Dec. 13, 2006

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Seeking its first bowl victory in 45 years, the New Mexico Lobos (6-6, 4-4 Mountain West) will look to the hometown fans to be the difference in the inaugural New Mexico Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 23 at University Stadium in Albuquerque. UNM is playing in its fourth bowl in the past five years, despite starting 2006 with a 2-4 record, including a 17-6 loss to Div. I-AA Portland State in the season opener.

The opponent is San Jose State (8-4, 5-3 Western Athletic Conference), a program playing in its first bowl game since 1990 when it beat Central Michigan 48-24 in the California Raisin Bowl. The Spartans are 4-3 all-time in bowls, although this is their first postseason appearance outside the state of California.

While the Lobos are playing in their fourth bowl game in the past five years, they haven't emerged victorious since capturing the 1961 Aviation Bowl in Dayton, Ohio. UNM knocked off Western Michigan 28-12 in front of a 3,694 frozen fans in a bowl that lasted exactly one year. New Mexico is 2-6-1 in nine bowl appearances. The Lobos are bowl eligible for the sixth straight year, a claim no other program in the MWC can make.

A victory over San Jose State would be the Lobos' sixth straight non-losing season, a feat accomplished only during a seven-year run from 1958-64. UNM's last losing season was 5-7 in 2000.

New Mexico's starting quarterback will either be senior Chris Nelson or redshirt freshman Donovan Porterie. Head coach Rocky Long said the quarterback who looks the best during the week leading up to the bowl game will get the starting nod.

Subbing for an injured Porterie, Nelson started the final two regular-season games against BYU and San Diego State and has started six times during the 2006 season. Porterie is expected to be full strength after suffering a sprained left ankle in the third quarter against TCU on Nov. 11. Porterie won his first three career starts between Oct. 14-28, all in come-from-behind fashion.

UNM has started three different quarterbacks for the first time since 1991 (Marcus Goodloe, Jeremy Leach, Stoney Case). Senior Kole McKamey suffered a season-ending injury on the third play of the second game at New Mexico State. Nelson started the next four, going 1-3, and the final two games against BYU and San Diego State. Porterie started four, going 3-1.

It's an extremely young New Mexico team that will take the field as just five seniors are definite starters and that includes kicker Kenny Byrd. Only nine seniors see significant playing time: four on offense, four on defense and a kicker.

For a program that had only three winning seasons (1991, 1992, 2000) since its last bowl appearance in 1990, second-year coach Dick Tomey has quickly injected a winning way into the San Jose State program. The 68-year-old Tomey - formerly the head coach at Hawai'i and Arizona - is a veteran of 26 seasons and 298 collegiate games. He has guided the Spartans to 10 wins in their last 14 games and they finished the current season with their best WAC finish, tying for third place. SJSU was 2-9 the year before Tomey started and 3-8 in 2005.

Tomey is no stranger to New Mexico football as he has an 11-2 overall record against UNM. His Hawai'i teams went 8-2 against the Lobos from 1977-86, including 2-1 at University Stadium. He was also the head coach at Arizona in 1997 when the Wildcats took down UNM in the Insight.com Bowl in Tucson. He was 3-0 against New Mexico while at UA.

ABOUT THE NEW MEXICO BOWL

The inaugural New Mexico Bowl matches teams from the Mountain West Conference and Western Athletic Conference.

ESPN Regional Television (ERT) is responsible for the bowl's organization, operation, sponsorship, marketing efforts and more. Under the direction of ERT, the University of New Mexico provides marketing, management and game day operations support for the bowl. Jeff Siembieda is the Executive Director. Former UNM athletics director Rudy Davalos is Chairman of the Executive Board.

HEAD COACHES ARE GOOD FRIENDS

The mutual respect between New Mexico head coach Rocky Long and San Jose State head man Dick Tomey is so strong that Long said the two participating teams could probably practice simultaneously on adjoining fields south of University Stadium. Tomey annually hosts a May golf outing at Pebble Beach that Long has attended for several years.

UNM VISITORS IN OWN STADIUM

By contract, the Mountain West Conference representative in the inaugural New Mexico Bowl is the visiting team, however, UNM will use its own locker room. Therefore, for possibly the first time in school history, the Lobos will wear their road uniforms - silver pants and white jerseys - and have their name on the right side of the stadium scoreboard in their own stadium. That could be a favorable scenario for UNM though, as it is 3-7 in its last 10 games at University Stadium, but 10-5 in its last 15 games away from Albuquerque.

COMMON OPPONENTS

Both New Mexico and San Jose State beat New Mexico State and San Diego State during the regular season. The Lobos won at NMSU 34-28 and bounced SDSU 41-14 in their final regular season game on Nov. 25. The Spartans beat the Aztecs 31-10 at home and won in Las Cruces 31-21.

TIES BETWEEN UNM AND SJSU SPAN DECADES

The links between New Mexico and San Jose State date back nearly 75 years.

Dudley DeGroot was the Spartans' head coach from 1932-39, compiling an impressive 59-19-8 record, including a perfect 13-0 season in 1939.

After two seasons (1948-49) as head coach at West Virginia, DeGroot was in charge of the Lobos from 1950-52, going 13-17. His 1952 team finished 7-2 overall and 5-1 in the Skyline Conference and is widely regarded as one of the best defensive units in school history.

The `52 squad, which was inducted into UNM's Athletic Hall of Honor in 1993, allowed just 46 points and posted five shutouts in nine games. The Lobos were invited to the Sun Bowl, however, the University administration turned down the offer, feeling there was too much emphasis being placed on athletics at the time.

The undefeated 1939 San Jose State team was captained by Robert Titchenal, an honorable mention all-conference center. Titchenal eventually landed on DeGroot's Lobo staff in 1950-51 and later served as UNM's head coach from 1953-55. New Mexico went 12-16-1 in Titchenal's three seasons.

Titchenal returned to his alma mater where he compiled a 33-45-1 ledger in eight seasons (1957-64) at San Jose State. Two of Titchenal's pupils at SJSU were Claude Gilbert and Dick Vermeil.

Additionally, UNM assistant head coach Bob Toledo was born in San Jose on March 4, 1946. His spent two seasons (1964-65) as a standout quarterback at San Jose City College before completing his collegiate career at San Francisco State.

LOBOS, SPARTANS STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

Solid running games and sound defense are just two of the similarities between the New Mexico Bowl participants.

New Mexico has rallied in the fourth quarter to win three times this season. San Jose State has come back four times to win. The Lobos are allowing 361.8 yards a game defensively and have caused 25 turnovers. The Spartans' numbers are 353.1 yards and 26 turnovers forced.

The Lobos boast the conference's top rusher in sophomore Rodney Ferguson, who is averaging 94.3 yards per game and is coming off a 210-yard performance against San Diego State. The Spartans have Yonus Davis, who is averaging 82 yards a game and is just 16 yards shy of 1,000.

UNM has two receivers - Travis Brown (57-784) and Marcus Smith (47-787) - with at least 47 catches and more than 700 yards on the season. Likewise for SJSU in James Jones (64-787) and John Broussard (48-738). The game features good cornerbacks. New Mexico sophomores DeAndre Wright (13) and Glover Quin (12) rank 2-3 in the MWC in passes defended while San Jose State junior Dwight Lowery is tied for the national lead with a school-record 9 interceptions.

Neither of the teams commit a lot of penalties: UNM averages 5 for 41.7 yards a game; SJSU 4.7 for 36.8 yards.

MORE TIDBITS ON THE SPARTANS

• San Jose State led BCS-bowl participant Boise State 20-12 in the fourth quarter before losing 23-20 on a last-play field goal

•The Spartans have blanked five opponents in the second half this year: Stanford, San Diego State, Utah State, New Mexico State and Fresno State

• LB Matt Castelo ranks 5th in the nation in tackles, averaging 12.25 a game...he has 147 stops in 12 games

• QB Adam Tafralis is 16th in the nation in pass efficiency with a rating of 151.05...he has 18 TD passes vs. just 7 interceptions

THE LOBOS' CHALLENGES AND ADVERSITY IN 2006

New Mexico's bowl eligibility didn't seem plausible when you look back at the challenges that faced the team:

• the fewest returning lettermen in the Mountain West Conference (35)

• entered the season with a team that had combined for 151 career starts, the fewest by a UNM squad in more than 20 years

• a new offense with four new assistant coaches, three on offense

• having only one senior starter back on defense and just nine seniors that see significant playing time, including K Kenny Byrd

• the loss of four-time all-MWC RB DonTrell Moore, the league's career rushing leader, plus five other all-conference performers at center (Ryan Cook), receiver (Hank Baskett, linebacker (Mike Mohoric), defensive end (Evroy Thompson) and cornerback (Gabriel Fulbright)

• a 2-4 start, including a 17-6 home loss to Div. I-AA Portland State in the season opener

•the loss of senior QB Kole McKamey - a three-year starter - for the season (torn ACL) on the third play of the second game at New Mexico State

• using three quarterbacks for the first time since 1991

• second-half rallies from 14, 14 and 9 points to win three straight games in October

UNM ENJOYING BEST STRETCH IN MORE THAN 40 YEARS

You have to go back to the early 1960s to find the only other time New Mexico football prospered like it currently is under head coach Rocky Long. Some of the numbers are unprecedented:

• UNM is the only school in the Mountain West Conference that has produced at least six wins in each of the past six seasons (2001-06). That's also a first in Lobo history...additionally, New Mexico has posted five straight non-losing seasons (2001-05) for the first time since a seven-year run from 1958-64.

• The Lobos have 40 wins since 2001, the second-most in a six-year span...UNM had 41 from 1959-64

• New Mexico has a 23-14 MWC record since 2002 (27-17 since 2001), the second-most wins in the league over that span

HEAD COACH Rocky Long

The school's career leader in wins, head coach Rocky Long is in his ninth season at his alma mater. The only coach to guide New Mexico to four bowl games, Long has coached more games (108) than any other Lobo mentor. He has a 52-56 record, but is 40-33 since 2001. See p. 23 for more information about Long's career.

POSTSEASON HONORS

The University of New Mexico had nine players honored when the Mountain West Conference announced its 2006 all-conference selections earlier this month. The recipients were selected by the nine head coaches and a media panel.

Senior kicker Kenny Byrd shared the inaugural Special Teams Player of the Year award with Utah punter/kicker Louie Sakoda. Byrd was one of five Lobos named to the all-MWC first team.

Senior offensive guard Robert Turner was a first team selection for the second straight year, while senior lobo (safety) Quincy Black, junior wide receiver Travis Brown and sophomore tailback Rodney Ferguson earned first team honors for the first time in their careers.

Junior defensive end Tyler Donaldson and sophomore cornerback DeAndre Wright were named to the all-MWC second team, while sophomore cornerback Glover Quin and junior wide receiver Marcus Smith were honorable mention picks.

New Mexico's five first team selections were tied for second in the league behind TCU's six. The Lobos' seven all-conference (first and second team) picks ranked third behind TCU (10) and BYU (9).

After landing just four first team all-conference selections in his first three seasons at New Mexico, head coach Rocky Long has had 31 first team honorees since 2001 - an average of more than five per season. UNM has had 25 players named to the all-MWC first team over the past four years.

Notable • Kenny Byrd is the first player in both UNM and MWC history to be named Special Teams Player of the Year as the award did not exist prior to 2006...Byrd is the third Lobo kicker to be named first team all-MWC, joining former teammate Wes Zunker ('03) and Vladimir Borombozin ('01)

• Robert Turner is the third UNM offensive lineman to earn first team all-MWC honors in back-to-back years, joining C Ryan Cook (2003-04-05) and OG/OT Claude Terrell (2003-04)...the Lobo offensive line unit has had at least one first team selection each of the past four years...four different linemen have earned first team honors eight times since 2003

• New Mexico has had at least one defensive player named first team all-conference every year under ninth-year head coach Rocky Long and 15 total defensive all-MWC awards since 1998.

• Rodney Ferguson was the lone sophomore on the first team offense and is the first underclassman running back on the all-MWC first team since former teammate DonTrell Moore did it as a sophomore in 2003...Ferguson and Moore (four times) are the only Lobo running backs to earn first team all-conference honors since 1996

• Travis Brown's selection gives New Mexico a first team all-conference wide receiver in back-to-back years for the first times since Terance Mathis in 1986 and '87...Hank Baskett was the first Lobo receiver to earn first team all-MWC honors in 2005

DEVELOPMENT OF WALK-ONS IS IMPRESSIVE

Some of the better-known Lobos began their careers as walk-ons, including eight team captains since 2001: Jarrod Baxter (2001), Josh Bazinet (2004), Mike Mohoric (2005), Terrell Golden (2003), Brian Johnson (2001), Casey Kelly (2002-03) and Mohammed Konte (2001) all started their UNM careers without athletic scholarships.

Nine members of the 2006 team began as walk-ons: NT Billy Brittain, K Kenny Byrd, WR Jason Caprioli, QB Bryan Clampitt, DE Stephen Hutchison, CB Daniel Lowney, deep snapper Jon O'Brien, TE Curtis Pino and P Jordan Scott.

Current walk-ons who are contributors to the team in 2006 include starting NT Wesley Beck and back-up NT Jeremiah Lovato.

Baxter, a fifth-round pick of the Houston Texans in 2002, was a walk-on during the fall semester of 1997 under former head coach Dennis Franchione. He was placed on scholarship in the spring of 1998. Johnson, a two-time first team all-conference selection, was a 195-pound walk-on running back when he came to UNM in the fall of `97. He had to wait a year for a scholarship after impressing Long and his staff during `98 spring drills. Konte, also a redshirt in `97, paid his own way for three years before being placed on aid in the fall of 2000 and earned honorable mention all-MWC honors.

The 2001 list was S Terrell Golden, a three-year starter and honorable mention all-conference in 2001, and WR Terrence Thomas.

The 2002 recipients were Bazinet, C Ryan Cook, deep snapper Martin Lovato, Ryan Rice and Wes Zunker, who was an all-MWC kicker in 2003. Cook became arguably the best center in school history. He was a three-time first team all-conference selection (2003-05) and was chosen by the Minnesota Vikings in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft.

Gaus, Mohoric, Selander and C Derek Watson were awarded scholarships in 2003. Mohoric was a first team all-MWC linebacker in 2005.

The list in 2004 was Brittain, Jesse Demarest, Pino, CB Mike Powdrell, RB Daniel Ramirez, OG Bryan Humphreys, OG Melvin Foster, S Brandon McKinley and WR Martin Romero.

Byrd, Clampitt, Hutchison, Lowney, O'Brien received scholarships before the 2005 fall semester. WR Jason Caprioli and current starting P Jordan Scott were put on aid in August of 2006.

LOOKING AHEAD TO 2007

The last game has not been played, but it's noteworthy to take a peek at 2007. The reason is that next year's Lobo team will look a lot like this year's with up to 18 starters returning.

New Mexico has 17 seniors on the 2006 roster, however, there are only five starters and just nine that see significant playing time, which includes all-conference K Kenny Byrd.

Lobo Quincy Black is the only senior starter on defense while OG Bo Greer, TE John Mulchrone and OG Robert Turner are the lone starters on offense.

There's a chance that senior QB Kole McKamey could return in 2007 as well. A starter 22 times in his career, McKamey's 2006 season ended on the third play of the second game at New Mexico State when he suffered a torn ACL. He has petitioned the NCAA in hopes of gaining a sixth year of eligibility.

SAN DIEGO STATE RECAP

A season that began with an embarrassing loss is going to end in a bowl game for New Mexico. The Lobos, who opened the season with a 17-6 loss to Division I-AA Portland State, clinched a berth in the inaugural New Mexico Bowl with a 41-14 win over San Diego State.

Rodney Ferguson ran for a career-high 210 yards and two touchdowns and New Mexico scored 24 first-quarter points with the help of three interceptions.

"It's been an up and down season and we had some games that we should have lost and some where we came back to win," said junior linebacker Cody Kase, whose first quarter interception set the tone for the win. New Mexico coach Rocky Long said he wasn't sure what he had after the season opener.

"I was wondering if we could win a game," he said. "To lose to a division two team, then strap it up and win three or four really close games, then finish it off like this, that's a really good deal."

A month into the season New Mexico was 2-4, but rescued its season with a three-game winning streak in October. In two of the wins, the Lobos rallied in the second half from double-digit deficits.

"We've had better teams around here than this one, but this team is more competitive than any we've had," Long said.

This time, New Mexico needed no second-half comeback. The Lobos dominated from the start. Ferguson scored on runs of 26 and 49 yards, consistently picked up huge chunks of yardage against the Aztecs' defense and became the eighth Lobos back to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season.

New Mexico got an early field goal from Kenny Byrd, then scored touchdowns on three straight possessions to put away the Aztecs. San Diego State scored a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns after being down 41-0.

Byrd's field goal of 35 yards was his 24th straight successful attempt from inside the 40 and was set up by Kase's interception at the Aztecs' 37. Cornerback DeAndre Wright picked off Kevin O'Connell's pass at the San Diego State 26 and Ferguson scored on the first play. New Mexico then stopped the Aztecs on a fourth-and-1 at the New Mexico 28 and five plays later Chris Nelson tossed a 5-yard TD pass to Travis Brown. Blake Ligon intercepted O'Connell's first pass on the ensuing SDS possession and returned it 22 yards for a score.

OFFENSE NOTES

• New Mexico has had 15 touchdown drives under 2 minutes and 16 that have taken 5 plays for less

• The Lobos' 24 first quarter points against San Diego State are the most in the opening period since it scored 24 against New Mexico State on Sept. 24, 1983...that's a span of 275 games

• The Lobos are averaging 311.9 yards a game, but the average is 349 yards over the past 5 games compared to 285 yards the first 7 games

• Sophomore all-MWC TB Rodney Ferguson rushed 22 times for a career-high 210 yards against San Diego State...he is the 7th Lobo to surpass 200 yards in a game and the first since DonTrell Moore had 242 vs. Colorado State in 2003...Ferguson has 1,132 yards on the season, the 5th-best total in school history...New Mexico has had a 1,000-yard rusher five straight years, including four in a row by Moore from 2002-05...Ferguson has posted three 100-yard rushing games this season

• The past 5 games, Ferguson has averaged 116.6 yards and scored 5 TDs...he scored 2 TDs and averaged 78.4 yards the first 7 games of the season

• Ferguson definitely gets stronger as the game goes on...647 of his 1,132 yards on the season, or 57%, have come after halftime...the figure has been even more significant the past five games where he has gained 60% of his yards (351 of 583) in the second half

•Senior OG Robert Turner, a two-time first team all-Mountain West Conference selection, has started 48 consecutive games at New Mexico, which is every game in his Lobo career

• Junior all-conference WR Travis Brown has a reception in 24 consecutive games and 29 of 32 in his career...Brown has 99 career receptions (1,060 yards), 9th all-time at UNM

• Junior WR Marcus Smith needs 3 catches to give UNM two receivers with 50+ receptions in a season for the first time since Eric Morgan and Mike Henderson did so in 1990...Smith has eight TD catches, tying for 7th on UNM's single season list with Terance Mathis (1987) and Ricky Martin (1980)...Smith leads all MWC receivers with an average of 16.7 yards per catch

• Senior John Mulchrone's 20 receptions for 282 yards are the most by UNM tight end since David Sloan had 24 for 320 in 1994

DEFENSE NOTES

• New Mexico has tied a school record by returning 4 interceptions for TDs (Michael Tuohy, Cody Kase, Quincy Black and Blake Ligon)...the 1982 team also returned 4 for scores...Black has 3 picks for 138 yards in returns this season...for his career, Black has 4 interceptions for 169 yards with 2 going for TDs

• The Lobos' three interceptions against San Diego State are a season-high...UNM has 5 interceptions in the past 2 games and 10 in its last 7

•Senior lobo Quincy Black, a first team all-MWC selection in 2006, has 113 tackles, the most since Brian Urlacher had 154 in 1999

•Sophomore CB DeAndre Wright has a team-high 4 interceptions...he has 13 passes defended on the season (9 PBU, 4 INT), ranking 2nd in the MWC

•Sophomore CB Glover Quin has 59 tackles, the most stops by a Lobo cornerback since Art Celestine had 72 in 1995...Quin ranks 3rd in the MWC with 12 passes defended

DEFENSE CONTRIBUTES POINTS

The Lobo defense has scored 22 touchdowns and a total of 152 points since Rocky Long took over as head coach in 1998: 12 interception returns, 10 on fumbles, plus 9 safeties, and 1 defensive PAT.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES

• New Mexico has returned 304 kickoffs since its last return for a score..the last scoring return was 88 yards by Dion Marion at New Mexico State on Sept. 19, 1998...that's 106 games ago

• Senior K Kenny Byrd, a two-time Lou Groza Award Semifinalist and the 2006 MWC Co-Special Teams Player of the Year, has hit 18 FGs in 2006, tying Bob Berg for the 2nd most in a single season at UNM...Berg made 18 in 1974 and '75...Colby Cason is the single-season leader with 21 in 1997...Byrd is now 32 of 40 on FGs in his career and has made 24 consecutive FGs from inside 40 yards in his career...Byrd has scored 84 points, tying Stoney Case (1993) for No. 8 in a single season at UNM

• Byrd has won two games via the FG, a 39-yard boot in overtime at OT and a 33-yard kick at Colorado State as time expired

• Byrd has made 12 of 13 field goals in the past 7 games, the only miss coming from 62 yards against Utah...he is 18-22 this year with all 4 misses from 45 yards or longer

• Byrd leads the MWC and is 12th nationally in FGs made at 1.5 per game...he is also 1st in the MWC in touchbacks on kickoffs with 32...because of his leg, New Mexico leads the league in kickoff coverage at 45.3 yards, which means opponents start their drives a hair inside the 20 following Byrd kickoffs

• Byrd ranks among the top-10 on UNM career lists for field goals made (32 - 4th), FG accuracy (80% - 2nd), long FG (52 - T3rd), extra points made (90 - T3rd) and points scored (183 - 9th)

UTAH COMEBACK EQUALS BEST IN SCHOOL HISTORY

The 21-point comeback (down 24-3 with 3:27 left in the 2nd quarter) against Utah on Oct. 19 ties for the largest comeback in school history. UNM also rallied from 21 down (21-0 with 14:29 left in the 2nd quarter) against UTEP to win 37-21 on Nov. 23, 1974 in El Paso

It is the largest comeback for UNM at University Stadium, which opened in 1960. The previous best was 18 points against Utah on Nov. 5, 1994. The Lobos were down 21-3 with 8:16 left in the 1st half, but won 23-21 on a Nathan Vail FG to hand the 9th-ranked Utes their first loss of the year.

CHRONICLING THE COMEBACKS

The Lobos won three straight games (and nearly four) from Oct. 14-28 despite trailing by an aggregate of 44 points. A look at the rallies:

Oct. 14 at UNLV: The Lobos led 14-0 after the first quarter, then gave up 28 points in the second period to trail 28-14 at halftime. UNM scored 16 points in the fourth quarter then won it in overtime, 39-36 on a Kenny Byrd FG.

Oct. 19 vs. Utah: The Utes jumped out to a 24-3 lead with 3:27 left before halftime. The Lobos scored 24 straight points to take a 27-24 lead. After Utah regained the lead at 31-27, redshirt freshman Donovan Porterie marched the Lobos 78 yards in 10 plays for the game-winning TD - a 1-yard run by Martelius Epps - with 2:09 left. The 21-point rally ties for the largest in UNM history.

Oct. 28 at Colorado State: Behind 19-10 entering the fourth quarter, the Lobos won it on Kenny Byrd's 33-yard field goal as time expired. Porterie enginereed the game-winning drive again, going 63 yards in 10 plays. Before that drive, UNM had 211 yards of total offense.

Nov. 11 vs. TCU: Almost, but not quite. TCU led 24-0 at halftime, but the Lobos cut it to 24-21 early in the fourth quarter. A UNM interception in the red zone in the final seconds ended the comeback try.

4TH-QUARTER COMEBACKS HAD BEEN RARE UNTIL.....

Winning a game when trailing after three quarters hadn't happened very often for the Lobos in the past, but they pulled it off three straight games in October. In 42 games from 2003 through Oct. 7, 2006, UNM had been 2-15 is such situations before UNLV on Oct. 14. The previous wins came against Texas Tech in 2004 (down 24-21, but won 27-24) and last year at Utah (down 27-25, won 31-27).

PROFILING PORTERIE

Displaying the calm demeanor of a veteran quarterback, redshirt freshman Donovan Porterie has been the captain of the comebacks. A look at the Porterie-led final drives:

vs. Utah (10 plays, 78 yards, 3:58, TD): Porterie was 3 of 4 passing for 29 yards and he rushed 2 times for 14 yards, including a 16-yard scramble to convert a 3rd-and-9....after starting the game 3 of 11 passing, Porterie completed 16 of his final 22 attempts for 303 yards and 3 TDs...the Lobos scored on five of their last seven possessions

at Colorado State (10 plays, 63 yards, 3:16, FG): Porterie was 3 of 3 passing for 33 yards, scrambled 6 yards for a first down and drew CSU offsides with a hard count on a 3rd-and-5 play in the final minute.