Lobos hoped turnovers would be key to victory
Coming into Saturday's game against BYU, the New Mexico Lobos knew a lot was being asked of them, but coaches and players said they thought they had the game plan to at least give them a shot.
"We went into the game thinking that the way to win, because (BYU) is such a great football team, is to cause turnovers," said New Mexico coach Rocky Long.
It worked for a stretch in the second half, just long enough to put a bit of a scare into BYU, but ultimately wasn't enough to keep the Lobos in the game as BYU won, 42-17.
After giving up several big plays in the first half, Long said his team went away from man coverage in the second half, and the early return was an interception by Quincy Black, which he returned 88 yards for a touchdown to pull the Lobos within two scores.
OJ Swift intercepted another John Beck pass in the fourth quarter to give New Mexico its second and final takeaway, but the Lobos were unable to do anything with it.
BYU, meanwhile, got three takeaways and scored seven points off them, negating the advantage the Lobos hoped to find in turnovers.
Lobo quarterback Chris Nelson said he wasn't surprised by the way his team managed to move the ball against the Cougars.
"They did everything we thought they would do when we watched film," Nelson said. "We just made some mistakes, and we kind of beat ourselves a couple times when we had a drive going, and that's kind of the story of the game."
Nelson and Long both praised BYU and said the Cougars are a legitimate Top 25 team, though Long took that praise even further.
"I've been lucky enough to be around some good football teams and played against some good football teams," Long said. "It's too bad (BYU) had the struggles in the first part of the season where they didn't make field goals, because they're as good as any team in the top 10. I promise you they are."
E-mail: jtwitchell@desnews.com
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