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Postseason bowl mess on horizon for Lobos

By Phil Parker
Monday, November 19, 2007

Steve C. Wilson/Associated Press

Utah's Zane Taylor (left), Darryl Poston (top) and Terell Cole (right) chase a fumble by New Mexico's Ian Clark during the second half. Clark's muffed punt return was one of four UNM turnovers in a 28-10 loss to the Utes on Saturday at Salt Lake City.

Season finale

Matchup: UNLV (2-9, 1-6 MWC) at New Mexico (7-4, 4-3 MWC)

Site: University Stadium

Game time: 3:30 p.m. Saturday

On the air: The Mountain (Comcast Channel 276), KKOB-AM (770)

What went wrong

Drop the ball: With momentum in their favor after forcing a three-and-out in the third quarter trailing 14-10, Lobos return man Ian Clark fumbled a low punt off his chest. The gaffe gave the Utes a short field and, a few plays later, an easy touchdown to go up by 11.

Butterfingers: Clark's fumble was one of four the Lobos committed in the game. Ferguson fumbled on the game's first play, DeAndre Wright fumbled another punt return and Donovan Porterie had the ball pop out while trying to rally New Mexico in the fourth - a turnover Utah turned into the game-clinching touchdown.

Porterie misfires: The Lobos' quarterback had accuracy issues all game, throwing for 198 yards but completing less than half his attempts - he was 18-for-41 in the game.

What went right

Second-half D: New Mexico's defense responded to a halftime deficit by clamping down in the third and fourth quarters. Utah only gained 58 yards over the final 30 minutes.

Gamble pays off: Down 14 points to start the second half, UNM's DeAndre Wright intercepted Utah QB Brian Johnson and returned the ball to Utah's 11-yard line. Two yards from the end zone after three plays, coach Rocky Long went for it on fourth down and Rodney Ferguson punched the ball past the goal line to cut the Utes' lead in half.

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The Lobos fumbled their way out of the game against Utah but - football gods willing - they'll be bowl bound after this weekend's season finale against UNLV.

The University of New Mexico's final destination? Here's the choices:

Albuquerque.

Fort Worth.

Honolulu.

Houston.

Confused? Just wait. It wouldn't be November without mind-numbing confusion leading into college football's postseason.

UNM fell to 7-4 overall after losing 28-10 at Utah on Saturday. The Utes, at 8-3, are a cinch for one of the Mountain West's four guaranteed bowl bids.

Head coach Rocky Long holds a team meeting every Monday in order to, he said, "talk to the guys about where we are."

In last week's meeting, coming off a three-point win over Colorado State to put the Lobos at 7-3, Long had a message about bowl prospects: "I told them if we're 8-4 it's 50-50 and if we're 9-3 they can't ignore us," he said.

So it would seem now the Lobos are 50-50 to snag a bid if they can beat the Rebels on Saturday. A win over UNLV will give UNM eight wins, the most in Long's 10-year tenure.

But New Mexico fans will also want to tune into Saturday night's Mountain West matchup between TCU and San Diego State. If the Aztecs can prevail over the Horned Frogs, the Lobos are bowling.

It breaks down like this: Lock BYU, Utah and Air Force into three of the Mountain West's four bowl bids; each team has at least eight wins already. The Las Vegas bowl gets first pick of MWC schools this season and it's likely BYU will be tabbed after winning the conference (the Cougars are in first place with Utah and San Diego State left to play).

The Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego picks next, and probably won't take Air Force because Navy has been invited to the game and the Midshipmen beat the Falcons earlier this season. That's means Utah is likely their pick. Air Force will either play in the New Mexico Bowl at University Stadium or the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth.

Ah, but . . . if TCU wins Saturday, they'll be 7-5. The Horned Frogs are attractive to the Armed Forces Bowl because of where it's played. Even if the Lobos beat UNLV to go to 8-4, Armed Forces still might invite the Frogs. (NCAA rules say a 6-6 team can't be selected over another team with a better record in its conference, which is why the Frogs need to get to 7-5.)

That would put Air Force into the New Mexico Bowl.

Another caveat here is the New Mexico Bowl's rule mandating the Lobos and New Mexico State can only play in the game once every three years. Conference athletics directors can overrule that with a vote. If TCU loses, leaving Air Force and New Mexico to decide who goes to Texas and who plays here, athletics directors probably won't bring the Falcons to Albuquerque because it wouldn't make financial sense.

But there's more to this bowl mess.

Even if Air Force goes to the New Mexico Bowl and TCU winds up in the Armed Forces Bowl, UNM still has a shot at playing in December.

If Hawaii beats Boise State on Friday night ("That's going to be a great game," Long said) and goes undefeated through the whole season, the Rainbow Warriors will likely be playing in a BCS slot. That will open up a spot in the Hawaii Bowl, which might be interested in the Lobos. And if the Big 12 can't field enough teams with six wins to put someone in the Texas Bowl in Houston, they'll look at the Lobos as well.

The Lobos will carry that bowl hope/confusion into their season finale Saturday against UNLV.

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