UTEP’s first MWC football game is one to forget; UNM Lobos pummel Miners, 61-7

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico - A historic day for the UTEP Miners quickly turned sour after the Miners were handily defeated by the New Mexico Lobos Saturday afternoon in Albuquerque.

The Lobos pummeled the Miners, 61-7.

It was UTEP's first Mountain West Conference football game, and served as preview of what the Miners can expect in their new conference.

The Lobos dominated from start to finish.

New Mexico had a 21-0 lead at the half, and continued to pile it on in the third quarter extending their lead, 37-0.

UTEP quarterback EJ Colson was taken out of the game at the start of the second half with backup QB Raymond Moore III playing the rest of the game.

Colson had thrown for just 45 yards and one interception before he was taken out of the game.

UTEP avoided the shutout putting up their first points of the game in the 4th quarter following a 86-yard touchdown run by Moore III on a quarterback keeper.

At that point of the game, the Lobos still had a commanding lead, 44-7.

New Mexico solidified themselves as one of the best teams in the Mountain West as they improved their overall record to 4-1, 1-0 in conference play.

Meanwhile, the Miners fall to 1-4 on the season, 0-1 in conference play.

UTEP will be back in action next Saturday at the Sun Bowl for their conference home opener against Nevada.

Kickoff is at 7 p.m.

(Courtesy UTEP Athletics)

Toa Fa’avae was a picture of efficiency to lead a balanced New Mexico offense as the Lobos beat UTEP, 61-7, in the Mountain West football opener for both teams on Saturday afternoon at University Stadium.  

Fa’avae finished 15-of-19 passing for 249 yards and three touchdowns with a 230.6 rating for New Mexico (4-1, 1-0 MW). The Lobos passed for 262 yards and rushed for 231. They also limited UTEP (1-4, 0-1 MW) to 271 yards and scored 31 points off five Miner turnovers.

Fa’avae completed 11-of-14 passes for 187 yards and two touchdowns in the first half, directing the Lobos to a 21-0 lead. The Miners had a touchdown called back on their first offensive series due to an illegal touch pass. The UTEP defense had opened the game by stuffing UNM on fourth down at the Miner 35-yard line.

The Lobos took control after that, generating touchdowns on three consecutive drives. Backup QB James Laubstein came in and rushed for a 14-yard touchdown to open the scoring. Later, Fa’avae connected with Cade Keith (12 yards) and Bailen George (52 yards) for TD’s.

A pick-six by Lobo safety Austin Brawley early in the third quarter extended the lead to 28-0. Brawley struck again later in the period when he blocked Brady Braun’s punt and New Mexico scored a safety.  

“I’m embarrassed and sorry to the fans that made the trip. El Paso deserves better and we have to fight to give it to them,” third-year UTEP head coach Scotty Walden said. “I told the team at the end there will be no excuses, no deflection; it’s going to be all ownership. We got beat in every phase. It was a total team loss. We knew New Mexico is a really good team, but we gave them a lot. At the end of the day we have to be ready to play.” 

The Lobos added a couple more touchdowns before the Miners got on the board with Raymond Moore III’s 86-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter. It was the sixth-longest rushing play in school history and the longest by a UTEP quarterback.  

With 135 yards on the ground (11 carries), Moore became the first quarterback to rush for 100+ yards since Calvin Brownholtz had 114 against North Texas in the final game of the 2020 season. It was the top rushing performance by a UTEP signal-caller since James Thomas II had 142 yards versus NM State in 2008.

EJ Colson finished 6-of-12 passing for 45 yards and rushed for 24 yards before exiting the game early in the third quarter. Moore took over, and third-stringer Braesen Leon saw brief action later in the game.

For the Lobos, Cameron Mathews had 108 yards rushing on six carries, including a 54-yard TD in the fourth quarter. The UNM defense produced four sacks, 10 tackles for losses, three interceptions and two forced fumbles.