For the first time ever, the Brigham Young Cougars (7-3) and the New Mexico State Aggies (4-6) will square off on the gridiron this Saturday. For 19 BYU seniors, it will also be the last time they don the blue and white for a game at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
New Mexico State runs a pass happy offense that is ranked 12th in the nation averaging 302.1 yards passing per game. The last time BYU played a pass happy team (Idaho State), the Cougars dominated and earned an easy 56-3 win. Don’t expect the same this Saturday.
New Mexico State is fundamentally different from Idaho State in two ways. First, the Aggies have a deep threat when throwing the ball. Wide receiver Taveon Rogers averages 20.0 yards per catch to go with his 9 touchdowns on the season. Austin Franklin averages 19.9 yards per catch. Five different receivers have receptions longer than 45 yards this year. Second, the Aggies have a run game to compliment their passing attack. New Mexico State averages 122.9 yards rushing per game, led by Kenny Turner with 799 yards and 9 touchdowns rushing.
The BYU defense will be challenged. New Mexico State had success moving the ball against #14 Georgia (402 total yards) and converted 7 of 16 third downs. The key on defense is to stop the pass and limit points (Georgia gave up just 16). New Mexico State has not won a game when scoring less than 28 points.
The New Mexico State defense is terrible. This unit yields 36.8 points per game. Even if the Cougar D has some struggles, the BYU offense has no excuses to not outscore the Aggies for the win. The key on offense is to stay balanced. Most of the teams that beat New Mexico State did it with approximately the same number of rush yards as pass yards.
Things to watch for:
TV: ESPNU
RADIO: KSL 1160 AM, 102.7 FM, www.ksl.com
The Editor appreciates all feedback. He can be reached via email at bluecougarfootballgmail.com
New Mexico State runs a pass happy offense that is ranked 12th in the nation averaging 302.1 yards passing per game. The last time BYU played a pass happy team (Idaho State), the Cougars dominated and earned an easy 56-3 win. Don’t expect the same this Saturday.
New Mexico State is fundamentally different from Idaho State in two ways. First, the Aggies have a deep threat when throwing the ball. Wide receiver Taveon Rogers averages 20.0 yards per catch to go with his 9 touchdowns on the season. Austin Franklin averages 19.9 yards per catch. Five different receivers have receptions longer than 45 yards this year. Second, the Aggies have a run game to compliment their passing attack. New Mexico State averages 122.9 yards rushing per game, led by Kenny Turner with 799 yards and 9 touchdowns rushing.
The BYU defense will be challenged. New Mexico State had success moving the ball against #14 Georgia (402 total yards) and converted 7 of 16 third downs. The key on defense is to stop the pass and limit points (Georgia gave up just 16). New Mexico State has not won a game when scoring less than 28 points.
The New Mexico State defense is terrible. This unit yields 36.8 points per game. Even if the Cougar D has some struggles, the BYU offense has no excuses to not outscore the Aggies for the win. The key on offense is to stay balanced. Most of the teams that beat New Mexico State did it with approximately the same number of rush yards as pass yards.
Things to watch for:
- Seniors. With it being Senior Day, watch for one or two to have a big game knowing it is their last chance to play in front of the home crowd. Thank you 2011 BYU Seniors for all your hard work, effort, and the memories during your careers.
- Attendance. Speaking of the home crowd, “just” 57,770 showed up last week for the Idaho game. Late start time, cold weather, BYU coming off of a loss probably all had something to do with it. This week, the game starts even later, and the weather will probably be even colder. It will be interesting to see just how many fans attend.
- Jake Heaps. BYU needs Heaps to play the way he did last week. Did Heaps really turn a corner last week? Will he continue to play the way he did down the stretch a year ago?
- Record Tracker. Cody Hoffman had just one kickoff return last week for 38 yards. He is now has 718 on the season, and needs 148 more yards to set the new single season school record for most kickoff return yards in a season. That averages out to be 49.3 yards per game.
TV: ESPNU
RADIO: KSL 1160 AM, 102.7 FM, www.ksl.com
The Editor appreciates all feedback. He can be reached via email at bluecougarfootballgmail.com
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