The New Mexico football team enters the 2017 campaign, sporting the best two-year winning streak in program history and looking to continue their winning ways at home.
New Mexico will open the season against Abilene Christian at the newly-dubbed Dreamstyle Stadium in the first-ever meeting between the teams.
The Lobos are 11-3 over the past 14 home games, so the first step in getting fans in the seats — winning — is already being accomplished.
Over the past two seasons, UNM also earned two bowl appearances, both in the Gildan New Mexico Bowl, winning the second time around over UTSA to cap off last season.
Many things have changed — the team is only returning two starters on defense. Head coach Bob Davie said despite the lack of experience on the defensive side of the ball, there is also a lot of talent.
The Lobo defense was torched at times last season, but it was typically early in the game. The team seemed to do well in making second half adjustments and arguably won several games by getting holds late in contests.
The difference between winning and losing could hinge on the year’s squad figuring things out in the same way. Of the 13 games UNM played last season, eight of them were decided by single digits.
Other team elements are likely to stay the same. The Lobos lost running back Teriyon Gipson, the leading rusher on the team last season but appear to be stacked in the backfield again.
Gipson rushed for 1,283 yards last season, but Tyrone Owens finished hot on his heels with 1,109 yards and possesses the same propensity to make big plays.
He is joined by a talented group of runners that figure to see a lot of playing time. Senior running back Richard McQuarley was a touchdown machine last year, scoring 18 of them on the ground. His punishing style of running could provide a change of pace to make things more difficult for opposing teams.
Running back Daryl Chestnut said he feels this group of running backs is even more versatile than last year, saying they are better and catching the ball out of the backfield.
He said offensive line coach and run game coordinator Saga Tuitele has been instrumental in helping the players find holes they hadn’t seen before.
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Tuitele said the success of the system is due to the entire staff, past and present, paving the way and working hard. He said things were in great shape and just didn’t want to mess things up.
On the contrary, Tuitele and his staff helped guide New Mexico to rushing prominence, finishing the season as the nation’s No. 1 rushing team.
Another mark of consistency will be behind center. Senior quarterback Lamar Jordan will run the show, which will likely be a welcome change to splitting snaps with another teammate like things had been in past seasons.
Jordan said he was excited about the prospect of opening up the playbook more and showing how much he has improved as a passer — and the receiving unit may be the strongest it is been in several years.
Delane Hart-Johnson could play a big role, with his 6-4 frame and ability to high-point the football. Patrick Reed, Emmanuel Harris, Q’ Drennan and a slew of others are also primed to spread out defenses.
But the calling card for Lobo football will almost undoubtedly still be a heavy dose of the run game — something Jordan is no stranger to himself.
Jordan was actually the third-leading rusher last season, carrying the ball for 849 yards, a stout 6.5 yards per carry and three touchdowns.
The flip side of that coin is that Jordan will need to stay healthy and avoid taking big hits.
Saturday’s game kicks off at 6 p.m. at Dreamstyle Stadium. While it will not be televised, the game will be broadcast on the Lobo Radio Network.
Robert Maler is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers basketball, football and tennis. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @robert_maler.
