Jones was named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for 155 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries in NM State’s 34-13 victory over Western Kentucky Thursday.
By Levi Gwaltney for Las Cruces Digest
Source: NMSU Athletics
Images: Courtesy
Fresh off the best rushing performance of his first season at NM State, James Jones will take a new Conference USA honor and one of the league’s top rushing averages into Miami Wednesday night.
Jones was named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for 155 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries in NM State’s 34-13 victory over Western Kentucky Thursday.
The performance gave Jones consecutive 100-yard rushing games and three in his first five games as an Aggie. He is the first NM State running back with three 100-yard performances in a four-game stretch since Jason Huntley in 2019.
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Through five games, Jones has carried the ball 77 times for 510 yards, averaging 6.6 yards per carry and 102 yards per game.
His 102-yard average leads Conference USA and ranks 15th nationally, while his 510 rushing yards rank sixth in the country. Jones is one of 16 FBS running backs averaging more than 100 rushing yards per game.
Jones has rushed for 479 yards on 66 carries over NM State’s last four games. Dating back to his 2025 season at Delaware State, he has topped 100 yards in six of his last nine games and has 13 100-yard rushing performances during his collegiate career.
Jones Meets FIU Run Defense
Wednesday’s game will put that production against one of FIU’s strengths.
The Panthers are allowing just 80 rushing yards per game, the best mark in Conference USA and 12th nationally. FIU has not allowed an opponent to rush for more than 108 yards this season.
NM State, meanwhile, is averaging 150 rushing yards per game and has exceeded 108 yards in four of its five games. The Aggies ran for 206 yards against Western Kentucky.
Jones accounted for three-quarters of that total himself.
Aggies Open Conference Play With Win
The victory over Western Kentucky gave NM State its first win in a Conference USA opener since joining the league and moved the Aggies to 2-3 overall and 1-0 in conference play.
The Aggies combined their 206 rushing yards with six sacks and a defensive touchdown in the 34-13 win.
Quarterback Adam Damante, making his first start of the season, completed 15 of 26 passes for 146 yards and a touchdown and added a rushing score. De’Marcus Peters returned an interception 53 yards for a touchdown, while kicker Ilya Uvaydov made two field goals, including a 52-yarder.
NM State’s defense held Western Kentucky to 46 rushing yards, the third time this season the Aggies have held an opponent below 75 yards on the ground. It is the first time since at least 1994 that NM State has accomplished that three times in one season.
Wednesday Night in Miami
NM State will face FIU at 5:30 p.m. Mountain Time Wednesday, Oct. 7, at Pitbull Stadium in Miami.
FIU enters the game 2-2 overall and will be playing its first Conference USA game of the season. NM State is 2-3 and 1-0 in conference play.
The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2, marking NM State’s fourth national television appearance of the season.
The radio broadcast will air locally on 99.5 FM KXPZ and will also be available through the TuneIn app.
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