Changing the offense again?
Davie questions if spread is right fit
After a seventh straight loss to end the season for the second consecutive year, New Mexico football coach Bob Davie admitted that he might say too much after a 31-3 loss and did his best to only talk about the finale against Wyoming on Saturday.
However, Davie delved into the possibility of going back to the triple-option on offense and also offered his opinion, or rather insinuated, that financial support for the football team should be assessed.
The Lobos (3-9, 1-7 in the Mountain West Conference) struggled with consistency during their first season in the spread offense.
“Are we going to try to be a spread team and throw it around against these kinds of teams or do we have to be something more unique?” Davie said after the loss to Wyoming. “... I think all things are in play right now. I get the quarterback situation. We lost Tevaka (Tuioti to a broken collarbone). We play 12 games and it doesn’t seem like we’re going forward. At the end of the day standing on the sidelines we have to take a look against who we play in this league and particularly our division. Can we be good enough to do what other people do and expect that we can be better doing it and win? Is that a realistic thing to say? When you talk about recruiting and developing and just match up and do things that everyone else does and do it better. Can we do it? Right now, I say no. There’s no chance to do it. I’m talking too much right now. I’m clouded right
now. Everything seems so negative.”
Davie did say he is excited about offensive coordinator Calvin Magee, but added that he is unsure if Magee has ever been in a situation such as the one at UNM, where athletics is tight with its budget, considering the recent scrutiny that led to four sports being cut.
Davie wouldn’t specifically talk about the hot topic, only saying that he believes a scoreboard should be kept for that type of support and that situation deserves a conversation.
“That’s the million dollar topic that needs to be at the roundtable,” Davie said.
WHAT WENT RIGHT:
The Lobos had a solid day in special teams, with sophmore punter Tyson Dyer getting much of the work. He had a careerhigh 10 punts for 437 yards, a long of 64 yards, and two punts inside Wyoming’s 20-yard line.
The Lobos punt coverage also performed well by holding the Cowboys to 19 return yards on five punt returns.
Marcus Hayes, UNM’s redshirt freshman free safety, had one punt return for 39 yards, moving his average for the season to a school-record 21.2 yards per return, which leads the nation.
Danny Sutton’s two kickoffs went for touchbacks, moving UNM into the national lead in kickoff coverage.
On defense, Daquan #BLFS SFDPSEFE B DBSFFS high nine tackles.
WHAT WENT WRONG:
Dyer’s 10 punts meant that the Lobos couldn’t get anything going on offense. They were nearly shut out. It was the first time the Lobos finished a game without a touchdown since the last time they lost to Wyoming, 42-3, on Oct. 28.
UNM mustered just 83 yards of total offense, the first time not hitting triple digits since Oct. 22, 2011 when UNM had 85 yards against TCU in a 69-0 loss. It was the fewest yards of total offense since Sept. 17, 1988 when the Lobos gained 66 yards against Texas in a 47-0 loss. That game saw UNM quarterback Jeremy Leach get sacked nine times for a loss of 93 yards.
Wyoming finished with 407 yards of total offense, 366 coming on the ground with running backs Xazavian Valladay (192 yards) and Nico Evans (142) combining for 334 rushing yards.
NOTABLE: UNM senior right guard and team captain Aaron Jenkins extended the UNM record for games played in a career with his 52nd game. He also extended the career record for starts with his 50th, and his 50th consecutive start. He tied the school record for consecutive games played with 50 in a row, tying David Anaya, Jhurell Pressley, Marquis #VOEZ 4UFWFO 3PNFSP and Jason Sanders.
HE SAID IT: “It isn’t about me. It’s about our kids and our kids being in a position to have a fair chance to compete week after week.” — UNM DPBDI #PC %BWJF