The Lobos will try to add another winning score on that wall this Saturday when the in-state rivals will meet for the 105th incarnation of the Rio Grande Rivalry at Aggie Memorial Stadium in Las Cruces. The Lobos are 3.5-point favorites over the Aggies heading into this year’s edition of the annual contest.
“We talk about it every day, that you don’t lose to State,” safety David Guthrie said. “We have the scores on the wall. It’s the biggest game of the year. Coach Davie says it all the time.”
UNM heads into this year’s game searching for a victory. The Lobos sit at 0-2 on the season and start Mountain West play next week at home against Fresno State, the defending conference champions. The Lobos were idle last week.
“I’ll tell you when your 0-2 and you’re starving for a win, it’s the most important one this week. We need to go get a win,” Davie said.
The quarterback position has been a question all week for the Lobos. Incumbent Cole Gautsche hurt his right hamstring in the season opener against UTEP and is questionable for Saturday’s game. Gautsche missed UNM’s last game against Arizona State, but has been practicing all week.
Davie has been adamant that Gautsche won’t be taking a majority of the snaps against the Aggies. Instead, it’s more likely that quarterbacks Clayton Mitchem and Lamar Jordan will split playing time.
Saturday could be either Jordan’s first career start or Mitchem’s ninth at UNM.
“So if we started the game Saturday and Cole didn’t start, there’s a good chance that Clayton Mitchem will be the starting quarterback. I mean I don’t want to commit to it yet,” Davie said. “But I mean, that’s a fair point. After the game, I’m ready to move on and let Lamar Jordan be the guy, and the more you look at it, Clayton Mitchem has done some really good things and deserves the opportunity to play.”
NMSU is coming off its first loss of the season, a 42-24 decision at UTEP. The Aggies started 2-0 for the first time since 1999.
The Aggies run a spread offense and have one of the top wide receivers in the country, Teldrick Morgan. Named to the Biletnikoff Award Watch List on Tuesday, Morgan has caught 22 passes for 342 yards and four touchdowns this season.
“It’s nothing that we haven’t seen before. They spread the ball out a little bit more,” Guthrie said. “They try to find windows in the defense. That’s all offenses try to do. They try to find the openings. We feel like their routes are a little predictable.”
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NMSU’s defense, starting nine underclassmen (four freshmen, five sophomores), is one of the youngest in the country. Defensive end Jay Eakins is the only senior starter on the team.
The Aggies defense has been susceptible to the run early this season, allowing 255 rushing yards per game. UTEP rushed for 344 yards against NMSU.
“I’ve seen speed and physicality. They’re a lot more physical and a lot more defensively sound. That’s a different team from last year,” Jordan said.
Thomas Romero-Salas is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @ThomasRomeroS.
