New Mexico Bowl 2015: Arizona vs. New Mexico TV Schedule, Time and Odds
Upstart rivals collide Saturday when the Arizona Wildcats and New Mexico Lobos meet in the Gildan New Mexico Bowl, a mixture capable of producing bowl season's outright highest total.
Head coach Rich Rodriguez and the Wildcats managed to slip to a 6-6 record after years of resurgent play. A feature spotlight here might be considered a disappointment most years, but it's not this time out with the roster so hobbled with injuries.
For lesser known Bob Davie, now in his fourth year as coach of the Lobos, the appearance here—on their home turf at 7-5—is a major win for a program that hadn't sniffed a bowl game since 2007.
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Here's everything to know about what is sure to be a high-scoring affair between two teams that love to spread it out and gun down the field.
Game Details
When: Saturday, December 19, at 2 p.m. ET
Where: Branch Field at University Stadium in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Television: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN
Tickets: ScoreBig.com
Over/Under: 65
Spread: Arizona (-8.5)
Team Injury Reports
| Nick Wilson | RB | Out Sat |
| Samajie Grant | WR | Ques Sat |
| Anu Solomon | QB | Prob Sat |
| Jake Matthews | LB | Out for season |
| Freddie Tagaloa | OL | Ques Sat |
| Derrick Turituri | LB | Out indefinitely |
| Scooby Wright III | LB | Prob Sat |
| Cody Ippolito | LB | Out for season |
| Trevor Wood | TE | Out for season |
| Kene Okonkwo | DL | Out indefinitely |
Injury reports courtesy of USA Today.
Approaching Full Strength
Again, Arizona has to be happy with a bowl game at all with the way the injury dice rolled this year, as one glance at the table above shows.
Top-tier NFL prospect Scooby Wright III has missed most of the season, and quarterback Anu Solomon went down with a concussion in the middle of last month.
According to Michael Lev of the Arizona Daily Star, Solomon will be good to go for the bowl game:
It's the most important piece of info for this game. The Wildcats had lost three in a row ahead of a mid-November showdown with then-No. 10 Utah and were on the brink of missing a bowl game. Before suffering the concussion, Solomon accounted for three total touchdowns in the eventual 37-30 upset.
The importance of Solomon's presence to compensate for an iffy defense is key for the Wildcats. Rodriguez's defense has coughed up 30 or more points nine times this year, including a 52-37 season-ending laugher at Arizona State without Solomon.
Now the Wildcats have to put a 1-4 record over their last five behind them and hope that the return of two star players will be enough to edge one of the nation's most potent offenses.
Consistency Counts
The Lobos are all over the place.
In a 28-21 loss to Colorado State ahead of the season finale, quarterback Lamar Jordan threw for 58 yards and three interceptions, while the offense mustered 326 total yards.
To close the season, though, the Lobos pasted Air Force 47-35 to the tune of 512 total yards.
"It's not by choice that we've been so hit-and-miss," Davie said, according to ESPN.com. "We've had a hard time controlling the ball. We've had a hard time putting games away. That's something we continue to work on."
It's big-play-or-bust for New Mexico. Jordan might have just four touchdowns through the air, but he's averaging 8.58 yards per attempt, and three of his favorite targets average north of 19 yards per reception.
The Lobos really do their damage on the ground, though, as the gaudy numbers show via a plethora of dangerous names:
| Jhurell Pressley | 135 | 846 | 6.3 | 75 (TD) | 11 |
| Teriyon Gipson | 132 | 766 | 5.8 | 79 (TD) | 6 |
| Lamar Jordan | 126 | 672 | 5.3 | 70 (TD) | 6 |
| Richard McQuarley | 44 | 207 | 4.7 | 44 (TD) | 7 |
| Daryl Chestnut | 14 | 122 | 8.7 | 64 (TD) | 2 |
| Tyrone Owens | 21 | 120 | 5.7 | 65 (TD) | 3 |
When the Lobos can confuse an opposing defense with option looks and hit the ground game, they extend drives, eat clock and open up those huge passing plays down the field.
In front of a home crowd, the Lobos have to hope the offense can put to bed some of the consistency issues and play a complete four frames.
Prediction
As much as Las Vegas seems to favor the Wildcats here, the team gives up 463.4 yards per game and went just 2-4 on the road this season.
It's hard to imagine Arizona, healthy or not, could keep up on the road if the Lobos begin to connect on big plays while chewing clock.
On the other hand, the Lobos went 5-2 at home this season. Like always, the offense won't do much to attempt to fool the defense—it's going to run the football, and good luck figuring it out.
Though the Wildcats are healthier than usual, look for the home team with an uncanny ability to erupt to pull away late.
Prediction: Lobos 42, Wildcats 35
Statistics courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified. All betting information courtesy of Odds Shark.
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