Aug. 25, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
All coaches say the next game is always the most important, but New Mexico’s 2008 season opener certainly carries some added significance. UNM begins its 110th football season Saturday with a key Mountain West Conference contest against TCU. Kickoff is 4:06 p.m. Mountain Time from University Stadium in Albuquerque. The game will be televised nationally on the VERSUS network. VERSUS can be found on Comcast Channel 37 in Albuquerque, Channel 603 on DirecTV and Channel 151 on Dish Network.
The Lobos were picked to finish 4th in the MWC, while TCU was slotted for 3rd behind nationally-ranked BYU and Utah. After Saturday, UNM and TCU each play four non-conference tilts before resuming league action Oct. 4. Therefore, one team will be 0-1 in the MWC for more than a month.
Entering his 11th season and armed with a new five-year contract, New Mexico head coach Rocky Long welcomes back 38 lettermen, including 12 offensive and defensive starters, which is the second-fewest in the league. The 105-man preseason roster lists 21 seniors, 24 juniors, 22 sophomores and 38 true or redshirt freshman.
TICKET PROMOTIONS / GAME SPONSORS / GIVEAWAYS
It’s Cherry Crush Day. Purchase a “Cherry Crush” T-Shirt at the UNM Bookstore, the Lobo Store at The Pit or New Mexico Look and receive a game ticket for only $7.95.
Game sponsors include Alltel Wireless, Rio Rancho Observer, KOB TV, 106.3 The Range and Wild 97.7. Alltel Wireless is providing 35,000 Lobo football posters and goodie bags.
KEY NOTES ENTERING THE OPENER
The Aug. 30 date marks UNM’s earliest conference opener on record…the previous was a Western Athletic Conference encounter at UTEP on Aug. 31, 1991
A total of 15,771 season tickets have been sold through Sunday…that is the 2nd-highest figure in school history…the school record is 17,404 in 2005
The Horned Frogs completely dominated the Lobos last year, winning 37-0 in Fort Worth…it was New Mexico’s first shutout in a conference game since 1992…UNM was held to 6 first downs, the lowest figure in head coach Rocky Long’s tenure here…the Lobos also had season-lows for rushing attempts (26), rushing yards (28), pass completions (9), passing yards (91), total plays (58), total offense (119) and time of possession (23:08)
UNM and TCU each went 5-2 in their last seven games of 2007
UNM’s first three games – all at home – will be nationally televised
TCU kicks off an alluring stretch of three straight home games against top-flight competition…Texas A&M comes to Albuquerque for the first time on Sept. 6, followed by Arizona on Sept. 13
The Lobos bring a 4-game home wining streak into the 2008 season…it has been 24 years since UNM took five in a row at University Stadium: the last three games of 1983 and first three of 1984
Senior RB Rodney Ferguson begins the season with 2,459 rushing yards, ranking 6th on UNM’s career list…he needs 62 yards to pass Willie Turral (1982-85) for the 5th spot
UNM-TCU SERIES
New Mexico and TCU square off for the 10th time since the first game in 1991. The Horned Frogs have a 6-3 series lead and have won all 3 MWC games played by a combined score of 113-48, including last year’s 37-0 whitewash in Fort Worth. The Lobos’ last wins came in 1996-97 when both schools were members of the Western Athletic Conference. Current TCU head coach Gary Patterson was UNM’s defensive coordinator at that time.
LOBOS NEED BETTER STARTS AGAINST HORNED FROGS
TCU has had leads of 28-0 (1st quarter in 2005), 24-0 (halftime in 2006) and 20-0 (halftime in 2007) in the past three games against the Lobos.
UNM-TCU CONNECTIONS APLENTY
Although the schools have only played nine times they share a lot in common:
TCU head coach Gary Patterson was the defensive coordinator on Dennis Franchione’s Lobo staff in 1996-97…Patterson was actually one of three finalists for the New Mexico head coaching position following the 1997 season…in 2 wins against TCU in 1996 and `97, Patterson’s Lobo defense held the Horned Frogs to 17 points (27-7 and 40-10)
Lobo head coach Rocky Long was the TCU secondary coach under Jim Wacker from 1988-90
TCU offensive coordinator Mike Schultz was the Lobos’ assistant head coach and running backs coach under Franchione from 1992-97…Horned Frogs WRs coach Jarrett Anderson played at UNM from 1992-93, graduated in `93 and was a graduate assistant here in 1994, while TCU safeties coach Chad Glasgow was a graduate assistant at UNM in 1996
Lobo senior Blake Ligon (jersey No. 29) and TCU senior WR Walter Bryant (No. 1) were in the secondary together at San Angelo Central HS in 2003.
UNM redshirt freshman S Bubba Forrest (Carlsbad, N.M.) and TCU freshman DE Ross Forrest (Odessa Permian HS) are cousins…Ross’ father, Mike, was a 1st team all-Western Athletic Conference linebacker at New Mexico in 1978 when he led the team with 162 tackles, the 3rd-highest season total in school history…a four-year letterman from 1976-79, Mike Forrest ranks 8th all-time at UNM with 362 career tackles
UNM IN OPENERS
The Lobos have a 63-43-3 (.592) mark in 109 previous season openers, but they are just 3-6 in their last 9. New Mexico has not scored a TD in its last two season openers.
UNM is 72-33-4 (.679) in home openers, including 9-4 in its past 13. New Mexico is 28-20 in lid-lifters at University Stadium. The first game on Sept. 17, 1960, resulted in a 77-6 pasting of the University of Mexico, the Lobos’ largest margin of victory at the stadium.
Head coach Rocky Long is 5-5 in season openers and 6-4 in home openers in his career at New Mexico.
New Mexico’s second-largest home crowd came in the 2001 season opener as 41,771 fans shoehorned into the stadium to witness a 26-6 triumph over UTEP. That was the first game following the seating addition in the north end zone.
FIVE MORE YEARS FOR Rocky Long
University of New Mexico Vice-President for Athletics Paul Krebs announced Aug. 19 that head football coach Rocky Long has signed a new five-year contract. The deal was effective July 1, 2008, and ends June 30, 2013. Long’s previous contract was due to expire Dec. 31, 2009.
“We’re thrilled that Rocky has agreed to guide our football program for another five years,” said Krebs. “The program’s success under Rocky Long – academically and competitively – is unmatched in the history of Lobo football.”
A star quarterback at UNM from 1969-71, Long is in his 11th season at his alma mater. That ties Roy Johnson (1920-30) for most seasons as a New Mexico head football coach. Long is currently one of 17 head coaches’ who is employed by his alma mater.
UNPRECEDENTED SUCCESS UNDER Rocky Long
Five bowl games in the past six years after six postseason appearances between 1938-2001
UNM is the only school in the Mountain West Conference that has been bowl eligible and produced at least six wins in each of the past seven seasons (2001-07)….that’s also a first in Lobo history
49 wins since 2001 – an average of 7 a season – the most by New Mexico in a 7-year span
UNM has a 28-17 conference record since 2002, the third-most wins in the league over that span…since 2001, the Lobos are the only MWC school that has not had a losing record in conference play
UNM football’s top-15 semester grade-point-averages have been attained under Long, all in the past 17 terms since the 2000 spring semester, including a program-best 2.79 in the spring of 2008, and an impressive 2.98 in the summer of 2008
UNIVERSITY STADIUM RENOVATION
A $22 million face-lift to University Stadium is expected to begin in 2009. Nearly all of the work will be dedicated to the west side of the stadium, which opened in 1960.
New entrances, additional ADA seating, rest rooms and concessions stands are a big part of the renovation. Also, what is now Zia Level I and II will be renovated to add suites and a new club level with revised seating.
OH NO! NO OFF WEEK IN 2008
For the first time since 1998 – Rocky Long’s first season at UNM – the Lobos do not have an off week during the regular season. Starting Aug. 30, New Mexico will play 12 straight weeks. This is pertinent because the Lobos have a 10-1 record following regularly scheduled “bye” weeks under Long.
The Lobos play their final game Nov. 15 at Colorado State, the earliest date to end a regular season since Nov. 13, 1943.
A FEW LOBOS COULD MAKE IMPACT ON THE RECORD BOOK
While catching DonTrell Moore is probably not realistic, senior TB Rodney Ferguson could move into 3rd, or possibly 2nd, in career rushing at UNM.
Ferguson, who starts 2008 in the No. 6 spot with 2,459 yards, has surpassed 1,000 yards each of the past two seasons. He needs 874 yards to pass Winslow Oliver for 3rd and 1,404 yards to reach Mike Williams for 2nd. Ferguson has averaged 1,205 yards the past two seasons. Moore finished with 4,973 yards.
Junior Donovan Porterie is more than half way to becoming the winningest quarterback in New Mexico history. He is 12-6 as a starter – 12-4 when he starts and finishes a game. The career record is 19 wins by Casey Kelly from 2000-03. Porterie begins the 2008 season 5th all-time at UNM with 3,973 passing yards and tied for 8th with 21 TD passes.
Senior cornerbacks DeAndre Wright and Glover Quin should move up the chart for passes defended. Both two-year starters, the tandem has each defended 20 passes in their outstanding careers. The school record is 29 by Stephen Persley from 1998-2001.
NEXT WEEK
The Texas A&M Aggies make their first appearance in Albuquerque. Kickoff for the nationally-televised game on the VERSUS Network is 3 p.m.