Big Homecoming Task Awaits Lobos

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Weekly Media Schedule:
WEDNESDAY
Lobo Talk: 7-8 pm, 610 AM/95.9 FM The Sports Animal Listen Live
THURSDAY
The Opening Drive: 7:30 am, Jeff Siembieda and J.J. Buck Player Interview Listen Live

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Some games are games of field position.  Some games are games of attrition.  This Saturday against Hawai’i, it’s about scoring points.  Lots of points, because the Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors have shown that they can put up plenty of points on their own.  The big questions are can UNM’s passing defense which was solid last Saturday in allowing just 86 yards in the air in easily its best game of the season, handle the run-and-shoot, throw-it-all-over-the-yard offense of Hawai’i.

That’s the task head coach Bob Davie and the Lobo squad face as UNM takes on Hawai’i (4-3, 1-2 MW) in a Mountain West matchup that is UNM’s 95th Homecoming game at 2:07 pm on Saturday.  The game will be available via Spectrum and Facebook along with the Lobo Radio Network.

Hawai’i can throw it, with six 300-yard passing games out of seven this season.  With UNM’s defense allowing six 300-yard games out of seven, even Bob Davie is a realist when it comes down to it.  “They probably are licking their chops a little bit,” said Davie.

But UNM’s defense, much maligned, has been pretty good of late.  While UNM has lost four straight, the defense has turned in solid performances, allowing 26.8 points per game and the defense has allowed just three touchdowns on 12 Lobo giveaways, including several that occurred in Lobo territory.  While the defense has been getting on track, UNM will try to get the offense back on track with Tevaka Tuioti at quarterback.  Tuioti drove UNM down the field twice in the fourth quarter against Wyoming, getting a touchdown and then running out of time after driving UNM from its own 25 to the Cowboy 17 in under a minute.  Davie knows Tuioti can be lightning in a bottle, as his 355-yard performance against NMSU showed.

“We are a different quarterback with Tevaka in there,” he said on Tuesday.  “We become more explosive and he has another opportunity.  Tevaka needs to play as well and as consistent as Tevaka can play.”

So the million-dollar question is how do you stop on offense that has averaged 35.4 points a game and has scored in 24 of 28 quarters this season?  Davie feels it in the turnover category.  “It’s a challenge,” said Davie.  “We have one interception this season.  We are going to have to create some kind of turnover.  You’re not just going to consistently stop them so we have to continue to play, and guys are going to have to step up and make a play.”

At least this week there are more guys in the secondary to do just that.  Davie announced that Brandon Burton should be a full-go at practice on Wednesday, and that Jerrick Reed II practiced on Tuesday.  Both missed the Wyoming game with injuries suffered against Colorado State.  Davie also announced that Radson Jang was injured his patella tendon and is out for the season, an identical injury that Javohn Jones suffered on a similar play.