The University of New Mexico football team put on a show as they dominated against the United States Air Force Academy Falcons, beating them 52-37 at home on Saturday, Oct. 13. The Lobos were firing on all cylinders as offensively they could not be stopped, with solid defensive play helping throughout the game.
The first quarter was a grind-it-out quarter from both teams. The Lobos had a quick three-and-out on their first possession of the game, which was then followed up by a long nine-minute drive by the Falcons. Despite the long drive by Air Force, the Lobos’ defense held strong, holding them to 3 points.
On the next offensive possession for the Lobos, the offense marched down the field. The drive ended with quarterback Devon Dampier finding the end zone on a 7-yard run. The Lobos led 7-3 at the end of the first.
The second quarter was all Lobos. They took over the game from the start and never looked back. The Lobos’ domination of the game began when their defense forced Air Force to punt.
Wide receiver Luke Wysong was down on the other end to return the punt, and he returned it 79 yards for a touchdown. After that, the Falcons’ offense came back down the field and scored a touchdown to cut the lead to 4 points.
The next two drives were back and forth for both teams; Dampier and the Lobos found the end zone in six plays, but the Falcons put a drive together themselves. To end the quarter, the Lobos found another score, as Dampier rushed into the end zone. The Lobos led 28-17 through two quarters.
The Lobos came out of halftime with the same energy they had in the second. They scored 17 points and held the Falcons scoreless in the third. The Lobos’ defense took the field first to start the quarter and made an immediate impact. It helped the offense out, forcing a turnover on downs and setting them up in Air Force territory.
The offense then proceeded to find the end zone in only two plays.
The defense took the field again and impacted the game again, as linebacker Dimitri Johnson was able to recover a fumble to set the offense up near midfield. The Lobos converted the turnover into 3 points, extending the lead.
The defense once again took the field and forced another turnover on downs, which the offense capitalized on as Eli Sanders took it 31 yards to the house, extending the Lobo lead. The Lobos held a comfortable 45-17 at the end of third.
By the time the fourth quarter arrived, Air Force was playing for pride. In the fourth, the Lobos added onto their lead, scoring another touchdown. While Air Force scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter, the game was already too far out of reach, and the Lobos took home the win.
The Lobos have now won two games in a row — looking like a different team than in the past four weeks. Head Coach Bronco Mendenhall attributed this to the team becoming more experienced.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
“We are becoming more seasoned, more experienced and more confident,” Mendenhall said. “I feel rhythm and optimism growing.”
A big factor for the offense was Dampier, who finished the game with 179 yards and a touchdown through the air. He also showcased his dual-threat abilities by having two rushing touchdowns with 50 yards rushing on 11 carries. He connected with Wysong early in the game, as Wysong had six receptions for 53 yards by halftime.
“Luke is a really dependable guy,” Dampier said. “He’s earned my trust to go to him when we need him on downs, and he makes up for it.”
The Lobos will hit the road next week as they head into another Mountain West battle against the Utah State University Aggies.
Rodney Prunty is the sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He can be contacted at sports@dailylobo.com or on X @rprunty05
