2008 New Mexico State Aggies Preview

For the first time since arriving in Las Cruces in 2005 to rebuild the New Mexico State program, coach Hal Mumme has reason to smile. “This is the first spring where I feel good about what we can do on offense and what we can do on defense,” Mumme says.

Two Minute Drill

A Quick Look at the Aggies

The Aggies’ goals seem modest — play in a bowl game. But when you consider the program has won only eight games in Hal Mumme’s three seasons, a bowl game would be quite an accomplishment. You get the sense that it’s getting close to do-or-die time for Mumme, who should have his best New Mexico State team this year. The offense should be explosive enough to keep the Aggies in plenty of games, as long as quarterback Chase Holbrook and wide receiver Chris Williams stay healthy — something they didn’t do last season. And if they don’t remain on the field, the Aggies appear to have enough depth to adequately replace them. Moving the ball hasn’t been a problem. Scoring has. The offensive line is deeper, too, with nine players able to step into roles. Much will come down to the new defensive system installed by Joe Lee Dunn in his first season in Las Cruces. The 3-3-5 setup should help several players who didn’t have the size/speed combination required to play in Woody Widenhofer’s pro-style 3-4 system. Now there are spots for them, most notably safety Brennan Baiamonte. If the new system can fix the Aggies’ woeful pass defense, the program’s dreams of bowling in December are less of a long shot.

With improved depth on offense and a new-look defense, coordinated by former Mumme nemesis Joe Lee Dunn, the Aggies are aiming for something they haven’t accomplished since 1960 — playing in a bowl game. That year, the Aggies went undefeated and beat Utah State in the Sun Bowl in El Paso. They have had only nine winning seasons since. Just making a bowl game is a big deal in Las Cruces, where Mumme’s offenses have put up points, but the Aggies have won only eight games in three seasons.

“Nothing less than a bowl game,” safety Derrick Richardson says.

There is some reason to believe that isn’t simply wishful thinking. The Aggies won four games last year even as injuries decimated their offensive attack — Mumme’s beloved “Air Raid” offense. The Aggies were 4–4 last year and on the cusp of bowl eligibility before dropping their final five games. “We’ve been close in the past. We had a lot of close games that we lost,” Richardson says. “We should have been in bowl contention. But we feel more confident in the way we’re playing.”

Quarterbacks

Senior Chase Holbrook is healthy. He played in all but one game last season but was banged up throughout the year. A rib injury limited his mobility, and yet he still completed 70 percent of his passes for 3,866 yards and 26 touchdowns. Mumme believes Holbrook is an NFL-caliber quarterback, and he’ll have one more season to prove it. Keeping Holbrook upright is one of the biggest keys for the Aggies’ season. Backup J.J. McDermott earned valuable experience last year, playing in eight games. McDermott, who completed 61 percent of his passes, will get plenty of playing time, too.

Running backs

The Aggies aren’t known for their rushing attack — they had only 370 attempts last year, and 67 of those came from their quarterbacks — but they have assembled a talented group of running backs. Junior Tonny Glynn, who missed three games of the season, averaged 5.6 yards per carry last year. A speedster capable of catching the ball out of the backfield and helping in the return game, Glynn is a good fit for the Aggies’ attack. Junior college transfer Seth Smith, ranked by some as one of the top-10 running backs in junior college, arrived in January and gives the Aggies another fast, versatile weapon in the backfield. New Mexico State uncovered a player in Brandon Perez last year. Perez is a powerful fullback-type who can catch the ball out of the backfield and showed late last season that he could run the ball as well.

Receivers

Naturally, the strength of the Aggies’ program is at wide receiver. Like many of the program’s top players, senior receiver Chris Williams was injured part of last year. A shoulder problem cost him the season’s final five games, but the diminutive Williams (5'8", 157 pounds) was still a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award. He had 56 receptions for 772 yards and 11 touchdowns in eight games and was second-team All-WAC. “He’s the fastest thing I’ve ever seen on the field,” Richardson says. “You have to keep an eye on him at all times, regardless of what position you are. He opens up the field for everybody else.” A.J. Harris has benefited the most from Williams’ presence. The school’s all-time leader in receptions with 191, Harris emerged as team leader last year when he led the club with 81 receptions. In the pass-happy offense, both Williams and Harris have a chance at catching 100 balls this year. But the Aggies’ wealth at the position doesn’t stop there. Wes Neiman took advantage of unexpected playing time, hauling in 44 balls and solidifying his spot. Junior college transfer Marcus Anderson will be expected to contribute immediately. Julius Fleming has been described as a “bigger Chris Williams.” And Fleming is only 5'8" and 170 pounds. At 6'3", true freshman LaVorick Williams gives the small receiving corps something it’s been lacking. And he could be a perfect red zone receiver, giving Holbrook a bigger target.

Offensive linemen

The Aggies return three starters off a unit that allowed only 28 sacks. That’s an impressive number given the amount of passing attempts (623) the Aggies had in 2007. It was a 12-sack improvement over 2006. Senior center Richard Bolin is the leader of the group. “He’s one of the best centers we’ve ever had,” Mumme says. Senior right guard Polo Gutierrez also returns. Left guard Chuck Taylor is back, but the Aggies are breaking in new tackles. Kyle Smith and Patrick Blount are slated to start, but for once there is some competition in the New Mexico State camp. Newcomers David Norman and Joe Suder, redshirt freshman Michael Grady and junior Joseph Palmer, who played in 11 games last year, give the Aggies options and depth. “We’re a lot deeper there,” Mumme says. “We have nine guys who can play.”

Defensive linemen

The defense is a work in progress as new defensive coordinator Joe Lee Dunn is implementing his 3-3-5 scheme. Former defensive coordinator Woody Widenhofer, a Steelers’ assistant for all four Super Bowls in the 1970s, retired in the offseason and took his 3-4 defense with him. Mumme thinks the new defense should make better use of the Aggies’ personnel, plus he remembers all the problems that Dunn’s Mississippi State defenses used to give him at Kentucky. “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em,” Mumme says. “It’s a lot more gambling, aggressive defense. Sometimes I think they’re playing with 12 out there.” The Aggies might ask for some leniency in that regard after allowing a WAC-worst 471 points last season. In eight conference games, New Mexico State yielded 317 points. Senior Rhyan Anderson, a transfer from Miami (Fla.) before last season, will start at right defensive end with Oren Long on the opposite end. The pair of ends combined for only 17 tackles last year.

Linebackers

Nowhere is the defensive change more evident than at linebacker, where Jamar Cotton (35 tackles) and Chris Nwoko (67 tackles) — starters last year — are likely to lose their jobs. The third returning starter, 253-pound La’Auli Fonoti, will hold down the left linebacker spot. The roles for linebackers are different in the 3-3-5, opening plenty of spots for competition. Ross Conner, Nick Paden, Boyblue Aoelua and Jason Scott — none of whom had more than 18 tackles last year — are in the mix for starting spots.

Defensive backs

This should be the defensive strength of the Aggies, with Richardson (108 tackles) and cornerback Davon House returning. But the pass defense was miserable last year, allowing 3,405 yards and 28 touchdowns through the air. This won’t help: Cornerback Chris Woods suffered a shoulder injury in the weight room in the spring and required surgery. Woods may return for the second half of the season. In his place steps Vince Butler. Safety Brennan Baiamonte is the perfect example of a player who has been helped by the new scheme. At 6'0" and 204 pounds, he was too small to play linebacker in the previous scheme. A former walk-on, Baiamonte “got lost in the shuffle. He wasn’t quite a safety, wasn’t quite a corner, wasn’t big enough to be a linebacker,” Mumme says. But at safety in the new scheme, he was a playmaker in spring ball.

Specialists

Redshirt sophomore Kyle Hughes and true freshman Jordan Davenport will battle it out for the kicker and punter positions. Last year’s kicker, Paul Young, is still on the roster. He made 12-of-18 field goals and 31-of-34 extra point attempts.

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