LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Following a bye week, the Aggies will return home to host the 116^th edition of the Rio Grande Rivalry as they welcome in-state rival New Mexico to Aggie Memorial Stadium on Saturday. NM State is looking to move to 2-0 at home on the season as they take on the Lobos in what will be its final non-conference matchup of the year.
 
GAME FOUR
Who: NM State (1-2, 0-0 CUSA) vs. New Mexico (2-1, 0-0 MW)
Where: Las Cruces, N.M. – Aggie Memorial Stadium (28,853)
When: Saturday, September 26, 2026 – 1:30 p.m. MT
 
HOW TO FOLLOW
Watch: CBS Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Alex del Barrio
Analyst: Randy Cross

Radio: 99.5 FM KXPZ / TuneIn App
Play-by-Play: MJ Newsom
Color Analyst: Danny Knee


Spanish Radio: 96.7 FM La Equis
Play-by-Play: Darien Salayandia
Color Analyst: Jose Aragon

Live Stats: NMStateSports.com/Stats
 
LAST TIME OUT: NM STATE 19, HAWAII 29
NM State erased an early 16-point deficit and battled back to tie the game in the second half, but Hawaii pulled away late for a 29-19 victory in Honolulu.
 
The Aggies outgained the Rainbow Warriors on the ground, 124-67, and saw touchdowns from James Jones, TK King and a De'Marcus Peters 84-yard fumble return. Trailing just 22-19 entering the fourth quarter, NM State was unable to convert a key fourth down before Hawaii sealed the game with a touchdown on fourth-and-goal with less than six minutes remaining.
 
In the loss, the Aggies were led offensively by James Jones, who finished with 78 rushing yards and a touchdown on 13 carries. Defensively, Nick Session paced the Aggies with seven tackles, including one tackle for loss. Session's tackle for loss was one of seven tackles behind the line of scrimmage to mark the most since Oct. 22, 2025.
 
THE 116th RIO GRANDE RIVALRY
Saturday marks the 116th all-time playing of the storied rivalry between the Aggies and Lobos. In total, NM State has collected 35 victories with its most recent win coming in 2023 when Albuquerque native Diego Pavia guided the Aggies to a 27-17 road win. NM State last beat the Lobos in Las Cruces in 2022 amid the first year under Head Coach Jerry Kill.
 
While NM State trails in the all-time series, the rivalry has been much more competitive in recent years as the Aggies hold a 2-2 record since 2022 and a 4-5 record since 2016.
 
Aside from not playing during a 2020 season that was impacted by COVID-19, the Rio Grande Rivalry has been played every year since 1946.
 
Rio Grande Rivalry Superlatives:
NM State Largest Margin of Victory
107 points, 1917 (NM State 110, New Mexico 3)
 
NM State Largest Margin of Victory in Las Cruces
107 points, 1917 (NM State 110, New Mexico 3)
 
NM State Smallest Margin of Victory
1 point, 3x, last in 2016 (NM State 32, New Mexico 31)
 
NM State Smallest Margin of Victory in Las Cruces
1 point, 3x, last in 2016 (NM State 32, New Mexico 31)
 
EXPERIENCING THE RIVALRY                                  
While the Rio Grande Rivalry has been a yearly fixture for decades, with the current landscape of college athletics, just a small group of players on either side have significant experience with the rivalry. For the Aggies, only Josiah Charles, Nick Session, Sone Aupiu, Gabe Peterson, Isaiah Rudison and Henry Davis III have played against the Lobos multiple times with Gabe Peterson representing the only Aggie to have played in the rivalry bout three or more times during his career. Additionally, Peterson and Aupiu are the only Aggies on this year's Aggie roster to have been on the winning side of the Rio Grande Rivalry.
 
While those on the field don't have extensive experience with the rivalry, Head Coach Tony Sanchez has been a part of his fair share of Rio Grande Rivalry games. Sanchez twice competed against the Lobos as a player (1994-95) and has now been a part of this rivalry matchup five times (1996, 2022-25).
 
MOVE THE STICKS                                           
Through three games, the Aggie offense has been one of the best in the country at converting on third down. Currently, NM State is converting on third down at a 52.5% clip to rank first in the conference and 17th in the nation. With this, the Aggies are one of just 31 teams in the country converting 50% of the time or more.
 
RESTRICTING THE RUSH                           
In the last two games, the Aggie defense has limited its opponents to just 137 combined rushing yards with Mercyhurst rushing for 70 yards and Hawaii earning 67 yards on the ground. This marked the first time since the 2022 season that the Aggie defense allowed fewer than 75 rushing yards in back-to-back outings as they did so in the final two games of the season in 2022.
 
PUSHING IT DOWN THE FIELD                               
Fueled by Trey Hedden, the Aggies currently rank 21st in the nation in passing yards per completion, averaging 14.3 yards per reception.
 
This is supported by TK King and AJ Williams III who are each averaging over 15 yards per catch, while also being the top two Aggies in total receptions this season. King currently has 14 receptions for 239 yards to average 17.1 yards per catch while Williams III ranks second on the team with eight catches for 135 yards for an average of 16.9 yards per reception.
 
TALLYING TAKEAWAYS                              
The NM State defense currently holds the nation's longest streak of games with a forced turnover, doing so in 19 consecutive outings going back to the 2024 campaign. During this stretch, the Aggies have recorded an interception in 14 of the 19 contests.
 
After finishing 14th in the nation in turnovers forced in 2025, the Aggie defense has continued to produce takeaways. Against Hawaii, De'Marcus Peters scooped up a fumble and returned it 84 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter to extend the streak.
 
SPREAD THE LOVE                                          
Entering the fourth game of the year, a total of five different Aggies have caught passes for touchdowns this season as TK King (2), AJ Williams III (1), Brodie Malone-Bradford (1), James Jones (1) and Terrione Graves (1) have all notched receiving touchdowns.
 
Similarly, a total of 13 different Aggies have caught at least one pass this season, including five different players with five or more receptions as King, Williams III, Malone-Bradford, Josiah Thomas and TJ Pride have each caught at least a handful of catches thus far.
 
GOING THE OTHER WAY          
Peters' scoop and score at Hawaii marked the Aggies' second defensive touchdown of the young season after Nick Session recorded a pick-six against Mercyhurst earlier in the year. With this, NM State is one of just nine FBS teams in the nation with two defensive touchdowns this year.
 
OFFENSIVE OUTBURST                               
Thanks to a second half surge against Mercyhurst that saw the Aggies outscore the Lakers 28-0 across the third and fourth quarters, NM State put forth its first 50-point effort since it scored 58 points against Western Illinois on Sept. 2, 2023. Additionally, the Aggie offense amassed 553 total yards against Mercyhurst, its highest single-game total since recording 650 yards on the same night they scored 58 against the Leathernecks.
 
The performance against Mercyhurst included 236 yards on the ground to mark the Aggies' most rushing yards in a single game since it recorded 331 yards against Western Kentucky on Nov. 9, 2024.
 
JAMES JONES LEADS THE WAY             
Through his first three games as an Aggie, running back James Jones has recorded a team-best 243 rushing yards on 43 carries to average 5.7 yards per carry. With 81.0 rushing yards per game, Jones currently paces all Conference USA rushers and ranks 41st in the nation.
 
In his last two games, Jones has totaled 215 rushing yards on 32 carries, including running for 137 yards and one touchdown against Mercyhurst. This total marked the second-highest single-game rushing total of his collegiate career.
 
Jones' output against the Lakers was also the most rushing yards by an Aggie running back since Mike Washington broke out for 153 yards on Nov. 9, 2024, against Western Kentucky.
 
Jones is familiar with big days in the backfield as he went over the 100-yard mark six times last season as a member of Delaware State. Dating back to his time with the Hornets, Jones has now rushed for 100-plus yards in four of his last seven games. Across his collegiate career, Jones has now rushed for 100-plus yards a total of 11 times, including four times at Garden City CC, six times at Delaware State and once with the Aggies.
 
As a junior at Delaware State, Jones compiled 958 rushing yards on just 98 carries to post an average of 9.8 yards per carry and 87.1 yards per game.
 
KING OF THE GRIDIRON                             
After recording 41 catches for 588 yards to introduce himself to Aggie fans in 2025, TK King is off to a strong start to his final collegiate season.
 
Through three games in 2026, King paces all Aggie wideouts in receptions (14), receiving yards (239) and receiving touchdowns (2). His 79.7 receiving yards per game ranks fifth among all CUSA wideouts and ranks 43rd in the nation.
 
With 67 receiving yards against Hawaii, King now has 543 yards in his last six games with the Aggies, giving him an average of 90.5 receiving yards per game during this stretch.
 
CUSA PLAYERS OF THE WEEK                                 
Several Aggies have already produced standout performances this season as NM State has garnered a total of five Conference USA Player of the Week awards.
 
This includes recognition for Trey Hedden (offense), Gabe Peterson (defense), Nick Session (defense), Ma'Kyi Lee (offensive lineman) and Carson Su'esu'e (freshman).
 
WHERE TO WATCH THE AGGIES         
After just three of the Aggies' 12 games were featured on national networks in 2025, the Aggies will find themselves in the national spotlight six times this season. This year, NM State is slated to play three games on ESPN2, two games on CBS Sports Network and one game on The CW.
 
Week 4 marks the second time this season that the Aggies will play on national television as Alex del Barrio (PxP) and Randy Cross (Analyst) will be on the call for CBS Sports Network.
 
WHERE TO LISTEN TO THE AGGIES  
Once again, all games this season will air live on 99.5 FM KXPZ for those in Las Cruces and the surrounding areas. Additionally, all home games will be available in Spanish on 96.7 FM La Equis with the call provided by Darien Salayandia (play-by-play) and Jose Aragon (analyst). Radio broadcasts for all Aggie games will also be available to listen to nationwide via the TuneIn App. Radio play-by-play for Saturday's game will be provided by MJ Newsome, with analysis provided by Danny Knee.
 
ON THIS DATE IN AGGIE HISTORY     
In their history, the Aggies have played 16 times on September 26. The last time NM State competed on this date was also against New Mexico as the 2009 playing of the Rio Grande Rivalry came on September 26 in Albuquerque. In this matchup, NM State emerged with a 20-17 victory as Seth Smith rushed for 113 yards.
 
On this date, the Aggies hold a 9-7 record. This will mark the ninth time the Aggies play at home on September 26.
 
For complete coverage of the NM State football program, visit NMStateSports.com - the official home of Aggie athletics - and follow the Aggies on Facebook (NM State Football), Twitter (@NMStateFootball) and Instagram (@NMStateFB).