New Mexico vs. Colorado State: Lobos Preview, TV Schedule, Preview, Odd

Lobos looking for first conference win.

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New Mexico wanting to get started least one.

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WEEK 12: CSU (2-9. 2-5 MWC) vs. New Mexico Lobos (2-9, 0-7 MWC)

WHEN: Friday, November 18, 2022, 6:46 MST, 8:46 pm

WHERE: Canvas Stadium in Fort Collins, CO

WEATHER: 42° daytime & 23° evening Winds NE at 10 to 15 mph

TV: CBS Sports Network

Play-by-play: John Sadek (play-by-play) and Randy Cross (analysis)

LIVE Stream: FuboTV

RADIO: 77KOB Lobo Radio Network Rob Portnoy (play-by-play), Dontrell Moore (analyst

SERIES RECORD: Colorado State leads 43-25

LAST WEEK: UNM Lost to San Diego State 34-10. CSU lost to Air Force 24-12

WEBSITES: golobos.com | CSURams.com

GAME NOTES (PDF): UNM LOBOS | CSU RAMS

Over/under is 35

Odds/Point Spread: Rams (-6.5)

Total/Over-Under: 35

The Colorado State Rams (2-9, 2-5 MWC) will host the New Mexico Lobos (2-9, 2-5) this Friday at 1:30 MST at Canvas Stadium in Fort Collings, Colorado.

The Lobos be trying to close out their season with a win when they face the Colorado State Rams on Friday afternoon on CBS Sports Network.

The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network with John Sadak on play-by-play and Randy Cross on the color.

The Lobos are coming off a 34-10 loss to San Diego State as 14.5-point underdogs. The Rams are coming off a 24-12 loss to Air Force as 21.5-point underdogs.

For UNM, it will be a second straight game with C.J. Montes at the helm at quarterback, UNM’s third starting quarterback of the year.

CJ Montes, just a freshman, was solid against San Diego State, going 15-for-23 for 112 yards in the contest on Friday night, and scored his first career touchdown in a 34-10 loss to the Aztecs on a read option in the red zone for UNM.

Montes connected on 15/23 with 112 yards passing, a QB rating of 97.4, and one interception, while Nate Jones led the Lobo rushing offense with eight carries and 68 yards, and 8.5 yards per carry.

The Lobos and the Rams are very similar in terms of being two teams with two wins that are struggling on offense, and both UNM head coach Danny Gonzales and CSU head coach Jay Norvell are in a rebuild mode of their prospective schools.

New Mexico ranks last in the FBS in yards per game, and Colorado State ranks last in scoring. UNM is last in first downs, and Colorado State is last in the red zone offense.

New Mexico is next to last in third down conversion percentage, ahead of only Colorado State, which is last, which speaks volumes of what both teams need to work on in the offseason.

Both teams have been pretty good on defense and can attribute one of their two wins mainly to the defense.

One huge strength that Danny Gonzales has is right on his staff, with Defensive Coordinator Rocky Long and his 3-3-5 scheme, nobody in the country runs it like him.

The Rams scored two defensive touchdowns in a 17-14 win over Nevada, and UNM had seven takeaways, including a defensive touchdown, against UTEP in a 27-10 win.

Both teams have good special teams, kicking, punting, and in the return game so there is no clear advantage for each other.

CSU has owned the series of late, winning the last 11 in a row, but the Rams Lobos games over the years have always been very entertaining and physical.

This writer has had the pleasure and blessing of watching it from the sidelines all the way back to the 1999-2000 Sonny Lubbock and Rocky Long eras.

The Lobos’ last win was in 2009 when Mike Locksley got his first win (and next to last, it turned out) win as a Lobo head coach, winning on a walk-off field goal 29-27.

The Lobos are trying to end an 11-game losing streak in conference play and a nine-game overall losing streak and getting a badly needed Mountain West Conference to win for the year.

Ending the 11-game losing streak to the Rams would give the Lobos much-needed momentum into an offseason that will start with the search for a new offensive coordinator, as Heath Ridenour has been holding the fort since being named the interim coordinator.

One can imagine the big challenge Heath Ridenour would have been thrown in the mix on play calling on an offense that wasn’t his. To begin with, it was former Offensive Coordinators Derek Warehime’s offense and his scheme.

Ridenhour left a very prolific powerhouse Cleveland High School head coaching job here in Rio Rancho, New Mexico; his teams averaged over 40 points a game and are playing in the 6A State Championships this Saturday.

Score points when the offense has the ball

New Mexico is averaging 14.3 points per game. They are throwing for 108.8 yards and rushing for 127.9 yards per game.

This Lobo offense has a total of 2,604 yards this season and scored a total of 3 touchdowns passing the ball and just 12 touchdowns rushing the ball.

The Lobo offense has an average of 127.9 yards in the run game, which is 99th in Division 1

The Lobos have a solid group of running backs between Nate Jones, who leads the Lobos, followed by freshman Christian Washington and both backs should be able to break away for big chunk yards.

The Ram’s defensive front has given up some big yards as they have given up big yards against the rush in last week’s Air Force game, over 359 yards.

Yes, it’s a triple option Air Force, but they have also given up big yards against Boise State, Wyoming, and Utah State.

So, look for Lobos Offensive Coordinator Heath Ridenhour to run right at this CSU Defensive front.

CSU has given up 1,892 yards rushing for an average of 172 yards per game and 24 touchdowns via the rush game.

They have yielded 15 touchdowns through the air and 203.2 yards per outing, with them sitting 36th in the country.

Colorado State has struggled defensively, giving up 29.4 points per game. They gave up 24 points in their last game so look for the Lobos to move the ball on them.

In this game, explosive wide receivers Luke Wysong and Geordan Porter (ASU transfer) should be factors, so look for the Lobo offense to get the ball to them in spaces.

A very big factor for this Danny Gonzales team this year has been the second half no show for the offense for the most part.

They must adjust at halftime or expect the opposing team’s defensive coordinator to change things up and they in turn adjust to the adjustment.

Just because something has worked in the first half doesn’t mean that that will still be there for the second half.

Play Solid Defense

Look for Defensive Coordinator Rocky Long to throw everything but the kitchen sink to finish the season for the Lobos.

Colorado State is averaging 12.8 points per game. They are throwing for 193.7 yards and rushing for 90.3 yards per game.

Ram Quarterback Clay Millen completed 79 percent of his passes for 179 yards and two touchdowns in the loss to the Falcons. Avery Morrow had eight carries for 42 yards, while Jaylen Thomas had six catches for 49 yards.

The Rams average 284 yards per contest, which ranks them 128th in FBS, and they have compiled 684 yards of penalties on 78 violations.

The Rams have thrown 2,131 yards through the air, with an average of 193.7 passing yards per outing, putting them at 109th in D-1.

Colorado State is averaging 12.8 points per game putting them 131st in D-1. They are throwing for 193.7 yards and rushing for 90.3 yards per game.

This Lobo Defense has struggled defensively, giving up 26.8 points per game. They gave up 34 points in their last game and will need to do a better job if they want to win this game.

But the reality is that this defense must stay out on the field much too long to give them a chance to be in games in the late third and fourth quarters.

The Rams are the worst in the country on third downs, but New Mexico is the second worst, so both teams are similar.

Both Defenses are the bright spot at some points during the season if one is a person who sees the glass as half full versus half empty.

The lack of points and offensive production has been a significant anchor on both programs’ winning games.

3) Win the Turnover battle

This is where games are either won or lost in the heat of the battle on the gridiron.

The Lobos found this out the hard way last week, giving up some very costly plays in the game that, when one looked back, really helped determine the game’s outcome.

So many games are won and lost on turnovers and when you are on the road its does bode well for the visiting team usually.

At some point players must step up and make plays during a game and this usually becomes a big factor to change the momentum in a college football game.

Prediction UNM 24 CSU 17

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