Every Kids Dream: An Option Run to The Top of College Football!

[TrophyKing80]

Quote: Originally Posted by young22

Great start to the season! Hope you guys keep it rolling.

Thanks, Young. It's a credit to the defense. My offense still isn't where I want it to be, despite what the game results are. Save for the UNVL game, I haven't been able to establish the ground and pound style I'd like. I hope I can do so via recruiting, but only time will tell.

Thanks for checking in.

[TrophyKing80]

Quote: Originally Posted by joshuahuskers

Following! Nice start for Coach Moore's offense.

The UNLV was the break-out game for the offense, for sure. Had great production on the ground, which I hadn't seen in prior games. I feel I'm a season or two away from really establishing the option offense and it producing how I want, but for now, the squad keeps winning and mostly due to the defense. I don't know what they're feeding them on that side of the ball, but they're playing extremely well.

Thanks for checking in.

[TrophyKing80]

Matchup Preview *|* January 1,
	@
New Mexico State Aggies (0-5, 0-2 Away)		New Mexico Lobos (4-0, 2-0 Home)
Offensive Stats Comparison 14.6 Points Per Game 27.8 235.0 Total Offensive Yards 370.8 148.4 Passing Yards 230.0 86.6 Rushing Yards 140.8 Defensive Stats Comparison 42.2 Points Allowed 11.5 506.4 Total Yards Allowed 231.5 290.8 Passing Yards Allowed 189.3 215.6 Rushing Yards Allowed 42.3 Injury Report Chris Johnson/Forearm Fracture 1 Week Ben Mitchell/Torn Quad 4 Weeks Game Notes The Lobos of New Mexico defeated their rival, New Mexico State Aggies in last season's match-up in Las Cruces, by a score of 27-14. The Aggies will need to find some offense, fast, in order to even sniff at 14 points in this year's rivalry game, as the Lobos come in with the #1 rush defense and the #1 total defense in the country, surrendering just 11.5 points per game. The Aggies' defense ranks last in total defense and second-to-last against the run and the pass. The Aggies' highest statistical rating so far, is 118th in passing offense, which will face the 42nd-ranked passing defense of New Mexico. Barring disaster, this one should be drama-free, giving the Lobos two in a row over their in-state rival, after dropping three straight in the series.

[TrophyKing80]

Lobos Overcome 5 Turnovers To Defeat Rival

Albuquerque, NM
Lobos Football Sports Writer, Paul Brown

The Oxford Dictionary defines the term ugly as "unpleasant" and "repulsive". Knowing this, then it would be easy to define Lobos' starting Quarterback, John Williams' performance on Saturday, against in-state rival, New Mexico State, as ugly. Unpleasant. Repulsive. Williams would throw a career-high 4 interceptions, two of which would end up in the hands of Jerry Toth, Linebacker for the New Mexico State Aggies. Toss in a fumble on a punt return attempt, and the Lobos would hand the ball to their rival 5 times in this year's edition of the Rio Grande Rivalry. In Williams' defense, two of those interceptions came off deflections.

Despite the 5 turnovers, the Lobos found a way to victory, riding rising star, Running Back Desi Pittman to a 38-24 win. Pittman, for the second game in a row, put the offense on his back, this time accounting for 232 yards of offense and 3 touchdowns. "We knew their defensive front had a tendency to leave gaps in certain lanes when collapsing in, so we adjusted our game plan to hit those gaps when the runs were there", Pittman said after the game.

The runs were there, alright, as Pittman, Keith Wallce and Alex Williams combined for 319 yards on the ground, with the Quarterback John Williams adding in another 25 yards of his own. The gaps were wide enough that this old reporter could have scooted for 5 or 6 per carry. Pittman would score on runs of 1, 5 and 83 yards. Wallace would run a score in from 35 yards out. Williams, on his only carry of the day, would score from 49 yards.

"Our backs did a great job of fighting and finding space in this game. Especially when our passing attack was...well, not working", Offensive Coordinator, Zach Moore would say in the post-game interview.

In fact, the very first play from scrimmage was an interception off Williams by Bobby Hall. The Aggies, with great field position, would manage to convert a 4th and 2, sustaining a short drive that would end with a 7-yard TD pass from Aggies QB, Marcus Alllen, to Orlando Anderson, his first of two TD catches on the day.

Williams would finish the game 16 of 26 for 204 yards, but no touchdowns. He now has 9 interceptions on the season to just 5 TD passes.

The Lobos would storm back, though, starting at their own 3 due to a miscommunication on the kick return team, with a 14-play drive that featured three different 3rd and long conversions. Pittman would cap it with the first of his 3 TDs.

The Aggies would then go three and out and with the Lobos in great field position, they'd score in 5 plays, mostly using the ground game to attack. Pittman would score his second from 5 yards out. The vibe in the home town crowd seemed to sway to extreme confidence, as the Lobos tenacious defense would force a second straight 3 and out to start the second quarter.

That optimism would soon fade, as the ensuing punt was muffed, recovered by the Aggies, who would take advantage of the short field, scoring a TD from 4 yards out on a run by Aggies Running Back, Chris Neal.

Knotted at 14, the Lobos would take possession, but Williams would throw his second interception, this time to Linebacker, Jerry Toth. The Lobos defense would muster another brilliant defensive stand, forcing a punt. "Give Coach Irvin and his guys all the credit for keeping us in that game. Our offense was certainly not doing well, especially through the air, but our defense stood tall every time we needed them to", said Head Coach Justin Simmons.

On the next drive, the Lobos would strike with a long TD run by back-up Running Back, Keith Wallace, who would break contain and run for 35 yards. That play was setup by a gorgeous catch off a deflection by Lobos Wideout, Darrell Fuller, who would catch 3 passes for the game.

Up 21-14, the Lobos defense would surrender a first down, but force another punt. The Lobos offense would drive to midfield, and on a last-second hailmary attempt before halftime, Williams would get dropped for a sack before even having a chance to throw it deep.

According to the stat line at the break, you would have thought the Lobos were crushing the Aggies, with 15 first downs to 4, 260 total yards to just 76 for the Aggies, but those 3 first-half turnovers had kept the visitors in the game.

The Aggies would take the kick to start the second half, picking up a few first downs on their way to a 37-yard FG try. It would sail wide left. The Lobos offense would then drive all the way down to the 5 yard line, where Williams would throw his 3rd interception of the game. This one was picked off by Terry Price and returned near midfield. The Aggies would not be able to convert that interception into points, and entering the final quarter, the score still stood at 21-14.

The Lobos, finding rhythm on the ground, would get inside the Aggies 20 when disaster would once again strike. Williams, dropping back to try to hit a streaking Adam Pruitt, would instead hit the hands of the Aggies cornerback, flutter in mid-air before Toth snatched it for his second interception of the game. Toth would run it back to the 50 before being tackled.

"That one really hurt. We were driving, playing really well, and to have the ball end up in their hands again just crushed me," Williams was quoted as saying.

Coach Moore on those 4 interceptions would later say, "I should have stuck to the ground game. They weren't stopping that, but I wanted to build confidence in (Williams) ability to throw and pass us to a victory, cause I know there will be games in our future where we'll need his arm."

The Aggies would drive within striking distance, when, on 3rd and 7, Lobos Linebacker and Defensive Captain, Kelechi Smith, would break around the outside, sacking Allen for a loss. That forced the Aggies to settle for a 28-yard FG.

Up only 21-17 now, the pressure begin to mount on the Lobos offense. But not for long. On the very first play on the next offensive possession, Pittman would score his 3rd TD when he broke left, scampered beyond the reach of diving defender, would accelerate into high gear until he hit the endzone. That run set a new school record for longest run by a Lobos player.

The Lobos defense would stop the Aggies on their next drive, snuffing out a 4th and short attempt, setting the offense up with great field position. New Mexico would pick up a first down, then send out their kicker, Josh Brown, who would hit from 44 yards out, his longest FG of the season.

Now up 31-17, the Lobos defense begin to tighten its grip, forcing another 3 and out. Defensive Coordinator, Antoine Irvin, would note, "When we start to get a lead, our guys tend to play like their hair is on fire. They get out there, engines reeving, on high gear, and just swarm. It's a great feeling when I see my guys playing with that effort."

Back-up Quarterback, Sam Sisk, would come in to close out the game, completing 2 of 3 passes for 18 yards, but not throwing any interceptions. The Lobos, would pick up a first down on their next possession, then third-string Running Back, Alex Williams, would take his only carry of the game for 49 yards and another touchdown for the Lobos. It was Williams' first rushing TD of the season.

Now up 38-17, the crowd could finally breathe a sigh of relief, knowing their Lobos would pull out the win over their rival. The Aggies would add a touchdown late, as Allen would connect with Anderson again on a 25-yard pass, but it would be too little, too late for the visiting team.

Coach Simmons stated, "We're 5-0, we've beat 3 of our rivals, including the in-state rival. Our hope is this propels our team forward, as we enter conference play, but we can't rest on our laurels. That's what I suspect happened tonight. I give all the credit to the Aggies team and their staff, for being prepared to play a tough game. We didn't have our guys mentally prepared, and it showed in the 5 turnovers we had. We can't take anyone lightly."

The Lobos are now one win away from being bowl eligible, which would be the first time in six seasons. Next up for New Mexico is a trip to Wyoming to face the 3-2 Cowboys.



Desi Pittman sets a new school record on this 83-yard TD run



Aggies Linebacker, Jerry Toth, would snag his second interception of the day, following this deflection



The Akal Security Players of the Game

New Mexico State Aggies at New Mexico Lobos
Jan 1,	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
New Mexico State Aggies (0-6)	7	7	0	10	24
New Mexico Lobos (5-0)	14	7	0	17	38

Team Stats Comparison
	NMSU	UNM
Total Offense	265	563
Rushing Yards	51	341
Passing Yards	214	222
First Downs	12	26
Punt Return Yards	--	40
Kick Return Yards	93	22
Total Yards	358	625
Turnovers	1	5
3rd Down Conversion	7/17	8/11
4th Down Conversion	1/1	--
2-Point Conversion	--	--
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	4-2-1	4-2-0
Penalties	2-20	2-18
Possession Time	10:48	17:12

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		NMSU	UNM
	(NMSU) 6-yard TD pass to Anderson	7	0
	(UNM) Pittman runs it in from 1 yard out	7	7
	(UNM) 5-yard score by Pittman	7	14
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		NMSU	UNM
	(NMSU) C. Neal runs it in from the 4	14	14
	(UNM) Wallace breaks lose for a 35-yard TD run	14	21
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		NMSU	UNM
	(NMSU) 28-yard FG try is good by Lee	17	21
	(UNM) Pittman scores his 3rd TD run on a 83-yard gallop	17	28
	(UNM) Brown connects from 44 yards away	17	31
	(UNM) Williams breaks free for a 49-yard TD run	17	38
	(NMSU) Anderson scores his second TD of the day via a 25-yard pass	24	38

New Mexico State Aggies PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Marcus Allen 16/36 214 2 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Chris Neal 14 18 1.2 1 Atari Griffin 7 24 3.4 Marcus Allen 4 9 2.2 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD A.J. Barnes 4 72 18.0 Orlando Anderson 3 45 15.0 2 Max Wright 3 42 14.0 Cole Hummphrey 2 36 18.0 Marco Baker 1 8 8.0 David Babcock 1 2 2.0 Atari Griffin 1 8 8.0 Chris Neal 1 1 1.0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK Alex Jenkins 7 Charles Booker 3 1 Chris Wright 3 Terry Johnson 1 1 Atari Griffin 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Derek Graham 9 Dustin Booth 8 Terry Price 7 1 Jerry Toth 5 1 2 Courtney Cook 5 Kris Johnson 5 Bobby Hall 3 1 Dan Lawson 2 T.J. Newton 2 Cameron Woods 2 Julian Pollard 2 David Allen 1 Ryan Shelton 1 Paul Evans 1 1 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Jermaine Lee 1/2 3/3 6 28 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 Tommy Jones 6 271 45.1 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Damon Spence 3 69 23.0 Max Wright 1 24 24.0

New Mexico Lobos PASSING C/A YDS TD INT John Williams 16/26 204 0 4 Sam Sisk 2/3 18 0 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Desi Pittman 20 218 10.9 3 Keith Wallace 4 52 13.0 1 Alex Williams 1 49 49.0 1 John Williams 3 25 8.3 Samson Thornburg 1 4 4.0 Cliff Hagen 1 4 4.0 Billy Fields 4 -3 -0.7 Adam Pruitt 1 -7 -7.0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Matt Nicholson 5 64 12.8 Darrell Fuller 3 42 14.0 Adam Pruitt 3 37 12.3 Billy Fields 2 24 12.0 Cliff Hagen 2 19 9.5 David Johnson 1 8 8.0 Samson Thornburg 1 14 14.0 Desi Pittman 1 14 14.0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK Mark Adams 2 Jeff Hendrix 1 Spencer Jackson 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Danny Freeman 8 Sean Scott 5 1 Chris Meeks 5 Tyler Roberson 4 Josh Williams 4 Nathan Keller 4 2 Brian Parsons 4 Mike Burks 3 Kelechi Smith 3 1 Billy Sims 3 Nick Britton 2 Sean Doyle 2 Jayson Brown 2 Wayne Scott 2 Scott Bonner 1 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Josh Brown 1/2 5/5 8 44 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Pete Clark 1 3 3.0 Mike Burks 1 19 19.0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Mike Burks 4 40 10.0

[parent22]

Nice win! It's been an unbelievable start for you guys -- I hope that you can keep it up. Nice to see Desi with a HUGE game on the ground, and of course Nathan Keller with two sacks on the defensive side of things. It's still nice to come away with a 38 point game regardless of turning the ball over 5 times. Some of that has to be just getting plain unlucky. Williams went 16-26 with 4 INT, so I would assume that it's going to change in the next game.

How's recruiting going? I know that you have mentioned before that it's not going well, so hopefully it's improved a little. Also, nice to see you guys not punt ONCE in the game. That's part of the reason why I think that NCAA Football 14 is the greatest college football game of all time -- it's offensive minded and has the potential to be a shootout.

Looking forward to seeing more updates! I will be following religiously lol.

[TrophyKing80]

Quote: Originally Posted by parent22

Nice win! It's been an unbelievable start for you guys -- I hope that you can keep it up. Nice to see Desi with a HUGE game on the ground, and of course Nathan Keller with two sacks on the defensive side of things. It's still nice to come away with a 38 point game regardless of turning the ball over 5 times. Some of that has to be just getting plain unlucky. Williams went 16-26 with 4 INT, so I would assume that it's going to change in the next game. How's recruiting going? I know that you have mentioned before that it's not going well, so hopefully it's improved a little. Also, nice to see you guys not punt ONCE in the game. That's part of the reason why I think that NCAA Football 14 is the greatest college football game of all time -- it's offensive minded and has the potential to be a shootout. Looking forward to seeing more updates! I will be following religiously lol.

Didn't punt once, but when you throw 4 picks and muff a punt, you kinda take punting out of the mix, no? LOL. Yeah, this was one of my worst games passing, so I'm guessing some of the adjustments I made for the AI worked, but they really had no answer for my ground game, which I clearly should have not abandoned. I kept forcing the air attack when I'm trying for a option run system. I did have a tight end visiting, so I was trying to get my starting TE 100 yards receiving, but failed. Pittman, Wallace and Williams all had great games on the ground. Even my QB had a couple of great runs on the run option. The only one they could contain was my fullback, Fields (4 attempts with -3 yards).

My schedule is a bit heavy on the back end, so I anticipate closer games moving forward. I'm in the same division as Boise State, so just winning the division will be a tall task, but if I can finish the year in the middle of the conference, that will be a win, considering the squad was picked to be last in the pre-season.

Recruiting is definitely going to be where I get dinged. At least for this first class. No one signed yet, but it's still early, but I've had a lot of players lock me out. I do have a fair lead on a Gem Free Safety (I think) who is a 3-star, but he's not a lock yet. And I'm not really in need of a FS, but if I can secure a Gem, then I'll take it. I think I aimed too high with this initial class, targeting 4-stars when I should have really set my limit at 3-stars, as none of the 4-stars are buying the hype. But I'm actually ok with a poor showing in recruiting. It will certainly be a ding against the Coordinator's recruiting abilities and create a good story line.

[young22]

Fantastic start, keep it up! Run game is going nuts.

[TrophyKing80]

Quote: Originally Posted by young22

Fantastic start, keep it up! Run game is going nuts.

Yeah, with a 5 TD to 9 INT ratio in the passing game, it's probably best for me to lean heavily on the run, which was my intention when I started the Dynasty anyway. ::shrugs::

Tougher defenses on the horizon, though.