New Mexico Lobos Football – on Branch Field/University Stadium
When/Who: 5:04 p.m. (MT), Saturday — Boise State (6-2, 3-1 MW) at New Mexico (3-5, 1-3 MW)
On The Air: CBS Sports Network; 770-AM KKOB/Lobo Radio Network
GoLobos.com: Game Story, LoboTV, Photo Gallery, Final Stats, Quotes, Game Notes
By Richard Stevens – Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
Maybe it’s best not to throw out too many stats and facts about the Boise State Broncos. If you are the fans of the team facing those Broncos, the numbers are Halloween scary.
Quick: would you rather be trapped in a closet with Jason and Freddie Krueger or placed on a football field with the Boise State offense? That’s the Bronco offense that racked up 676 total yards against now 8-1 Colorado State.
The Broncos have the potential to make any game a Nightmare on Elm Street – if your defense doesn’t play well.
That’s a huge part of New Mexico’s chore Saturday against Boise State’s explosive talent on offense: get ‘em off the field minus points. And it might be best if your offense can put up some big numbers, too.
Typically, a game with Boise State is a shootout. If you are firing blanks, you are in trouble.
Lobo Coach Bob Davie has a habit of calling it like it is, but he might have made an understatement when he said Boise State is “on a roll.”
The Broncos might be on a major role! Some of their stats make them look like a runaway train.
Boise State, the winningest team in FBS football since 2002, averages 504 yards in total offense with 305.9 yards coming via the pass. The Broncos’ quarterback Grant Hedrick is No. 1 in the nation in pass completion percentage at .725.
Rumor has it he competes 50 percent of his passes while wearing a blindfold.
Hedrick, who also has run for 424 yards (minus 135 in sacks, etc.), has thrown for 2,241 yards and 12 touchdowns. His main weapon is his arm. But he can be nasty coming out of the pocket.
The Broncos also have one of the best runners in the West in Jay Ajayi, who is No. 4 in the nation in all-purpose yards. And Boise – No. 2 in FBS ball since 2003 in road/neutral game winnings percentage at .753 – has the best rush defense in Mountain West at 113.3 yards per game.
Boise has held five opponents under 100 yards so far this season. It held pass-happy CSU to 28 rushing yards.
“They are number one in the Mountain West in total offense and they are number one in scoring,” said Davie. “The point is: we all know what the challenge is.”
Yep, the challenge is a huge one. The Lobos will go into the Mountain West contest without Cole Gautsche (injured foot) and with redshirt Lamar Jordan getting the start.
The Lobos will be looking at a pretty stout Bronco front line that just might beef up that front knowing that the Lobos lean so heavily to the option. UNM had five passing yards in the win at UNLV.
“On the broader scope of things now, can you win throwing for five yards and completing two passes?” said Davie. “Absolutey not.”
The Lobos are No. 124 out of 125 NCAA teams in pass offense with .74.6 aerial yards per game. But the three teams averaging under 100 yards – Navy at 94.6 and Army at 73.0 – are option teams. The live and die by the run.
That’s the challenge on Saturday for the visitors from Idaho. Can Boise stop the Lobo option?
“There are some real issues in that we are a run-run based offense,” said Davie. The Broncos are coming off a bye week, so they have had time to put in extra work on UNM’s bread-and-butter attack.
“I made sure they had an open date before they came in,” said Davie, tongue in cheek. “I don’t want them to have any excuses coming in here. I wanted to make sure that we get their best shot.”
That probably will happen. If the Broncos hold serve the rest of the season, they will be divisional champions ahead of Colorado State and advance to the MW Championship. Boise should be motivated for the Lobos — should be motivated to put a finish on the season because that’s what Broncos do.
The Broncos’ advantage comes from the variety of their attack. The Broncos can attack by land or by air. But most of their stingers come via the pass. Boise State is No. 15 in the nation in passing yards (305.9).
“The offense is clicking and the quarterback’s really hot, really playing well,” said Davie. “They have their deceptive plays. They look like they are really hitting their stride right now. I think they’re much better than they were a year ago on offense.”
Boise State scored 45 on UNM a year ago in a 45-17 win in Boise.
It might be interesting to see if Boise State uses a no-huddle offense, an attack that has hurt the young Lobo defense this season. Davie doesn’t think there will be many quick snaps simply because the Broncos don’t need that advantage. They believe they can beat a defense with superior personnel and execution.
The Broncos also have experienced depth. They want to bring in fresh bodies that are just as talented as the ones coming off the field. The Broncos have 21 redshirt players on the offensive side of their depth chart and 14 on the defensive side.
The Broncos will step onto Branch Field with a 6-2 record. The losses were handed out by Ole Miss and Air Force. The Falcons played well against Boise, but the Broncos hurt themselves with seven turnovers.
The Broncos, 5-0 against New Mexico, will ride a three-game win streak into Albuquerque and are posting some impressive numbers on offense during that run: 51-46 at Nevada, 37-25 over Fresno State and 55-30 over Brigham Young. The Lobos are coming off a MW win at UNLV.
Editor’s Note: Richard Stevens is a former national award-winning Sports Columnist and Associate Sports Editor at The Albuquerque Tribune. You can reach him at rstevens50@comcast.net.
Heroes’ Day — New Mexico Lobos vs. Boise State
Seats For Solders: $10 tickets in the turquoise section for active or retired military and all first responders. Tickets are $10 each. To purchase ticket donations, please contact Joe Gehling at 505-925-1620/jgehling@unm.edu or Andrew Aho at 505-925-5743/aaho@unm.edu
Other game activities/promotions
- Special Military themed performance from the UNM Spirit Marching Band
- The Howl Zone will feature Military & First Responder vehicles for fans to explore
- Scout Day, over 350 scouts are expected to be in attendance
- Special HALL OF HONOR recognition at halftime
- $2 hot dogs for all fans in attendance