University of New Mexico senior Dylan Hopkins is the new quarterback for the Lobos and is ready to make his mark at UNM.
Before coming to UNM, Hopkins played for the University of Alabama, Birmingham (UAB) where he lettered for three years and redshirted for one. He spent five years in UAB’s football program with Bryant Vincent who is now UNM’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
Throughout his years at UAB, Hopkins was able to build a relationship with Vincent that has carried over to UNM.
“It’s about relationships, it’s not just about X’s and O’s. The last five years that we’ve spent together – obviously we’ve had a lot of ups and downs, but we're extremely close and we have a great relationship,” Vincent said.
Hopkins grew up in Florida and Tennessee. From a young age, he wanted to follow his father, Archie Hopkins', footsteps and play football.
Hopkins’ father played football at Virginia Tech and immersed himself in the sport, taking him to games and showing him what he could do.
“The main thing is I just wanted to be like him (his dad). When you’re young, you always have that one person you wanna be like when you’re older,” Hopkins said.
The time Vincent spent coaching at UAB allowed him to get to know Hopkins and how he works on the field.
“He understands the offense. I know what he can and can’t do. He’s very comfortable in the offense and I was obviously very excited to bring him to Albuquerque,” Hopkins said.
Compared to UAB, UNM is a completely different environment and experience. Hopkins admitted the transfer to UNM was hard at first.
“It was honestly pretty tough … My roommate and teammate at UAB – Ryan Davis – transferred (as well) so I had one person who was out here with me,” Hopkins said. “It was definitely hard at first, but I think getting everyone’s respect through practice, workouts and meeting new people (helped).”
In the first few weeks of the season, Hopkins has shown that he has what it takes to be a Lobo. In the home-opener against Tennessee Tech, he was 13-for-17 on passing for 273 yards. He threw for four passing touchdowns – an all time career-high, making his mark as the second-most in the program’s history.
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In the second week of the season, Hopkins was voted Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week, becoming the first Lobo quarterback to earn the title since October of 2021.
“I want him (Hopkins) to get out there and play, protect the ball, lead this team, go out there and make good decisions and help us win a football game,” Vincent said.
Although Albuquerque is worlds different than Birmingham, Hopkins said he likes it here in the 505.
Francesca Cicconetti is a freelance reporter at the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @fran_cicconetti.
Francesca Cicconetti is a freelance reporter at the Daily Lobo. She can be reached on Twitter @fran_cicconetti
