ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – All week long, the expression heard around Las Cruces has been "Beat the Lobos." On Saturday night,
Jerry Kill did exactly that as he led the Aggies to their second win in as many years over its in-state rival.
NM State (2-2, 0-1 CUSA) made the 200-mile trip north and took down New Mexico (1-2, 0-0 MW) on its home turf – defeating the Lobos 27-17 on a warm Saturday night at University Stadium.
Offensively, the Aggies were led by the duo of
Diego Pavia and
Jonathan Brady who connected for two of the Aggies' three touchdowns on the night. In total, Albuquerque native
Diego Pavia threw for 203 yards and two touchdowns while adding another 95 yards with his feet. Meanwhile, Brady caught just three passes on the night, but finished with a team-best 109 yards, including a 75-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter.
Keyshaun Elliott was the star of the night on the Aggie defense as he tallied a career-high 10 tackles, including two in the Lobos backfield. Elliott was also assisted by
Myles Rowser who had a breakout performance that included seven total tackles and a forced fumble.
As a team, the Aggies were outgained by the Lobos by a mere four yards (397-401), however, the Aggies ran only 45 total plays while UNM was on the offensive side of the ball for 71 plays.
FIRST HALF
The animosity between the two sides could be felt even before the kickoff as the captains did not exchange handshakes to open the rivalry bout.
New Mexico came out firing on the first play of the game as it took aim at a home run play, however, the Aggie secondary was up to the task as
Myles Rowser and
Andre Seldon were with the Lobo receiver stride for stride. Eventually, the Lobos worked the ball to the Aggie three-yard line, however, NM State's defense dug its heels into the ground to hold the Lobos to a field goal.
Unlike the home side, the Aggies' first drive would not end by putting points on the board. Instead, the Aggies opening possession of the game resulted in a three-and-out – giving the ball right back to UNM. New Mexico then quickly drove down the field to set up a second scoring opportunity. The Lobos drove the ball all the way to the 10 yard line before sophomore safety
Myles Rowser put the screws of his helmet directly on the ball to force the first and only turnover of the game.
The early momentum swing proved to be important for the Aggies as they used 10 plays to go 88 yards in just over five minutes to score the game's first touchdown. On a second-and-7 late in the drive,
Diego Pavia found a wide open Ron Tiaavasue who sprinted 10 yards to complete the 28-yard play and set the Aggies up at the Lobo two yard line. One play later,
Star Thomas punched in the Aggie touchdown and, with a successful PAT, the Aggies found themselves with a 7-3 lead early in the second period.
New Mexico's next drive flipped the lead once more as the Lobos benefitted from a trio of plays which went for 10 yards or more, including a 41-yard reception for Luke Wysong. With the ball set up on the Aggie one yard line, Jacory Croskey-Merritt pushed his way through the Aggie defensive line to put the Lobos ahead 10-7.
The scoring trend continued as the Aggies pulled out another three points on their next drive after a 66-yard drive stalled at the UNM 13 yard line – leaving
Ethan Albertson a 26-yard field goal attempt which he was able to convert to pull the Aggies even with the Lobos.
After forcing a three-and-out, the Aggies' offense got right back to work except this time it took just five plays and resulted in seven points. The quick drive was capped off by a 31-yard touchdown pass from
Diego Pavia who found a wide open
Jonathan Brady in the front of the end zone. This would give the Aggies a 17-10 lead – a score that would carry into the break.
SECOND HALF
Just as they did in the first half, the opening drive of the period was not exactly what offensive coordinator
Tim Beck had planned as they ran just three plays and gained only five yards before punting the ball to the Lobos. Fortunately, the Aggie defense did their part as they allowed the UNM offense to gain just 10 yards before the Lobo punter came out onto the field.
NM State then began the second-half scoring as it went on its longest drive of the day – running 12 plays while gaining 61 yards and taking eight minutes and eight seconds off the clock. While the drive was extensive, it only resulted in three points as
Ethan Albertson connected on his second field goal of the night and knocked in his longest of the season to put NM State ahead 20-10.
With the Lobos needing at least two possessions to catch the Aggies, they managed to form one of their best drives of the night as an 11-play, 75-yard drive resulted in a touchdown to bring the Lobo crowd to their feet and inject some hope into those wearing cherry.
That hope was then eliminated on the very first play of the next Aggie drive as
Diego Pavia found an open
Jonathan Brady who used his track speed to run away from defenders on his way to scoring a 75-yard touchdown. This electric touchdown gave the Aggies a 27-17 lead that they went on to turn into a victory.
##NM State##
