Football | Tuesday 10/25/2016

LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State football team heads to College Station, Texas, this Saturday, Oct. 29, for a showdown with No. 9/10 Texas A&M in Kyle Field at 5:30 p.m. (MT) on ESPNU. Anish Shroff will have the call for the nationally televised game while former Texas cornerback Ahmad Brooks serves as the analyst.
 
Aggie fans can also listen to NM State Athletics/US Bank Hall of Famer Jack Nixon and former NM State football player, Preston Williams, on the Aggies' flagship station 99.5 FM KXPZ or listen to the game live with their mobile or tablet device on the TuneIn app for free.
   
WHERE TO WATCH
With Saturday's game set to kick off in front of a nationally televised audience, NM State fans can catch the game on ESPNU through the following cable providers…
 
DirecTV | 208
DISH | 141
Comcast/XFINITY | HD: 815, SD: 266
Time Warner Cable | 370
 
AGGIELAND BATTLE
New Mexico State and No. 9/10 Texas A&M will take the field against one another for the first time in program history. The last time NM State faced a ranked opponent was last season when the Aggies squared off with No. 13 Ole Miss at the Grove. The Aggies last faced a top-10 opponent back on Oct. 1, 2010, when they hosted the third-ranked Broncos of Boise State in Aggie Memorial Stadium.
 
Texas A&M had won six-straight games to start the 2016 season until its 33-14 loss to top-ranked Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Ala., last weekend. On the year, the other Aggies are 3-1 when playing against ranked opponents and 3-0 this season when playing at Kyle Field and haven't lost at home since Nov. 7 of last season against Auburn.
 
As a team Texas A&M is averaging 6.3 yards per carry and 251.4 yards per game on the ground. Trevor Knight has led the attack through the air with 6.6 yards per pass and 245 yards per game. Knight has also accounted for 20 of Texas A&M's 30 touchdowns this season. The senior QB has thrown for 11 touchdowns and has scored another nine with his legs. Meanwhile, Trayveon Williams paces the Texas A&M run-game with 727 yards on the ground to go with five TDs for 103.9 yards per game.
 
The dual threat of Christian Kirk (58.6 ypg) and Josh Reynolds (73.6 ypg) downfield leads the Texas A&M receiving corp. with five TD catches apiece for a combined total of 925 receiving yards. The two have been targeted 56-percent of the time with Kirk getting 49 catches to Reynolds' 27. Speedy Noil is the other lone receiver for Texas A&M to register a touchdown.
 
On the other side of the ball, defensive back Justin Evans has accounted for four of Texas A&M's nine interceptions this season while Armani Watts checks in with two picks on the year. Shaan Washington leads all players with 56 tackles while Evans is a close second with 52 tackles on the year. Washington also has 5.0 tackles for loss this season to go with his 2.0 sacks and two forced fumbles. As a team, the Aggies have sacked opposing quarterbacks 23 times for a loss of 167 yards while its 70 tackles for loss have resulted in opposing teams going back 288 yards.
 
CAREER WATCH

• Tyler Rogers (37) needs to throw three more touchdowns to pass K.C. Enzminger (1998-01, 39) for fifth all-time in passing touchdowns.
• Rogers (5,671) also needs just 10 passing yards to leap ahead of Joe Pisarcik (1971-73, 5,770) for third all-time in passing yards.
• Rogers (43) can move into fifth-place in touchdowns responsible for at NM State if he logs two this Saturday to pass both Buck Pierce (2001-04, 44) and Charley Johnson (1958-60, 43).
• Larry Rose III (3,575) just needs 20 all-purpose yards on Saturday to pass Kim Locklin (1981-84, 3,594) for seventh on the all-time list.
• Sitting at 162 career-points scored, Rose III needs a touchdown on Saturday to crack the top-10 in scoring.

 
IN THE NATION
Through six games in 2016, several players as well as the team rank in the top-25 nationally amongst Football Subdivision Teams. The Aggies as a team rank No. 18 national in fourth-down conversions, completing 6-of-9 (.667) attempts this season. The two defensive touchdowns for NM State are also good for 15th in the country while its 300.4 passing yards per game is good for 22nd in the nation.
 
Senior linebacker Rodney Butler still leads the nation in total tackles with 102 (14.6/game). Fellow linebackers Dalton Herrington (62) and Terrill Hanks (58) checks in at 43rd and 62nd, respectively, in the country. The three Aggies also claim the top-10 spots in the Sun Belt Conference, checking in at Nos. 1, 5 and 10. In the solo tackles department, Butler sits in 10th with 43 (6.1/game). The two forced fumbles for Butler and Hanks also places them in 43rd-place amongst FBS players.
 
Offensively, Tyler Rogers is ranked No. 23 in the country with 286.9 passing yards per game while his total of 2,008 has him sitting at No. 22. His 22.14 completions per game is good for 21st in the country and third in the SBC. Tyrian Taylor's 21.71 yards per reception is good for first in the Sun Belt and ninth in the country.
 
Freshman Peyton Theisler sits at No. 39 in the country after averaging 42.6 yards per punt through seven games.
 
AROUND THE BELT
Entering this weekend, NM State leads the conference in passing offense with 300.4 yards through the air per game. Its 25.9 points per game is good for third-best in the conference trailing league leader Troy, 37.6, while its 435.7 yards of total offense is just behind the Trojans (481.6).
 
Tyler Rogers continues to lead the Sun Belt in total offense with 320.3 yards per game while his 286.9 passing yards per game also leads the league.
 
On the defensive end, NM State has three represented in the league's top-10 tacklers list in Rodney Butler (No. 1), Dalton Herrington (No. 5) and Terrill Hanks (No. 10). The two forced fumbles for Butler and Hanks have them tied for fifth in the SBC.
 
LAST TIME OUT
NM State took a 9-6 lead into the break last Saturday over Georgia Southern but wasn't able to hang onto its lead as the Aggies gave up nine points on turnovers in the second half and fell 22-19 at home.
 
The Eagles went up early thanks to a pair of field goals, but Tyler Rogers found a wide open OJ Clark on NM State's third drive of the game to knot things up at six. The Aggies would take a 9-6 lead into the break thanks to a 41-yard field goal by Parker Davidson and then a 12-6 lead to start the second half. However, misplays by the Aggies on special teams led to 16 unanswered points by Georgia Southern.
 
Rogers was able to find Johnathan Boone on a 32-yard bomb with 1:19 remaining to cut the Eagles' lead to 22-19, but it was too little too late as NM State saw its undefeated run at home snapped.
 
MOVIN' ON UP

• After last week's game, Tyler Rogers (37) moved into sixth all-time in passing touchdowns – leaping him past Jamie McAlister (1979-82, 36).
• His two TD passes last week also saw him move into a tie for sixth all-time in the total touchdowns category with Charley Johnson (1958-60, 43).

• Larry Rose III's 81 yards last game saw him jump past James "Preacher" Pilot (1961-63, 2,971) in the all-time rushing list and now sits at 3,034 career rushing yards.

 
UP NEXT
The Aggies will get a bye week after its showdown with Texas A&M before heading to Jonesboro, Ark., to face Arkansas State on Nov. 12.