Rick Scibelli, Jr./Special to The Tribune

Lobo sophomore safety and punt-return specialist, Frankie Solomon, attempts to reverse his course to avoid the swarming BYU special teams defense during the second half of the Lobos' 31-24 loss on Saturday night, Sept. 29, 2007, before a packed homecoming crowd at University Stadium.

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Frankie Solomon would give anything to get the moment back.

If the sophomore had a chance to do it all over again, he would have caught the ball and sat down.

Instead, Solomon fumbled a punt return with 6:25 left in the University of New Mexico's homecoming game against BYU Saturday night at University Stadium. The Lobos couldn't recover and BYU (3-2, 2-0 in Mountain West Conference) walked away with a 31-24 win over the UNM (3-2, 0-1 in MWC).

“I know I cost us the game,” Solomon said, clearly still stunned by the turn of events half an hour after the fateful play. “It was a mistake I don't normally make. I always hang onto the ball, but this time I ran into DeAndre (Wright). He didn't realize I faked a guy out and we just collided. The ball popped out and we lost our chance to win the game.”

Solomon turned out to be one of many Lobos who made critical mistakes that added up to a UNM loss.

The Lobos had five big turnovers, including an interception by BYU's Bryan Kehl returned for a touchdown on UNM's opening drive.

“I think the players played extremely hard, but we turned the ball over too much,” UNM coach Rocky Long said.

When asked what he told the players in the locker room after the game, Long responded, “I told them that we turned the ball over way too many times to expect to win. I appreciated their effort, we played hard, but BYU is no better football team than we are. Make no mistake, they deserved to win the game, but they're no better football than we are.”

Cougars coach Bronco Mendenhall was just as quick to praise the Lobos' intensity and attribute the win to UNM's mistakes.

“Turnovers played a huge part in the nature of the game and our win,” Mendenhall said. “You take the turnovers away and the Lobos easily could have won the football game.”

UNM quarterback Donovan Porterie had trouble connecting with his receivers early. He went 20-of-38 for 321 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. It was the most picks Porterie gave up in a game this season, although he has been helped by some acrobatic catches by his receivers.

“It was a complete lack of concentration and there was no excuse for it,” he said. “We were capable of playing much better and putting ourselves in a position to win, but we didn't make it happen. We got better later in the game, but we hurt ourselves too much.”

The Lobos did have a few stars who helped keep them in the game.

Rodney Ferguson had a career night, rushing for 87 yards on 22 carries and catching four passes for 105 yards. He had three touchdowns and 192 all-purpose yards. One of his touchdowns came off a 71-yard screen pass from Porterie that tied the game at 21 with 27 seconds left in the third quarter and gave the Lobos hope after struggling early in the game.

“I do whatever my team needs me to do to win,” he said. “It doesn't matter what kind of numbers I ended up with. If the scoreboard says we lost, then it really doesn't matter.”

The UNM defense also was a major factor in the Lobos' comeback.

BYU didn't look like the dominant defending conference champions who mowed down opponents last season. The Lobos got strong pass pressure and forced their share of turnovers.

Rick Scibelli, Jr/Special to The Tribune

UNM cornerback, DeAndre Wright steals a touchdown pass intended for BYU wideout, Michael Reed, during the Lobos 31-24 homecoming loss on Saturday evening, Sept. 29, 2007 at a packed University Stadium.

Cougars quarterback Max Hall went 18-of-40 for 251 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He was sacked three times.

The Cougars also fumbled once during the game.

“Our defense put us in a position to win, but we didn't finish,” wide receiver Travis Brown said.

The defense did end up bending at the worst possible time.

BYU owned a 28-21 lead when UNM opted to punt on fourth down. The Cougars took possession at their 21-yard line with 3:10 left in the game.

Long said he figured the UNM defense had consistently been stopping the BYU defense and could make a strong last stand, giving the Lobos the ball back with enough time to mount another scoring drive.

BYU running back Harvey Unga helped the Cougars come up with all the big plays they needed to run out the clock and walk away with the win.

Unga finished the game with 56 yards on 22 carries and two catches for 34 yards. His numbers weren't gaudy, but Unga came up with all the big plays when the Cougars needed a lift.

As they raced to the visitors' locker room, several BYU players shouted, “It's great to win on the road.”

The Lobos weren't feeling nearly as good.

“This is an awful feeling going into a bye week, but we have to use it to make our team better,” Solomon said. “I know I won't forget it. And I know I never want to see it go down like this again. This was the game that got away.”