LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State football team hits the road for the first time in the 2018 season taking on Big Ten challenger Minnesota on Thursday, Aug. 30, at 5 p.m. MT inside TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn.
WHERE TO WATCH
Aggie fans looking to watch the game can catch all the action live on the Big Ten Network. Lisa Byington is handling the play-by-play with James Laurinaitis serving as the analyst and Michelle McMahon down on the sidelines.
LISTEN UP!
Fans can also listen in to the game on the Aggie Sports Network with NM State Athletics/US Bank Hall of Famer
Jack Nixon on the call and Cory Lucas as the analyst. The broadcast can be heard on the flagship station, 99.5 FM KXPZ or with the TuneIn app.
Affiliates:
Alamagordo - 103.7 FM KNMZ
Albuquerque - 1150 AM KNMM
Carlsbad - 1240 AM KAMQ
El Paso - 1380 AM KHEY
Gallup - 1230 AM, 94.9 FM KYVA
Las Vegas - 107.1 FM KMDS
STAY CONNECTED
Get up to the minute information and news about the NM State football team all season on Twitter by following @NMStateFootball, on Instagram by following @NMStateFB and through Facebook.com/NMSUFootball.
GET YOUR SEASON TICKETS!
NM State football fans can purchase tickets by calling the Pan American ticket office at (575) 646-1420. Season ticket requests can also be placed by visiting the NM State athletics website or by clicking here. Season tickets can be purchased for $60.
LOOKING AT THE GOLDEN GOPHERS
Thursday's contest is the first game of the 2018 season for Minnesota, who is coming off of posting a 5-7 overall record with a 2-7 mark in conference play. The Golden Gophers bring back five offensive starters and six from the defensive side of the ball this year.
This is the third all-time meeting between NM State and Minnesota and the series is tied 1-1. Minnesota won the last meeting, 44-21, on Sept. 7, 2013 at Aggie Memorial Stadium. The Aggies picked up their first ever win over a Big Ten team with a 28-21 victory on the road against Minnesota back on Sept. 10, 2011.
Minnesota is 6-3 all-time in season-openers at TCF Bank Stadium and won head coach P.J. Fleck's debut last year 17-7 against Buffalo. The win made Fleck the school's first head coach to win his debut since John Gutekunst in 1986.
Saturday's game for the Aggies was a season opener that saw NM State and Wyoming combine for 16 penalties that totaled 117 yards, but that trend may change on Thursday. The Gophers ranked first in the nation last season in fewest penalties (39), fewest penalties per game (3.25), fewest penalty yards (340) and fewest penalty yards per game (28.33).
The talent returning for the Golden Gophers has been recognized nationally with players represented on 12 watch lists for the 2018 season. Rodney Smith is on the Maxwell Award, Doak Walker Award and the Paul Hornung Award Watch Lists. Emmit Carpenter found his name on the Lou Groza Watch List for his play on the field and he is also on the Wuerffel Trophy Watch List and is an Allstate AFCA Good Works Team nominee and Witten Award nominee for his work off of it. Thomas Barber is on the Butkus Award Watch List and the Bednarik Award Watch List after his breakout season last year. For the second straight year Jared Weyler is on the Rimington Trophy Watch List and he also earned a NFF National Scholar-Athlete nomination. For the second straight year Jacob Herbers has landed a spot on the coveted Mortell Holder of the Year Award Watch List.
With all the talent coming back, there are still a lot of new faces in Minnesota. The Gophers have 113 players on the roster this season and 60 of those players – or 53.1 percent – are either true freshmen or redshirt freshmen. That total is the highest number in college football.
FIRST OF MANY
Along with Saturday's tilt being the first game of the 2018 for the New Mexico State football team, multiple Aggie players also registered a few firsts in their career with the Crimson & White.
Junior college transfer
Matt Romero made his first start at quarterback for NM State which of course came along with his first pass completion, first passing touchdown and first rush. That passing touchdown, the only one of the game, was also the first touchdown reception for junior wide receiver
Drew Dan. Another junior college transfer,
Shea Holebrook Jr., also made his first catch as an Aggie for a six yard gain.
On defense, senior nose tackle
DeShawnte Lloyd registered his first double-digit tackle game when he recorded 10 in the opener. Former tight end
Jackson Solbeck also made his first appearance on the defensive side of the ball, which came with his first tackle as an Aggie. Freshman defensive lineman
Donavan King also made his first appearance in the Crimson & White and registered the first tackle of his Aggie career.
LAST TIME OUT
The New Mexico State football team opened up the 2018 season taking on Wyoming inside Aggie Memorial Stadium on Saturday night. Despite a defense doing all it could to keep the Aggies in the game, offensive woes plagued the team all night with the team falling behind early and never digging out of the hole falling to the Cowboys, 29-7.
After getting some time on the sidelines to regroup, junior quarterback
Matt Romero came out reenergized for the Aggies final drive of the game. NM State started deep in their own end of the field and the California native orchestrated a 10-play, 93-yard drive that culminated in a 31-yard touchdown pass to avoid the shutout. Romero finished the game going 16-for-27 for 140 yards with the score.
On the defensive side, five Aggies finished with double-digit tackle numbers. This was led by linebacker
Leon McQuaker who had a career-high 18 tackles with one for loss, followed by
Javahn Fergurson with 15,
Ron LaForce added 14,
Terrill Hanks had 11 and
DeShawnte Lloyd finished with 10.
UP NEXT
Following the matchup with Minnesota, New Mexico State stays on the road for a highly contested battle against 2017 NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl opponent Utah State. The game is slated for 6 p.m. MT on Saturday, Sept. 8 in Logan, Utah at Maverik Stadium.
