Position Breakdown: Quarterbacks
In just his second episode of Vak Talk, Tevaka Tuioti scored an exclusive interview with newly named starting quarterback @terrytouchdown3! #GoLobos #WeAreNM pic.twitter.com/hFMDksXWIY
— New Mexico Football (@UNMLoboFB) August 18, 2021
This is the second in a series in which each position will get broken down prior to the start of the 2021 season.
Tuesday, August 17: Offensive Line
Wednesday, August 18: Quarterbacks
Thursday, August 19: Cornerbacks
Friday, August 20: Running Backs
Saturday, August 21: Linebackers
Monday, August 23: Receivers
Tuesday, August 24: Defensive Line
Wednesday, August 25: Running Backs
Thursday, August 26: Safeties
Friday, August 27: Tight Ends
Saturday, August 28: Specialists
Starters Returning (1): Trae Hall (3 starts)
Starters Lost (0): None
Returning Letterwinners (3): Isaiah Chavez (1 start), Connor Genal (1 start)
Letterwinners Lost (1): Tevaka Tuioti (2 starts)
Redshirts (5): Brandt Hughes (1 start in 2019)
Incoming Transfers (1): Terry Wilson (from Kentucky)
Incoming Freshmen (7): Bear Milacek, CJ Montes
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — It took roughly two weeks of camp for Danny Gonzales to make the announcement that Terry Wilson had won the starting quarterback job, giving him the QB1 designation.
Who is QB2, QB3, QB4, QB5, QB6 and QB7 remains to be seen, and that battle still goes on.
What Wilson brings to the quarterback room is senior leadership, poise and experience. He went 17-8 for Kentucky as a starter for three years (missing all but two games his junior year). His accolades are well known. He is the only player in school history with at least 3,000 career passing yards (3,436) and 1,000 career rushing yards (1,015). His completion percentage of .649 (338 of 520) in the third-highest in Kentucky history.
He is eighth all-time in career total offense with 4,458 yards, he became the 14th player in school history to break 3,000 passing yards for a career. He is one of two quarterbacks in school history to record wins at both Florida and Tennessee, and he is just the fourth Kentucky quarterback to rush for 1,000 career yards.
His 20 career touchdown passes made him just the third Kentucky QB to record 20 career touchdowns, and overall he accounted for 30 in his career, rushing for 10 as well.
A two-time team captain, he graduated from Kentucky with a degree in Communications and wore the coveted “SEC Graduate” patch during the 2020 season.
“I think he has a really good presence in the huddle and the guys seem to follow,” said Gonzales. “We have some depth at quarterback which is exciting but Terry is what we were looking for.”
That depth was never more evident than last year, when UNM lost 2019 season starter Brandt Hughes to an injury before the season, and then watched season-ending injuries fell Tevaka Tuioti (in game 2), Trae Hall (in game 5) and Connor Genal (in game 6), putting UNM down to walk-on true freshman Isaiah Chavez. Chavez rallied UNM in the fourth quarter for a 17-16 win over Wyoming and then won MW Player of the Week honors after a 49-39 win over Fresno State. Chavez only played two games, so he earned a redshirt despite those two wins, making him one of three freshmen in the QB room. The other three returners span the other classes with Hughes a senior, Hall a junior and Genal a sophomore.
All bring different elements to the table. Hall has the most experience and has proven to be tough as nails with an ability to run and pass. Chavez was the wildcard, making plays on the run and bringing the energy, and Genal in his brief time on the field showed poise and an accurate arm. Hughes is still working back from his injury, and both true freshmen in Bear Milacek and CJ Montes have looked good during Fall reps.
The question will be with Wilson entrenched as the started for September 2 against Houston Baptist, how will the other quarterbacks shake out. Lamar Jordan was the last Lobo quarterback to start the majority of contests, starting 12 of 13 in 2015. UNM is looking to avoid the pitfalls of 2019 and 2020, when four quarterbacks started games during the season.
Tickets: Season-game tickets are still available via golobos.com/tickets, and fans can now get in on mini-plans as well. UNM is currently ahead of the 2019 season ticket totals.
There are two mini-plans for fans to get in on, the Cherry Plan and the Silver Plan. The Cherry Plan gets you a three-game set of the opener against Houston Baptist, New Mexico State and UNLV. The Silver Plan gets fans tickets for New Mexico State, Air Force and Utah State.
Single game tickets are available by clicking the game below:
9/2 Houston Baptist
9/11 New Mexico State
10/2 Air Force
10/16 Colorado State
11/6 UNLV
11/26 Utah State
Tomorrow: A breakdown of UNM’s cornerback situation.