Hoping That UNM Lobo Football Gives Bronco and Utah State Turquoise Nightmares
Bronco Mendenhall speaks to the press at the 2025 Mountain West Football Media Days in June at Circa Resort in Las Vegas, NV. Photo: Erik Moulton/The Pit Press
The storyline for Saturday’s New Mexico-Utah State football game is unavoidable:
A win would put the Lobos a game away from its first bowl berth since 2017 – a magnificent feat for a program with a new coaching staff and 72 new players.
And … turquoise uniforms!
Nothing else to see here, right?
Begrudgingly, there just might be some intrigue concerning coach Bronco Mendenhall’s return to the school he jilted after one season. Apparently, not everyone around University Stadium is mad Benedict Bronco turned his back on UNM for USU after leading the Lobos to a 5-7 mark in 2024.
“Fans can think what they want to think. The fans root for the front of the jersey, more than the back, and I’m sure some fans are disappointed he left after one year,” first-year Lobo coach Jason Eck said this week. “Don’t count me in that group, though. I was glad he left because I wouldn’t be here if he hadn’t left!”
Mendenhall is intent on downplaying his involvement in the clash, but he’s not wrong.
“There certainly could be people in the community and others that have issue with me only being there a year, but really, preparation and execution win the day and these teams are competing for a Mountain West Conference championship and it’s a Mountain West Conference game,” he said during Utah State’s weekly news conference. “And really, there’s not much time, energy and space for anything else, and I don’t anticipate it being more than that.”
The focus for UNM (4-3, 1-2 MW) is more on Aggies (4-3, 2-1). Quarterback Bryson Barnes not only is a new father as of last Saturday but is also fourth in the conference in passing at 234.9 yards per game with 13 touchdowns and two interceptions. He ranks 10th in the conference in rushing at 51.9 yards per game and seven more TDs.
Opposing QBs also have completion streaks of 17 (Nevada) and 13 (San Jose State) on the Lobos defense that Eck says requires more consistent defensive line play.
The Lobos also must figure out their minus-12 turnover margin (16 giveaways and only four takeaways) on the season, especially if they want to keep USU’s high-powered offense (34.0 points per game) on the sidelines.
So it’s the players on the field that have UNM’s attention, not the opposing coach who hasn’t been on the field for a play since 1987.
By the way, UNM can start a season 4-0 at home for the first time since 1962.
And yet, wouldn’t a UNM win on Saturday just be so satisfying because of the guy wearing the headset on the visitors’ sideline?
Benedict, er, Mendenhall reiterated the only reason he left the Lobos for the cozy confines of Logan, Utah was his family.
“The first guiding principle in our program is family first, last and always,” he said. “And I never imagined I would have a chance in this stage of my coaching career to be back in my home state with all three of my boys, two of which are here at this school. A chance to see my mom and my three brothers and to be home, so that is the answer. There isn’t any more to it than that, no matter what other narratives there might be.”
Not sure what other narratives could be out there, but you know, coach, you did spend 11 years at BYU and chose to leave your mom and your brothers back then.
