Sept. 12, 2008
Lobos Football
What: Lobos vs. Arizona
When: Saturday, 6:04 p.m.
Where: University Stadium
Tickets: www.unmtickets.com; 925-5858; 1-877-664-8661; The Pit’s ticket office; UNM bookstore
By Richard Stevens
Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
The insult, the bulletin-board material, is there if the Lobos want it. If it helps. The Arizona Wildcats do not think much of the University of New Mexico Lobos when it comes to playing football.
“They (Lobos) know what happened last year was a fluke. We are going to come back this year to put it on them,” Arizona tailback Nic Grigsby said in the Tucson Citizen.
The “fluke” Grigsby refers to is the 29-27 whipping the Lobos gave the ‘Cats last year in Tucson. That score is Arizona’s motivation for the 6:04 p.m. kickoff Saturday in University Stadium.
There were lots of reasons the Lobos beat the ‘Cats last year, but a glaring one was the play of UNM quarterback Donovan Porterie, who threw for 327 yards and three touchdowns. Porterie was wonderful in that game. He has yet to be wonderful in 2008 with 191 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions in winless UNM’s two losses.
“When Donovan starts playing well, we’re going to be a darn good football team,” said Lobos coach Rocky Long. “I personally have confidence that our quarterback is going to play well.”
Against the ‘Cats, that would help bunches. Long said the “talk” between teams helps motivate players during practice but “anything said before the game doesn’t make a darn bit of difference once it’s kickoff time.”
And hopefully all the stats and facts from UNM’s and Arizona’s first two games don’t mean much either.
Sometimes in a football game, you are drawn to those numbers like they are a neon light. The numbers going into Saturday’s contest suggest, as Lobo junior Ian Clark says, “We need to pick it up.”
Consider just a few such numbers:
Record: Lobos 0-2, ‘Cats 2-0.
Points per game: Lobos 12.5, ‘Cats 55.5.
Yards rushing per game: Lobos 136, ‘Cats 209.
Yards passing per game: Lobos 142, ‘Cats 277.5.
Total yards per game: Lobos 278, ‘Cats 486.5.
The numbers’ game also applies to the quarterbacks. Arizona’s Willie Tuitama has thrown for 471 yards, five TDs and no interceptions. He has completed 77.8 percent of his passes.
“We have to get to him,” said UNM’s Clark.
Yeah, pressure on Tuitama would be nice. The Lobos also have to watch out for the quotable Grigsby, who so far has walked the walk to go with the talk. The 5-foot-10, 178-pound sophomore has averaged 152 yards rushing in Arizona’s two games and boasts a hefty 7.8 yards per carry.
What the Lobos and Lobos fans have to be hoping is that all this Arizona offensive productive also is a product of the ‘Cats schedule.
Arizona pounded Idaho 70-0 and hammered Toledo 41-16. UNM’s two losses came from tougher foes, losing 26-3 to TCU and 28-22 to Texas A&M.
But Arizona is talented and experienced. The ‘Cats scored 35 points in one quarter against Idaho, a school record. Long says Arizona returns nine of 11 offensive starters from 2007.
Another factor in UNM’s win at Tucson last season was Porterie playing behind an experienced offensive line and throwing to two veteran receivers in Marcus Smith and Travis Brown. Smith caught 11 passes for 164 yards against Arizona and Brown pulled in 10 grabs for 121 yards. This season Porterie had new targets and a young line standing between him and the enemy’s charge.
“Donovan has proved he can be a really good quarterback,” said Long. “I still believe he is a really good quarterback.
“But we’re not playing to our athletic ability yet (on offense). I don’t think we’ve been outclassed athletically, but we are a very inexperienced football team.”
Long said earlier this week he was considering simplifying UNM’s offense early in the game to allow Porterie to gain confidence and a rhythm in passing.
“But the players still have to execute the plan,” said Long.
The Lobos’ plan Saturday really is simple enough: play outstanding defense, create turnovers, kick the ball well, win the line of scrimmage, move the football and get into the end zone. Maybe get into the end zone a lot.
“We have to score some points to win this game,” said Long.
The Lobos are hoping for one other thing, too – that at the end of the day, Arizona’s Nic Grigsby will have to eat his words.
Editor’s note: Richard Stevens is a former Associate Sports Editor and sports columnist for The Albuquerque Tribune. You can reach him at rstevens50@comcast.net. Previous articles are available at The Richard Stevens Corner