New Mexico Football Report

WNMU Mustangs  28           Western State Colorado Univ. Mountaineers  0

There's a rule of thumb in football that states, "If your punter is having a great day, that's  a  sure sign that your offense ain't getting it done"  Western St's punter Dakota Swinehart, a true freshman from Taos, N.M. punted nine times for an average of 40 yds. per punt with a  long of 51 yds. WNMU scored twice in the second quarter and twice in the third quarter to secure the 28-0 victory. The Mustang defense registered its first shutout since 2006 (24-0 over WSCU)

The Mustangs rolled into Gunnison,Colo. determined to regroup after a disappointing homecoming loss to Colorado Mesa Univ.  WSCU on the other hand has hoping that a little home cooking would get them their first win of the season.  Five minutes into the game it looked like good fortune was coming the way of the Mountaineers. WNMU fumbled a punt return and WSCU took over at the Mustang 20 yd. line. Western's defense however stuffed  the Mountaineers forcing them to attempt a 33 yd. field goal, which they missed.

 After an exchange of possessions  in the first quarter, Western's passing game got going as Mitch Glasmann connected with Marquis Sumpter on a pair of crucial pass plays, the second going 20 yds. for a touchdown.  After forcing a three and out from the Mountaineers,  the Mustangs needed just two minutes to score again. Glasmann found Donald Byrd for a 15 yd. strike and then Adam Clark reached into his bag of tricks, having Byrd throw to Ronnell Pompey, for a 32 yd. reception down to the Mountaineer 14 yard line.

A defensive holding penalty secured a first down for WNMU, after which John De La Rosa took it in for a touchdown, giving WNMU a 14-0 lead.  The Mustangs then had another chance to score late in the first half, when Bernard Williams intercepted a pass, returning it to the WSCU 42 yd. line, however the Mustangs were unable to cash in as the clock expired. In the third quarter Mitch Glasmann and the Mustangs found the magic touch again. Glasmann locked  Marquis Sumpter in his sights for a 59 yd. td. strike.

 WSCU wasn't much of a threat after that, unlike their game against NMHU the week prior, the Mountaineers had few answers nor did they stage a rally. WSCU's primary offensive (i.e. only weapon) Germaine Daniels carried the ball 28 times for 98 yds., less than half of what he gained against Highlands. WSCU starting Qb. Brian Duboski was pulled and redshirt freshman Kyle Motal played the entire second half, he finished with 98 passing yards on 9 completions out of 22 attempts.

The Mustangs had one more score left in them, as Glasmann directed a drive from midfield, that was aided by two crucial WSCU penalties. From the Mountaineer 25 yard line, Glasmann found Marquis Sumpter one more time for the final score of the game. From that point the game ground on without either team scoring. WNMU would finish with 354 yds. total offense, Mitch Glasmann completed 14 passes out of 30 attempts for 238, 3 touchdowns (all to Marquis Sumpter) Rinse, wash, repeat.

Sumpter had 8 receptions for 176 yds to go with those 3 td's. John De La Rosa was WNMU's leading rusher with just 35 yds. on 17 carries. The Mustangs turned the ball over twice, but they recovered 5 Mountaineer turnovers.  With the 28-0 victory, WNMU is now 4-3 overall 3-2 in the RMAC. The Mustangs  play at home this coming Saturday against Adams St. Univ. of Alamosa, Colo.

NMHU Cowboys  34           Adams State Univ. Grizzlies   20

You wouldn't know it by the score, but Highland's defense pitched a shutout against Adams St.  The Grizzlies let their defense and special teams do all the driving, with two defensive scores and two field goals accounting for all their points. Almost nine minutes into the game, NMHU had a punt blocked and recovered in the end zone by Vince Coach. The Cowboy's ensuing possession came up empty, after which Adams St. ran off 13 plays, covering 56 yds. and slashing 6:36 off the clock, only to settle for a 22 yd. field goal by David Van Voris. 

The Cowboys decided to flex a little muscle to get what they needed. It also helped that the Grizzlies committed turnovers on each of their last three possessions of the first half (they finished the game with 5 overall) Starting from midfield after an Adams St. turnover, Highlands ran 8 plays before Zach Tapia came out to kick a 32 yd. field goal. That got the Cowboys on the board 3-10. A Cowboy interception with under 2 minutes in the half, led to Highland's first touchdown of the game, a 1yd. run by Lavelle Peterson. 

The two teams headed into the locker rooms tied at 10-10. David Van Voris' 28 yd. field goal pulled the Grizzlies ahead 13-10. to start the second half.  After a rather modest first half, Cowboy Qb. Emmanuel Lewis shifted into overdrive, passing on almost every down. A third quarter 75 yd. drive ended with Lewis connecting with Darius Davis on a 35yd. td pass. as Highlands retook the lead 17-13.  On the Cowboys' subsequent drive Zach Tapia nailed a 55 yd. field goal for the Cowboys extending the lead to 20-13. 

Stalked by their own miscues, the Grizzlies finally got a break at the start of the fourth quarter as Connor Stevens scooped up a Cowboy fumble at  near midfield and ran it back 54 yds. for a touchdown. With the score knotted at 20-20, Emmanuel Lewis took it up to another level.  A pair of drives of 70+ yards put a halt to any thoughts of an upset, Lewis found Kevon Williams for an 8 yd. td pass and then connected with Darius Davis again, this time for 40 yds. to put the cherry on top.... order ready!

As the Cowboys have done all season.... when the going gets tough, Emmanuel Lewis gets going.  If pass attempts were dollars, Emmanuel Lewis would be $67 richer today. Lewis completed 35 out of a whopping 67 passes for 437 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Pokes, finished with 472 yards of totally awesome offense. (437 yds. passing)  Lewis was also Highland's leading rusher with 33 yds. Highlands ran the ball just 25 times (10 of which came from Lewis) for a net of 35 rushing yards. 

NMHU WR, Kevon Williams caught 12 passes for 116 yds., 1 td., WR. Darius Davis had nine catches for 129 yds., 2 td's. For Davis it was his fifth straight game with over 100 yds. receiving.  Place kicker Zach Tapia tallied 10 points for the Pokes, on two field goals and four extra points. The Grizzlies couldn't overcome their five turnovers or match Highland's offensive firepower. Leaning on your defense to score will only take you so far. The Grizzlies were held to 302 yards of total offense and zero touchdowns.

The Cowboys will host the Eagles of Chadron State College, on 10/20, in Las Vegas, N.M.  NMHU now sits tied with #1 AFCA,  CSU-Pueblo atop the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference standing with a perfect 5-0 RMAC record and a 6-1 overall record. Barring an upset against the 5-2, 4-1 Chadron St. Eagles, the NMHU vs. CSU-Pueblo match-up could decide the conference championship. 

Chadron St., is located in Chadron, Nebraska in the Pine Ridge area of Nebraska's panhandle. It's recognized as one of the four best mountain biking towns in the U.S. and the football team is known for sending Don Beebe (Buffalo Bills) and Danny Woodhead (New England Patriots) to the NFL.

Rock Mountain Athletic Conference Standings 10/19/12

1.    CSU-Pueblo  7-0   5-0   ranked #1 AFCA

2.    NMHU  6-1    5-0  

3.    Chadron State  5-2  4-1

4.    WNMU  4-3   3-2

5.    Colorado Mesa  3-4  3-2

6.    Adams State   4-3  2-3

7.    Colorado Mines  4-3  2-3

8.    Black Hills St.  1-5  1-4

9.    Fort Lewis  0-6  0-5

10.  Western St.  0-7  0-5

The CSU-Pueblo Skywolves have moved to the top of the AFCA poll, they face off with Black Hills St. this week. New Mexico Highlands and Chadron St. both received votes in the latest poll, however not enough to break into the top 25. Colorado Mines once ranked as high as #18 has faded faster than an Earl Scheib paint job in the blazing New Mexico sun.