Auburn starts week three off with a matchup against the New Mexico Lobos led by first year head coach Bronco Mendenhall. The Lobos are coming off an early season bye after an 0-2 start to the year.
The Lobos started off their season with FCS powerhouse Montana State. The Lobos looked good with two defensive touchdowns and their offense firing on all cylinders through the first three quarters as they were up 31-14. A defensive collapse and key drops on offense in the fourth quarter hurt the Lobos as they ended up losing 35-31 in the season opener.
The week after they traveled to Tucson to take on the Arizona Wildcats. New Mexico and Arizona's offenses were going score for score in the first half with Quarterback Devon Dampier leading the way but ultimately its defense could not get a stop, losing 61-39. Long story short the lobos are not a cakewalk for the Tigers and are hungry for their first win of the season.
Offense:
The Lobos are led by sophomore dual-threat quarterback Devon Dampier who is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the country. He has seven touchdowns through two games to start the year —four through the air and three on the ground.
His top targets on the outside are headlined by deep-threat receiver Luke Wysong — currently in the top-20 in the country in receiving yards with 224 yards. He is paired with receiver Ryan Davis who is a great route runner and separator and tight end Trace Bruckler as the next two leading receivers.
Wysong and Davis are two smaller receivers who make plays in the slot or by winning one on one on the outside. They can do work in the quick pass game or deep through the air.
We will also see Nic Trujillo on the outside for the Lobos. The Lobos top target last year Caleb Medford has had an extremely slow start to begin the season but looked better in their matchup against Arizona where he caught a touchdown pass.
Their run game is again headlined by Dampier who isn't the biggest of players being listed at 5'10'' 198 lbs but is a smart, fast and a physical runner. Eli Sanders is in the backfield with Dampier but has not gotten off to the hottest of starts with 117 rushing yards and three and a half yards per carry through two games.
Naquari Rogers and Javen Jacobs will also see some action. The offensive line has done a very solid job of protecting Dampier in the passing game with zero sacks allowed but could improve in the run game. New Mexico’s run game is a lot of standard runs, with some designed QB runs but most of the time it is Dampier scrambling making plays with his feet.
The Lobos currently average just shy of 400 yards per game and 35 points per game. This offense is not to be taken lightly even though they aren't as talented as the Tigers.
Defense:
The Lobos are led by linebacker Jayden Wilson and edge Gabriel Lopez — both recording a sack and forced fumble each on the year. Their leading tacklers are cornerback Noah Avinger and safety Christian Ellis. The Lobos have totaled three sacks on the year and have one interception as a team. New Mexico also has two fumbles taken back for touchdowns which is a plus to their defense.
Other than that, the New Mexico defense is not a unit who has played up to its capabilities so far. They have given up the most yards per game in the country so far at 597 yards and are in the bottom three in points allowed per game at 48.0.
The Lobos pass rush is not great as well and their run defense hasn't been anything special which has allowed over 550 rush yards through two games. The secondary has given up over 600 pass yards and gave up 304 yards to Arizona star wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan.
What to Expect:
To start, New Mexico’s spread offense could give Auburn some problems especially if the Tigers' secondary plays like it did in the first half versus Cal. Fortunately for the Tigers the secondary and defense as a whole stepped up in the second half. Dampier will cause a test for Auburn’s defense with his mobility and playmaking ability.
A matchup that will be interesting to watch is Wysong and his partner on the outside Davis versus Auburn's cornerbacks especially with all the motion New Mexico’s offense has. If the Tigers can contain Dampier and play good enough man to man coverage Auburn should be fine.
No matter who gets the start at quarterback, the Tigers should have no trouble moving the ball through the air and should look to get Keandre Lambert-Smith and Malcolm Simmons the ball in space.
Auburn should also be able to dominate the run game as well. Expect Jarquez Hunter to have a big day on the ground with how exploitable New Mexico’s front seven is.
The Tigers should be able to take care of business at home leaning on the run game, taking care of the football and getting pressure to Devon Dampier while stopping the high-powered New Mexico offense.
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Jack is a sophomore majoring in sports production. He started with The Plainsman in the fall 2024.
