion percentage is the third-best in the Mountain West; only Northern Illinois' Taron Dickens (70%) and North Dakota State's Nathan Hayes (67%) have completed passes at a higher rate.
Colson has also rushed for 69 yards on 59 carries. Expect him to try and make some plays with his legs come Saturday.
What happened the last time these teams played: UNM quarterback Miles Kendrick passed for only 111 yards, but the Lobos forced seven turnovers en route to a 27-10 win over the Miners on Sept. 17, 2022. That victory was UNM's last of the year, the start of a 10-game winless streak that bled into September 2023.
(Things are a little different now.)
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Now, the last time UNM and UTEP met as conference rivals? That was Oct. 10, 1998, a 22-19 shocker that saw Lobo place-kicker Mike Ross miss two game-tying field goals and fall to 1-1 in Western Athletic Conference (WAC) play.
From 1968 to 1998, UNM and UTEP played every year in the WAC. The Lobos lead the all-time series 44-33-3.
Sean Reider covers college football and other sports for the Journal. You can reach him at sreider@abqjournal.com or via X at @lenaweereider.
