Sept. 8, 2007
Final Stats | Quotes | Notes | Photo Gallery 
Listen to coach Long’s postgame press conference
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Rodney Ferguson ran wild again and Donovan Porterie sure got on a roll in the fourth quarter.
But Clint McPeek? He had the hit that dictated the outcome.
Ferguson had 118 yards rushing and two touchdowns, Porterie threw for two more scores and McPeek’s big play swung things in New Mexico’s favor as the Lobos beat New Mexico State 44-34 on Saturday night.
“That changed all the momentum,” coach Rocky Long said.
New Mexico State trailed 34-27 midway through the final quarter. Chase Holbrook was moving the Aggies when he tried a pass for tight end Nick Cleaver.
McPeek, a safety playing the Lobo position, arrived at the same time as the ball, and it popped right into the arms of New Mexico teammate Frankie Solomon.
“We kept saying on defense we needed to get some turnovers to change the game,” McPeek said. “We just got lucky. We had the right call.”
It was the first turnover by either side.
Porterie took over, immediately throwing a 50-yard strike to Travis Brown to reach the Aggies’ 25. That set up a 21-yard field goal by John Sullivan, giving New Mexico a 37-27 lead with 5:22 to play.
“The turning point was when the defense came up with the big hit and we got the interception,” Porterie said. “It gave us some big momentum. The defense came up with a big play and on offense we felt like we had to respond.”
Porterie completed 18 of 25 attempts _ including 14 of his last 15 _ for 342 yards passing. He had several big plays and was helped by receiver Marcus Smith, who made a spectacular diving catch for a 36-yard gain in the final quarter.
“Donovan played very well,” Long said. “The quarterback gets blamed when you don’t get into the end zone, so he gets the credit when you do get in there.”
Sullivan kicked three field goals as the Lobos (1-1) beat their instate rival for the fifth straight year.
Holbrook was 47-of-63 for 473 yards passing and four TDs for New Mexico State (1-1). But one week he survived three interceptions in an opening win over Southeastern Louisiana, Holbrook threw two in the fourth quarter.
“That’s a tough play,” Holbrook said, alluding to McPeek’s interception. “I felt I made a good throw, got it over the backer. When I saw the safety, I thought he was covering a lot of ground. … I give credit to the DB.”
Defensive end Tyler Donaldson sealed New Mexico’s victory when he intercepted Holbrook with 3:33 to go.
“I just didn’t see the other guy,” Holbrook said. “I thought I had it open but there was a guy sitting there.”
Three plays later, Porterie threw to wide open Chris Mark in the left flat for a 26-yard TD pass to make it 44-27.
Holbrook found Chris Williams for a 4-yard TD pass with 1:16 remaining to trim the margin to 44-34, and Derek Dubois recovered the ensuing onside kick at New Mexico’s 44. The Aggies reached the 4-yard line as time expired.
It was close all night, even after Ferguson’s 1-yard dive put the Lobos ahead 34-27 with 10:02 to play.
The Aggies took a 21-17 lead early in the second half on Holbrook’s third TD pass, a 9-yard score to Chris Williams, who slipped behind New Mexico’s safeties and was open in the back of the end zone.
An overflow crowd of 41,033 filled University Stadium, which has a seating capacity of 38,634. It was the fourth largest crowd in stadium history, and many fans who bought walk-up tickets sat on the grassy hillsides in the corners.
“That’s what a rivalry game is supposed to be about,” Long said. “The crowd was here early. It’s a testament to our program but also to New Mexico State’s program. It was big-time college football.”