LOBOS PICKED 3RD
Tuioti opted not to go into game vs. CSU
UNM men’s basketball team chosen behind Utah St. and San Diego St. at Mountain West Conference Media Day
University of New Mexico football coach Bob Davie did his best at his weekly press conference on Tuesday to clear up what took place with his quarterbacks during the Lobos’ 35-21 loss to Colorado State on Friday.
Yes, it’s time to move on to Saturday’s game at Wyoming (4-2, 1-1 in the Mountain West Conference), where UNM (2-4, 0-2) will try to end a three-game losing skid. But learning from Friday is also essential. Turns out, it was a lesson learned for quarterback Tevaka Tuioti, who was the backup to Sheriron Jones against the Rams.
When the Lobos went down by two touchdowns in the third quarter against CSU, Davie said Tuitoti was asked: “What do you think about warming up? Are you ready to go?
“And (Tuioti) said, ‘I’m completely behind Sheriron right now,’” Davie said. “He said, ‘I think it’s best for the team right now that Sheriron plays this thing out.”
Tuioti, who led the Lobos to a 55-52 win over New Mexico State on Sept. 21, was not made available to the media on Tuesday.
Davie said Tuioti “cares about his teammates and wants to do
what’s right.”
Davie, who said Tuioti was well-intentioned, advised his redshirt sophomore quarterback that leaders also need to lead while on the field, not on the sidelines.
“We wanted to see if he wanted to come in and give us a spark,” UNM offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Joe Dailey said of Tuioti. “He felt like he was going to support Sheriron more so than going into play. He believed in Sheriron. We’re not going to beg anybody to play. At the end of the day, if you don’t want to play, that’s your case. You know what I mean? We don’t beg people to play. Either you do or you don’t. We addressed it and moved on. You say your piece and move on.”
NOT TOP 10: The Lobos have also moved on from running back Bryson Carroll’s blunder that caught national attention on ESPN Sportscenter’s Not Top 10 and ESPN Monday Night Countdown’s “C’Mon Man.” But since Carroll was not made available to the media after the game on Friday, the redshirt sophomore speedster on Tuesday addressed how he has dealt with the publicity after the gaffe amid a career-high performance (193 yards, one touchdown, 26 carries).
Carroll dropped the ball as he was running into the end zone for a would-be 57-yard touchdown.
“At first I was really upset with myself,” Carroll said. “But since we scored on the next play it turned into something different and I have to learn from it. It would have been way different (if the Rams had recovered the fumble).”
Carroll also received a reminder from his father to always hand the ball to the referee after scoring. Carroll’s father, Matt, has been coaching high school football in Texas for 24 years. Carroll usually talks to his father after games, so he knew what he would be hearing after the loss to the Rams.
“My entire life he told me that and I’ve always done it,” Carroll said. “The one time I didn’t do it, that happened. He had a game that Friday night too. But he was calling me later.”
Overall, Carroll said he gained great confidence from his performance and wants to continue to provide big plays for the Lobos. He said he played 60 snaps on Friday night and realized that he needs to be in better shape. Still, he believes he can be among the best backs in the MWC.
“My name got out there for a funny, bad reason, but at the same time my name is out there now,” Carroll said. “Hopefully people can see that it’s not all about the drop. It was the speed, too.”
Carroll started in place of Ahmari Davis, UNM’s rushing leader who was dealing with back spasms, Davie said. Davis is healthy this week and both will play against 19½-point favorite Wyoming, Davie said.
“It gives us a pretty good combination,” Davie said. “... One man’s misfortune is another man’s opportunity, and Bryson took advantage of that. (Davis) should be motivated to go.”
WHO’S OUT?: Davie said the Lobos will be thin at receiver, as Jay Griffin IV will miss his second straight game because of personal reasons, Davie said.
Linebacker Dylan Horton (ankle) remains out.
XFL: Former UNM running back Jhurell Presley was selected in the third round by the Washington D.C. Defenders of the XFL on Tuesday.