Ranking the Top 131 College Football Programs of the Last 40 Years: 115. New Mexico
Lobos going Loco in New Mexico
What comes to mind first when you think of New Mexico? With the risk of stereotyping here—maybe Breaking Bad? Top level UFC fighters Jon Jones and Holly Holm? It’s probably not their football. Still, they’re a solid athletics program who had a pretty good decade in the 2000s, and are the premier program in their state.
Best Seasons and Highlights
+------+------------+------+--------------+--------+
| rank | team | year | resume score | record |
+------+------------+------+--------------+--------+
| 51 | New Mexico | 2007 | 0.545 | 9-4 |
| 48 | New Mexico | 1997 | -0.493 | 9-4 |
| 51 | New Mexico | 2016 | -0.551 | 9-4 |
| 54 | New Mexico | 2003 | -2.688 | 8-5 |
| 44 | New Mexico | 2004 | -4.318 | 7-5 |
| 48 | New Mexico | 1993 | -7.495 | 6-5 |
| 66 | New Mexico | 2001 | -10.381 | 6-5 |
| 65 | New Mexico | 2005 | -11.136 | 6-5 |
| 56 | New Mexico | 1996 | -12.736 | 6-5 |
| 63 | New Mexico | 1983 | -16.186 | 6-6 |
| 78 | New Mexico | 2015 | -17.677 | 7-6 |
| 71 | New Mexico | 2002 | -18.764 | 7-7 |
| 69 | New Mexico | 1994 | -19.098 | 5-7 |
| 74 | New Mexico | 2006 | -21.08 | 6-7 |
| 77 | New Mexico | 2000 | -22.255 | 5-7 |
| 102 | New Mexico | 2020 | -26.33 | 2-5 |
| 93 | New Mexico | 2008 | -27.554 | 4-8 |
| 72 | New Mexico | 1995 | -27.574 | 4-7 |
| 89 | New Mexico | 1999 | -29.068 | 4-7 |
| 82 | New Mexico | 1986 | -31.88 | 4-8 |
| 99 | New Mexico | 2014 | -32.791 | 4-8 |
| 93 | New Mexico | 1992 | -35.483 | 3-8 |
| 91 | New Mexico | 1985 | -38.843 | 3-8 |
| 107 | New Mexico | 2012 | -41.537 | 4-9 |
| 93 | New Mexico | 1984 | -41.783 | 4-8 |
| 90 | New Mexico | 1989 | -42.431 | 2-10 |
| 113 | New Mexico | 2017 | -45.078 | 3-9 |
| 109 | New Mexico | 2013 | -45.329 | 3-9 |
| 105 | New Mexico | 1998 | -46.175 | 3-9 |
| 116 | New Mexico | 2018 | -46.513 | 3-9 |
| 95 | New Mexico | 1991 | -46.729 | 3-9 |
| 119 | New Mexico | 2021 | -48.669 | 3-9 |
| 98 | New Mexico | 1990 | -51.206 | 2-10 |
| 123 | New Mexico | 2019 | -52.182 | 2-10 |
| 129 | New Mexico | 2022 | -56.136 | 2-10 |
| 118 | New Mexico | 2009 | -61.377 | 1-11 |
| 102 | New Mexico | 1988 | -62.278 | 2-10 |
| 119 | New Mexico | 2010 | -66.646 | 1-11 |
| 104 | New Mexico | 1987 | -67.75 | 0-11 |
| 119 | New Mexico | 2011 | -68.453 | 1-11 |
+------+------------+------+--------------+--------+
Overall Score: -1088.396853 (115th)169-306 record
0 conference titles
2-6 bowl record
3 consensus All-Americans
26 NFL players drafted
3 consensus All-Americans! The 16 teams before New Mexico combined for just 5. Of course, there’s Brian Urlacher. Along with him is WR Terance Mathis in 1989 and K John Sullivan in 2007. New Mexico’s had 11 winning seasons, which is a far cry from rival New Mexico State who’s had just 5 in the same span. 169 wins is the most on this list so far, surpassing UNLV’s 158.
Top 5 Seasons
Worst Season: 2011 (1-11 overall, 1-6 MWC)
Remember when Mike Locksley was considered a bad coach? He went just 2-26 in his time at New Mexico, and was fired 4 games into 2011. The losses in this season are staggering. They scored just 12 PPG (last in the country) and gave up 41.7 PPG (2nd worst in the country). Losses included 3-52 to Arkansas, 45-48 to FCS Sam Houston State, 7-49 to Nevada, 0-69 (nice) to TCU, 0-42 to Air Force, and 0-45 to Boise State. UNLV was the unfortunate sucker who lost to the Lobos, 21-14 in week 10. LB Carmen Messina was a rare bright spot, ranking 1st in the Mountain West with 142 tackles while also notching 3 sacks, 9.5 TFL, and 1 INT.
5. 2004 (7-5 overall, 5-2 MWC)
This was the middle year of 3 straight bowl appearances, a school record, and among the height of New Mexico alum head coach Rocky Long’s tenure. The defense had to be good, as the QBs combined for just 45% CMP% for 1429 yards 6 TD 12 INT. New Mexico looked like one of the best non-Power 6 teams to start the year: They lost the opener just 21-17 to Washington State, who was coming off a top 10 season in 2003. They then upset Texas Tech (who would finish top 25) 27-24, and then lose just 7-17 to Oregon State (who finished 7-5)! They even blew out New Mexico State 38-3, who would finish 3rd in the Sun Belt. That set up a home match with Alex Smith and Urban Meyer-led #14 Utah, but the Utes were better on the day and won 28-7 in a hard fought match. After a surprise loss to Air Force, New Mexico was just 2-4, but one of the best 2-4 teams in the country. They’d win their last 5 regular season games with strong defense, the average win in that span just 21-14, before losing to Navy in the bowl. RB Dontrelle Moore, OL Ryan Cook, OL Claude Terrell, DL Marcus Parker, LB Nick Speegle, and DB Brandon Payne all finished 1st team All-MWC, tied for the most with Utah (6 players). Cook, Terrell, and Speegle would all be drafted in the next 2 NFL Drafts.
4. 2003 (8-5 overall, 5-2 MWC)
The year before 2004 was slightly better—but finished 10 spots lower in the ‘03 rankings than they did in ‘04. After a 1-3 start, New Mexico rebounded to be 4-3 heading to #24 Utah. The Utes were led by first year coach Urban Meyer and sophomore QB Alex Smith, and had taken the Mountain West by storm. The game was less close than the 47-35 win would suggest, as UNM put up 633 yards of offense compared to Utah’s 300. 3 UNM RBs ran for 98+ yards and QB Casey Kelly added 68 on the ground. A Utah defense that had given up just 29 points in its 3 previous games gave up 47. Alex Smith was the only Ute who came to play, with 4 TD and 0 INT. The win allowed New Mexico to control their destiny in the MWC with 4 games left, but next week they’d lose a trap game to UNLV, and despite winning the 3 games after, couldn’t catch up to Utah, who never dropped a game after their meeting. 8-4 New Mexico finished 2nd in the MWC, and would be absolutely dominated 55-14 by Oregon State in the bowl. RB Moore, OL Terrell, and OL Cook were 1st Team All-MWC just like 2004. 4 other players joined them for 7 total, the most in the Mountain West.
3. 2016 (9-4 overall, 6-2 MWC)
My dad loves Bob Davie, the former Notre Dame head coach and ESPN analyst who took over New Mexico in 2012, so I was following this team semi-closely. A week 2 surprising upset to New Mexico State and a loss to Rutgers didn’t inspire confidence in fans, despite coming off a bowl appearance the year prior. Things started to click in week 6, though, and New Mexico won 6 of their last 7 regular season games to finish 8-4. They were in a 3-way tie for 1st in the Mountain division with 8-4 Wyoming and 10-2 Boise State, but Wyoming would get the nod for the MWC Championship game. They’d beat UTSA 23-20 in the bowl to cap off the year. The offense was FEROCIOUS, averaging 36.7 PPG and ranking 1st in the nation with 350 rushing yards per game. No seriously, they were absurdly good, ranking 1st in the nation with 6.6 yards per attempt too. RB Teriyon Gipson had 1269 yards 13 TD and 8.8 YPC, Tyrone Owens added 1097 yards 7 TD and 8.0 YPC, Richard McQuarley was the power back with 656 yards and 18 TD, and QB Lamar Jordan added 739 yards 3 TD and 6.5 YPC.
2. 1997 (9-4 overall, 6-2 WAC)
Check out the names on this squad. Coach Dennis Franchione, DC Gary Patterson, and LB Brian Urlacher. They’d start 6-0 and eventually 9-2, making the WAC championship game against #20 Colorado State. State would dominate 41-13 and New Mexico lost the bowl 20-14 against Arizona. Notable games included a 22-15 homecoming win against SMU on ESPN2, a 23-35 loss to Rice in front of 40,000 home fans who watched Rice run the wishbone offense and not attempt a single pass, and New Mexico’s first win against BYU since 1980. QB Graham Leigh put together a great season with 24 TD and 8 INT, leading the conference in passer rating. WR Pascal Volz led the WAC in receiving yards and TD with 1229 and 13. Urlacher wasn’t an a top tier player yet, but still had 3 INTs. In ‘98 and ‘99 he’d go on to be a very good punt returner (13 returns for 196 yards), red zone threat (7 catches for 61 yards and 6 TD), and an All-American level LB. He was all right in the NFL.
1. 2007 (9-4 overall, 5-3 MWC)
2007 New Mexico was a classic recipe for success: run your power back who handles the workload behind your top tier O-line, throw to your 2 talented WRs, and play great defense. New Mexico finished just 4th in the Mountain West, but wins included 29-27 over Arizona, 34-31 over 9-4 Air Force, and 23-0 in the bowl against Nevada. QB Donovan Porterie threw for 3000+ yards, RB Rodney Ferguson ran for 1000+, and WRs Marcus Smith and Travis Brown caught for 1000+ each. Ferguson, Brown, and Smith were all 1st-Team All-MWC alongside 2 offensive lineman and 2 defensive players. Kicker John Sullivan was a consensus All-American making 29 of 35 kicks. His 2.42 field goals per game average was the highest by anyone since 1984. Smith and 2 DBs, Glovern Quin and DeAndre Wright, would be selected in the NFL Draft over the next 2 years.
5th Quarter
How does New Mexico regain the success they had under Rocky Long? Anything that can be done in the NIL era?
Ranking the Top 131 College Football Programs of the Last 40 Years - Main Hub
