2006 New Mexico State Aggies

2006 New Mexico State Aggies Season Review, Game Recaps and Scores.

Dec. 2
New Mexico State 50 ... Louisiana Tech 23
Louisiana Tech scored first on a three-yard Patrick Jackson run late in the first quarter, and then New Mexico State went to work outscoring the Bulldogs 50-2 up until late in the fourth, and those two came on a returned extra point attempt after one of David Romaka's two touchdown runs. Chase Holbrook ripped apart Tech for 514 yards with  a 63-yard touchdown pass to Derek Dubois, a 15-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Harris, and a six-yard pass to Dubois. He also ran for a one-yard score. The Aggies outgained the Bulldogs 651 yards to 531.
Player of the game ... New Mexico State QB Chase Holbrook completed 41 of 54 passes for 514 yards and three touchdowns and ran for a score
Stat Leaders: New Mexico State - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 41-54, 514 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: David Romaka, 9-58, 2 TD,  Receiving: Chris Williams, 12-150
Louisiana Tech - Passing: Zac Champion, 13-29, 163 yds, 3 INT
Rushing: Patrick Jackson, 23-136, 1 TD. Receiving: Eric Newman, 5-86
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Chase Holbrook set the NCAA records for most passing yards and total offense in a season for a sophomore after his brilliant performance against Louisiana Tech. It's a shame the season is ending now since the offense has finally caught fire, but the opposition wasn't all that great beating awful Utah State and Louisiana Tech teams. Even so, after the way recent seasons have gone, the Aggies will take victories any way they can.

2006 Schedule CFN Prediction: 3-9 2006 Record: 4-8 Preview 2006 predicted wins
8/31	SE Louisiana W 30-15
9/9	New Mexico L 34-28
9/16	Tex. Southern W 48-14
9/30	at UTEP  L 44-38
10/7	at Idaho L 28-20
10/14	Boise State L 40-24
10/21	Hawaii L 49-30
10/28	at Nevada L 48-21
11/4	San Jose State L 31-21
11/11	at Fresno State L 23-18
11/25	at Utah State W 42-20
12/2	Louisiana Tech W 50-23

2005 Schedule CFN Prediction: 2-10 2005 Record: 0-12 Preview 2005 predicted wins
9/3	UTEP L 34-17
9/10	at Colorado L 39-0
9/17	at New Mexico L 38-21
9/23	California L 41-13
10/1	at La Tech L 34-14
10/8	Fresno State L 37-7
10/15	at Hawaii  L 49-28
10/29	Idaho L 38-37 2OT
11/5	at Boise State L 56-6
11/12	Nevada L 48-24
11/19	at San Jose St L 27-10
11/26	Utah State L 24-21

Nov. 25
New Mexico State 42 ... Utah State 20
New Mexico State blew the doors off Utah State with three Chris Williams touchdown catches and a 34-yard Courtney Bryan interception return for a score for a 28-0 first quarter lead. Utah State bounced back with two Leon Jackson touchdown passes in the second quarter, but NMSU responded with a one-yard A.J. Harris scoring catch with 28 seconds left in the first half. The two teams traded scores in the fourth quarter, but Utah State never threatened.
Player of the game ... New Mexico State WR Chris Williams caught seven passes for 161 yards and three touchdowns
Stat Leaders: New Mexico State - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 16-20, 287 yds, 4 TD
Rushing: David Romaka, 14-66,  Receiving: Chris Williams, 7-161, 3 TD
Utah State - Passing: Leon Jackson, 12-25, 146 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Leon Jackson, 8-48. Receiving: Kevin Robinson, 4-101, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Finally, New Mexico State got a win over a D-I team, and it didn't even take a monster passing day from Chase Holbrook to get it done. The win over Utah State was exactly like it's supposed to be drawn up. Get up early, get a little bit of a running game, and don't force the passing game to try too hard. Holbrook wasn't throwing out of comeback, he was throwing out of the normal course of the offense. It also helped to have turnovers to convert off of.

Nov. 11
Fresno State 23 ... New Mexico State 18
Fresno State converted three of New Mexico State's four fumbles into 17 points, and held on as the Aggies had one final drive that came up empty. Dwayne Wright started off the scoring for the Bulldogs with a seven-yard touchdown run, and closed it out in the fourth with a six-yard scoring dash. The Aggies got two touchdown passes from Chase Holbrook, who also ran for a one-yard score, highlighted by a 47-yard pass play to A.J. Harris to take the lead in the third quarter.
Player of the game ... Fresno State RB Dwayne Wright ran 26 times for 121 yards and two touchdowns and led the team with three catches for 27 yards. .
Stat Leaders: New Mexico State - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 39-51, 367 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Jeremiah Williams, 6-29,  Receiving: Chris Williams, 8-121, 1 TD
Fresno State - Passing: Tom Brandstater, 11-19, 99 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Dwayne Wright, 26-121, 2 TD. Receiving: Dwayne Wright, 3-27
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The Aggies have to come up with sharper, more focused performances over the final two games. Chase Holbrook is doing a fantastic job of not throwing interceptions, but the fumbles and the missed opportunities have been too much for the average team to overcome. At this point in the year, the offense needs to be more explosive and more consistent. The defense did a great job considering it got put in lousy positions time and again.

Nov. 4
San Jose State 31 ... New Mexico State 21
Yonus Davis cranked out 177 yards with a 25-yard touchdown run and Jeff Clark scored on a blocked punt as San Jose State became bowl eligible with the win. Down 21-8 late in the first half, the Spartans reeled off 23 unanswered points closing out with a one-yard Adam Tafralis touchdown run to ice it with 2:35 to play. The Aggies were hot early with Chase Holbrook throwing three touchdown passes highlighted by a 69-yard play to Nick Cleaver, but the Spartan defense clamped down and Davis and the running game took over.
Player of the game ... San Jose State RB Yonus Davis ran 25 times for 177 yards and a touchdown
Stat Leaders: New Mexico State - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 34-49, 364 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Tonny Glenn, 14-66  Receiving: Nick Cleaver, 7-124, 1 TD
San Jose State - Passing: Adam Tafralis, 9-16, 105 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Yonus Davis, 25-177, 1 TD  Receiving: John Broussard, 3-45
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... As much as the offense wants to be all about the passing game, it's trying to diversify a little bit. Desperate to get the running game going, Tonny Glenn was brought over from the defensive side to try to provide a bit of a spark against San Jose State. While he was effective, the offense didn't go anywhere in the second half and the Spartans rolled to the win. Penalties were a big problem committing 11 for 124 yards.

Oct. 28
Nevada 48 ... New Mexico State 21
Nevada forced five turnovers and went on a 35-point run to answer a first quarter 67-yard A.J. Harris touchdown catch on the way to the easy win. Caleb Spencer caught two touchdown passes and Robert Hubbard ran for a score, but it was the play of the defense with Jeremy Engstrom returning a fumble 19 yard for a score and creating short fields for the offense off Aggie mistakes that made the difference. NMSU had its moments in the second half with a 60-yard Tim McManigal interception return for a score and a three-yard Chris Nwoko touchdown run.
Player of the game ... Nevada RB Robert Hubbard ran 28 times for 114 yards and a touchdown and had three receptions for 42 yards.    
Stat Leaders: New Mexico State - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 19-28, 217 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Jeremiah Williams, 6-34  Receiving: Chris Williams, 8-90
Nevada - Passing: Jeff Rowe, 10-16, 125 yds, 1 TD, 2 INTs
Rushing: Robert Hubbard, 28-114, 1 TD  Receiving: Arthur King Jr., 5-65
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... After a big early touchdown pass, Chase Holbrook never found his groove against Nevada before getting knocked out with a band injury. He was efficient and able to complete his short passes, but they didn't go anywhere with the Wolf Pack defense limiting anything deep. Holbrook is the key to the attack and has to be healthy to give the Aggies a shot against San Jose State next week. Better pass protection would be nice.

Oct. 21
Hawaii 49 ... New Mexico State 30
The battle of the nation's top two passing games didn't disappoint with Hawaii throwing for 353 yards and New Mexico State going for 330 yards, but the Warriors was able to take control in the fourth quarter with 21 points on two Colt Brennan touchdown passes and a 20-yard fumble recovery for a score from Ross Dickerson. After getting up 14-0 on a four-yard Nate Ilaoa scoring run and a 34-yard Dickerson catch, but the Aggies were able to come back with three Chase Holbrook touchdown passes highlighted by a 61-yard play to Chris Williams in the third quarter. Melila Purcell came up with four sacks for Hawaii.
Player of the game ... Hawaii QB Colt Brennan completed 22 of 31 passes for 330 yards and five touchdowns and ran six times for 28 yards.
Stat Leaders: New Mexico State  - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 31-45, 323 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Chris Nwoko, 12-59, 1 TD  Receiving: Chris Williams, 7-160, 2 TD
Hawaii - Passing: Colt Brennan, 22-31, 330 yds, 5 TD
Rushing: Nate Ilaoa, 18-94, 1 TD. Receiving: Ross Dickerson, 6-125, 2 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... New Mexico State wasn't quite as potent as expected against Hawaii, but it got its yards and came up with a few big plays to keep it interesting. The Aggies got to see what a version of its offense can do with a ton of talent and when it's a bit sharper, and soon, they'll be like Hawaii. Protecting Chase Holbrook would be a plus; he was under pressure a bit too much from Hawaii's Melila Purcell.

Oct. 14
Boise State 40 ... New Mexico State 24
In a shootout with 1,004 yards of total offense, Boise State's balance overcame New Mexico State's 526-yard passing onslaught. The Broncos got up 27-7 on four Ian Johnson touchdown runs, and then held on as Chase Holbrook threw a 65-yard touchdown pass to Derek Dubois and a seven-yard strike to Chris Williams. Jared Zabransky threw two second half touchdown passes for the Broncos after the Aggies pulled to within six.
Player of the game ... Boise State RB Ian Johnson ran 27 times for 192 yards and four touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Boise State - Passing: Jared Zabransky, 14-21, 215 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Ian Johnson, 27-192, 4 TD  Receiving: Jerard Rabb, 3-59
New Mexico State - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 49-65, 526 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Jeremiah Williams, 8-15, 1 TD. Receiving: Chris Williams, 13-191, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The Aggies might have lost to Boise State, but they showed the ability to come back after getting down big early on. Chase Holbrook kept his poise and bombed away to get back in the game in the second half, but BSU's talent came through in the end. Now the real fun begins; the Hawaii game will be the wildest shootout of the season.

Oct. 7
Idaho 28 ... New Mexico State 20
Steven Wichman and Wendell Octave hooked up for two touchdowns with a 26-yard play to start the scoring and a 29-yard pass to close out the first half. Then the Idaho defense went to work keeping the Aggies to a 21-yard Derek Dubois touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter. Chase Holbrook threw three touchdown passes for NMSU highlighted by a 96-yard pass play to Chris Williams in the first quarter. Brian Flowered ran for two, one-yard touchdown runs for the Vandals in the second quarter.
Player of the game ... Idaho QB Steve Wichman completed 19 of 27 passes for 298 yards and two touchdowns with an interception
Stat Leaders: Idaho - Passing: Steve Wichman, 19-27, 298 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Brian Flowers, 19-91, 2 TD   Receiving: Luke Anderson-Smith, 5-87
New Mexico State - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 25-41, 342 yds, 4 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Chris Nwoko, 3-26  Receiving: A.J. Harris, 7-97, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The Aggie offense is at its best when it gets a running game to help out Chase Holbrook and the passing attack. Idaho forced NMSU to be completely one-dimensional, and it proved costly in the second half when everything wasn't quite working. Holbrook never found a groove and couldn't keep the chains moving. Under consistent pressure, he forced things a little too much. Against Boise State next week, more offensive balance will be vital, but a defensive performance like the Aggies came up with in the second half in Moscow would be even more important.

Sept. 30
UTEP 44 ... New Mexico State 38
The two teams combined for 1,110 yards with NMSU's Chase Holbrook throwing for 506 yards and UTEP's Jordan Palmer throwing for three, but it was an Emeri Spence interception of Holbrook to finally end the offensive shot. UTEP took a 17-0 first quarter lead highlighted by a 71- yard touchdown catch from Johnnie Lee Higgins, but NMSU slowly chipped its way back until tying it up late in the third quarter on a 19-yard A.J. Harris scoring grab. UTEP controlled the fourth quarter with two Reagan Schneider field goals and a six-yard score from Higgins, but the Aggies wouldn't go away before getting stopped on their final drive.
Player of the game ... UTEP WR Johnnie Lee Higgins caught seven passes for 223 yards and three touchdowns
Stat Leaders: UTEP - Passing: Jordan Palmer, 18-26, 414 yds, 3 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Marcus Thomas 18-81, 1 TD. Receiving: Johnnie Lee Higgins, 7-223, 3 TD
NMSU - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 48-73, 506 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Jeremiah Williams, 15-90. Receiving: A.J. Harris, 10-129, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... New Mexico State might have lost to UTEP, but the offense looked exactly the way it's supposed to. Chase Holbrook bombed away at will doing a great job of bringing the team back time and again, but he couldn't get the one final drive to get the team over the hump. There's no way most WAC teams will be able to keep up with the Aggies if the offense is rolling like and Holbrook can make the big plays. The defense isn't going to have to face quarterbacks like Jordan Palmer every week.

Sept. 16
New Mexico State 48 ... Texas Southern 14
New Mexico State cranked out 520 yards of total offense as Chase Holbrook threw for 347 yards and Jeremiah Williams scored four touchdowns. The Aggies broke open a 7-7 tie with a 23-yard Williams score, followed up by Williams touchdown runs from 35 and four yards out. The highlight was a 64-yard touchdown catch from Chris Williams midway through the third quarter to put the score well out of reach.
Player of the game ... New Mexico State RB Jeremiah Williams ran 15 times for 106 yards and three touchdowns and caught six passes for 50 yards and a touchdown
Stat Leaders: Texas Southern - Passing: Cornelius Harmon, 10-21, 105 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Brent Wilson, 11-37. Receiving: Marcus Justice, 3-21
NMSU - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 27-42, 347 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Jeremiah Williams, 15-106, 3 TD. Receiving: Jeremiah Williams, 6-50, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... The Aggies got a brilliant day from Chase Holbrook against Texas Southern as he becomes more and more comfortable running the offense, but the most important game came from Jeremiah Williams as he provided a bit of a rushing threat to take the place of Justine Buries. Everything clicked for the Aggie attack just in time for next week's shootout at UTEP. The defense probably can't come close to stopping Jordan Palmer and the boys, but the offense should keep up the pace for at least a half.

Sept. 9
New Mexico 34 ... New Mexico State 28
The two teams combined for 955 yards and big play after big play with New Mexico holding on in the end. The Lobos got a huge day from backup QB Chris Nelson, who filled in for injured Kole McKamey, with three touchdown passes to Marcus Smith including a 61-yard strike early in the fourth quarter for a 34-14 lead. But the Aggies roared back thanks to Chase Holbrook, who threw for 472 yards, and he hooked up with Nick Cleaver for a 60-yard touchdown and with Derek Dubois for a 13-yard score with just under five minutes to play. They got one final chance, but the drive stalled.
Player of the game ... New Mexico WR Marcus Smith made five catches for 179 yards and three touchdowns
Stat Leaders: New Mexico - Passing: Chris Nelson, 11-26, 283 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Rodney Ferguson, 12-77. Receiving: Marcus Smith, 5-179, 3 TD
NMSU - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 37-56, 472 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Chris Nwoko, 3-27. Receiving: Derek Dubois, 7-104, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... New Mexico State might have lost the rivalry game to New Mexico, but the team has to be fired up over what it was able to do offensively. Chase Holbrook bombed away to get the team back in the game, and now he has to be more effective early so that the comebacks aren't needed. The secondary is going to be an issue all season long in the WAC, so it's fortunate that the offense is equipped to get into shootouts.

Aug. 31
New Mexico State 30 ... SE Louisiana 15 
New Mexico State broke a 13 game losing streak thanks to a 381-yard passing day from new quarterback Chase Holbrook and 515 yards of total Aggie offense. NMSU jumped out to a 14-0 lead early in the first quarter on a ten-yard touchdown run from Justine Buries and a 37-yard scoring grab from Chris Williams, but SE Louisiana came back with two touchdowns, and two failed conversions. The Aggies took the lead for good early in the second half on a 15-yard touchdown catch from Derek Dubois.
Player of the game ... Ball State QB Nate Davis completed seven of eight passes for 108 yards and three touchdowns.
Stat Leaders: SE Louisiana - Passing: Seth Babin, 17-28, 130 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Jay Lucas, 17-96, 1 TD. Receiving: Byron Ross, 5-35
NMSU - Passing: Chase Holbrook, 29-40, 381 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Justine Buries, 22-107, 1 TD. Receiving: Chris Williams, 7-146, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean Basil? ... Chase Holbrook looks like the triggerman who can make the Hal Mumme Air Raid offense fly. Sure, all the fireworks came against SE Louisiana, but the attack showed balance and explosiveness. Now it needs to show some consistency after struggling way too much to get anything going in the second half. The defense wasn't a rock, but it was great on third downs. Penalties are an issue after committing 16 for 162 yards.

2006 New Mexico State Preview

New Mexico State Preview | Offense | Defense | Depth Chart | Further Analysis

UCF went 0-11 in 2004 and ended up playing for the Conference USA title in 2005 in year two under George O'Leary. Is there any chance New Mexico State can make a similar surprise leap in 2006 in Hal Mumme's second season?

No.

It wasn't just that the team went winless last year, it was that it was bad at everything other than punting. The run defense, pass defense, offensive line and ground games all battled for the honor of being the worst in America, while the much-anticipated passing  attack was ineffective at best, a liability at worst. 

Things can't be worse, and they won't be with enough experienced players to expect better overall production and a quarterback in Chase Holbrook who should be far, far more efficient than Royal Gill and Joey Vincent were last year. It's also a plus to play in the WAC where immediate results can come right away with just a little bit of better overall play.

Step one for Mumme will be to make his team competitive after being outscored by an average of 39 to 16.5 per game and only coming within single-digits in losses to Idaho and Utah State. Step two will be to get the passing game going to the point to where it makes defensive coordinators quake. NMSU doesn't have to be fantastic on both sides of the ball, but it has to be equipped to hang up 35 points every once in a while and get involved in a few shootouts. That'll happen this year.

The overall talent level will continue to improve as Mumme brings in recruits and JUCO transfers to match what he wants to do after trying to play with pieces that didn't come close to fitting last year. Remember, this is a program that ran the option not all that long ago.

This will be a fun team to watch, for good and bad, and it does have the potential to eventually make a huge turnaround and start to be a player in the WAC. Mumme's track record would suggest nothing less.

The Schedule: The Aggies will not only get their first win in the Hal Mumme era early on, they'll be 2-1 thanks to games against SE Louisiana and Texas Southern. The road games are spread out nicely with two, two-game road trips to worry about. The mid-section of the season will be the most interesting to see where NMSU stacks up against the WAC heavyweights playing Boise State and Hawaii at home before going to Nevada. It's a bad break getting winnable games against Idaho and Utah State on the road.

Best Offensive Player: Sophomore WR A.J. Harris. RB Justine Buries is the team's most effective offensive player for the role he plays and QB Chase Holbrook will put up the numbers to get him the headlines, but Harris is the emerging go-to star with size and speed on the outside X position.

Best Defensive Player: Junior SS Eric Carrie. This could quickly change if CB Courtney Bryan steps up his overall game as a senior and LB Shauna Leaupepe can adequately replace Jimmy Cottrell in the middle. Carrie is a big hitting safety who's the one sure-thing on the defense after finishing third on the team in tackles.

Key player to a successful season: Sophomore QB Chase Holbrook. The Aggies might as well not even show up this year if the 6-6, 235-pound bomber doesn't play well. Redshirt freshman Scott Grantham has potential, but Holbrook has to be the face of the offense and the one who starts to put up Mumme-quarterback-like numbers to make the offense go and make NMSU competitive.

The season will be a success if ... the Aggies win five games. The two D-IAA games have to be locks, there has to be at least a split on the road against Idaho and Utah State, the home date with San Jose State is a must-win, and there needs to be one out-of-the-blue upset to make this happen. It's very possible.

Key game: Oct. 7 at Idaho. It's the WAC opener with the Aggies needing to avenge last year's 38-27 double-overtime loss to the Vandals. A win would likely mean a 3-2 start and a world of confidence for a team sorely in need of it.

2005 Fun Stats: 
- Third quarter scoring: Opponents 85 - New Mexico State 6
- Sacks: Opponents 45 for 298 yards - New Mexico State 9 for 57 yards
- Penalties: Opponents 90 for 809 yards - New Mexico State 63 for 494 yards

The Last Time New Mexico State…
…played in a bowl game…1960 (Sun Bowl v. Utah State)
…missed a bowl game…2005
…pitched a shutout…2001 (Louisiana-Monroe)
…was shutout…2005 (Colorado)
…scored 50 points…2004 (Florida International)
…went undefeated…1960
…won a conference title…1978 (Missouri Valley)
…had a 3,000-yard passer…1995 (Cody Ledbetter)
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…2000 (Chris Barnes)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…1995 (Lucious Davis)
…had a first-round draft choice…1961 (RB Bob Gaiters)