The New Mexico Bowl: What fans need to know
Tomorrow at Noon, Utah State and North Texas will do battle on the field in the New Mexico Bowl at Dreamstyle Stadium in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Both sides will enter the game with heads slightly lower and chests puffed out a little less as both had a chance at a conference championship appearance but lost key games which kept them from conference glory.
Lost chances aside, the Aggies and Mean Green will play each other Saturday and will try their best to win. Here are the things you need to know about both teams and what to expect.
Utah State
The Aggies are in the finale of what has been one of the most successful seasons in program history. The offense has re-written the school record books with quarterback Jordan Love as its centerpiece. The sophomore signal-caller has thrown for 3,208 yards (165 short of the single season USU record), 28 passing touchdowns (a new single-season school record), thrown just five interceptions and has run for six more scores, making him responsible for 34 this season (one short of the school record).
Leading the rushing attack has been the one-two punch of juniors Darwin Thompson and Gerold Bright. The duo are responsible for 2,284 yards from scrimmage and 27 touchdowns — 1,736 yards of that and 22 of the TDs have come on the ground. Combined, Thompson and Bright are averaging 6.8 yards per rush. Thompson leads the Mountain West in yards per rush at 7.2, which also ranks 8th in the nation.
Defensively, sophomore linebacker David Woodward leads a capable front seven that ranks 21st in tackles for loss, 44th in run defense and 40th in sacks. The front seven will have to play a great game as many of the players behind them in the secondary are inexperienced with most of the starters from early weeks are out with injury.
Not to be ignored is the potentially dangerous special teams unit. Savon Scarver, the consensus First-Team All-American kick returner, has three return touchdowns to his name — two this season — including a 96-yard return in last year’s Arizona Bowl. Punti returner Jordan Nathan also has a return TD this season and is second in the MW in yards per return.
North Texas
The Mean Green went 9-3 this season, including a 4-0 non-conference record that featured a 27-point win over Arkansas. Powering the team’s second straight nine-win season has been a high-scoring offense.
At the helm of that offense is junior quarterback Mason Fine, whose production rivals, and in some places exceeds, that of Love. Fine has thrown for 3,734 yards and 27 touchdowns and only five interceptions. His favorite target is wide receiver Rico Bussey Jr. In 12 games the junior wide-out has reeled in 68 passes for 1,017 yards (15.0 per catch) and 12 touchdowns.
On defense, the Green are even more mean, as their front seven trio of E.J. Ejiya, Brandon Garner and LaDarius Hamilton have laid waste to opposing backfields. The three have combined for 50.5 tackles for loss and 22.0 sacks just this season in addition to their 202 total tackles. North Texas’ run defense ranks 15th in the nation at 113.4 yards per game.
The secondary for North Texas has been opportunistic, recording at least one interception in nine games this year — six against Arkansas. Three players have at least four interceptions on the year. In addition, the Mean Green have limited opposing QBs to a 53.4 completion percentage and just 14 touchdowns through the air.
Previous Matchups
The Aggies and Mean Green have faced off seven times in the past and were once conference foes in the Sun Belt for a brief period. Utah State leads the season series 4-3, but North Texas has claimed the last two games, the last one coming in October 2004.
Who is coaching the game for Utah State?
The departure of Matt Wells already left a big hole but when he took most of the coaching staff with him, including offensive coordinator David Yost and defensive coordinator Keith Patterson, that made it worse. However, Yost will be on the sideline for the Aggies, calling plays for the offense. He, and the rest of the team, will be under the direction of interim head coach Frank Maile. Newly hired head coach Gary Anderson and any staff he has brought in will not participate directly in the bowl game.
What kind of game will it be?
Assuming both sides don’t lay a complete egg, it should be a classic shootout. These two teams enter Saturday’s game averaging a combined 966.6 yards and 83.6 points.
North Texas will likely have a field day with the dilapidated USU secondary unless the front seven can consistently generate quick pressure. Bussey Jr. will be especially dangerous considering what receivers have been able to do against the Aggies this season. Utah State’s offense faces a tough challenge from the Mean Green defense and its linebacker trio, but has one of its best offensive line units ever to protect Love and pave the way in the run game.
It’s far from clear which team will come away with victory in this contest. The Aggies have played excellent all season but have also faltered in their biggest games this season. Throw in the loss of Matt Wells and the disappointment of not getting to play in and host the Mountain West Championship game and that could do Utah State in.
On the other hand, it’s very possible that a motivated Aggie squad could burst out of the gates and pull out a quality bowl win against a quality North Texas team.