The University of New Mexico football team takes on the University of Utah in a pig-skin classic that features two hard-hitting teams fighting for their post-season lives Saturday.
The Lobos are 3-5 overall and 1-1 in the Mountain West Conference this year. They need to win four of their last five games to be bowl eligible at the end of the year. The Utes are in a similar situation at 2-5 and 0-3 in the MWC. They're coming off five straight losses and need to win their last four games to have a shot at a bowl game.
Reports coming out of Utah have stated that Utah Head coach Ron McBride is in jeopardy of losing his job if his team cannot turn it around down the final stretch of the season. That is a motivation the Utes will surely be using to come out strong on Saturday.
"Supposedly, they're fighting for their coach's job and they really like Coach McBride," said Head coach Rocky Long.
Utah has beaten the Lobos in six of their last seven meetings. The Utes played well last week in a 28-20 loss to conference powerhouse Colorado State University. The loss was especially tough considering Utah outgained CSU 481 to 252 but was plagued by several crucial turnovers.
Utah players to watch for include newly inserted quarterback Brett Elliot, who has completed 49 of 91 passes for 537 yards, including two touchdowns and five interceptions, since taking over the starting role.
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"They've been much better on offense since he's been the quarterback," Long said of Elliot. "He's made some inexperienced mistakes with interceptions but they've thrown the ball a lot better. They've scored more points, they've gained more yards, everything is clicking a lot better with him at quarterback."
The Lobos will also have to for the Utes' running back Brandon Warfield, who has piled up 379 yards on 85 carries and four touchdowns in just five games this year. Paris Jackson leads Utah in receiving with 325 yards and three touchdowns on 30 catches playing in all seven games.
Offensively, UNM has looked like a more balanced team of late, mixing a steady passing game with a potentially explosive running attack.
Freshman tailback DonTrell Moore has gotten stronger with every game since replacing Quincy Wright. Moore had a breakout game last week against Utah State with 166 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns.
"I was fortunate to get behind those hogs and they opened up some great holes," Moore said. "I was fortunate enough to get in the secondary and make some guys miss and make some things happen. I think it was just a matter of time and diligency."
The Lobos have also added the dimension of quarterback Justin Millea who brings an outstanding ability to run the option. Long has been rotating Millea with Casey Kelly to keep the opposition guessing. Fullback Landrick Brody has also seen his playing time increase with smash-mouth running.
Wide receiver Joe Manning had a breakout game last week with 106 yards on six catches against Utah State. Freshman Hank Baskett also made his first appearance of the season, catching two touchdowns.
What may have been most encouraging about last week's game was the way in which the team handled the heartbreaking loss. After kicker Kenny Byrd missed the extra point to put the game into double overtime, the dejected Byrd could be seen being consoled by his teammates. Instead of the other players berating Byrd or the secondary that allowed the game to go into overtime, the team took the loss together. This is something that Long has said that UNM has been missing all year.
"Our team is starting to develop a camaraderie that they haven't had all season," he said. "They're starting to develop a togetherness where the offense matters to the defense and the defense matters to the offense and the kicking game matters to everybody. That is something that has just happened in the last two weeks."
The Lobos want to use this new concept of unity when they welcome Utah to University Stadium at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
