NM State to Open CUSA Play at Home Versus Liberty

Saturday marks the first time the Flames visit Las Cruces since 2019.

Source: NMSU Athletics
Photo by Mike Martinez: Courtesy

Who: NM State vs. RV/RV Liberty
Where: Las Cruces, N.M. – Aggie Memorial Stadium
When: Saturday, September 7, 2024 – 8:15 p.m. MT

HOW TO FOLLOW
Watch: ESPN2
Play-by-Play: Brian Custer
Color Analyst: Rod Gilmore

Listen: 99.5 FM KXPZ
Play-by-Play: Jack Nixon
Color Analyst: Cory Lucas

Listen: 96.7 FM La Equis (Spanish Broadcast)
Play-by-Play: Abel Rodriguez
Color Analyst: TBA

Live Stats: NMStateStats.com

LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The Aggies will return to Aggie Memorial Stadium on Saturday as they host Liberty in what will be a rematch of the 2023 Conference USA Championship game. The week two bout will represent just the third time in the history of the series that the Flames will make the trip to Las Cruces. In total, the Aggies are 1-1 against the Flames at home.

NUMBERS OF NOTE
10 – With a 23-16 win over Southeast Missouri, the Aggies are 1-0 for the first time since 2014. The 10-year gap also represents the last time NM State opened the year with two wins.
3 – NM State is seeking its third-straight appearance in a bowl game – an achievement that has never been accomplished in program history.
210 – The Aggies rushed for 210 yards in Saturday’s win to mark the third time in the last six games that they have eclipsed the 200-yard level.
14 – 14 Aggies made their first start for the Aggies on Saturday. This included eight on the defensive side of the ball and 11 who made their first career FBS start.
51 – Fresno State transfer Abraham Montaño connected on a career long 51-yard field goal to trim the lead to one point in the fourth quarter.
106 – In 2023, the Aggies finished the year ranked 14th at the FBS level in rushing yards per game. This season, the Aggies offensive linemen bring a combined 106 total starts to the table and will be the Aggies most experienced position group by a wide margin.

START FAST

With a win over SEMO on Saturday, the Aggies earned a win in their season opener for just the first time since the 2014 season. Similarly, the Aggies have yet to begin a season with a 2-0 record since that same 2014 season.

Despite coming off of two of the most successful seasons in program history and reaching a bowl game three times since 2016, the last time the Aggies opened the year with a 1-0 record was the 2014 campaign when they came away with a 28-10 win over Cal Poly.

Following the win over the Mustangs, the Aggies earned a 34-31 road victory over Georgia State to move to 2-0. NM State has also only won their first two home games once since the 2007 campaign – doing so in 2016 with wins over New Mexico and Louisiana.

Along these lines, Head Coach Tony Sanchez became the 15th NM State head coach to win his first game as the leader of the program and the first since 1978 when Gil Krueger did so.

BARNES EARNS CUSA DPOW

Redshirt freshman Tayden Barnes impressed in his collegiate debut as he recorded a team-high nine tackles in addition to claiming the game-sealing interception. This performance was garnered recognition from the league as the Amarillo, Texas, native was named Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week on Monday morning.

Barnes turned in five solo takedowns while also tallying 1.5 tackles for loss. His interception came at the Aggies’ 18-yard line with just 37 seconds remaining on the clock as the Redhawks were driving in search of a game-tying touchdown. This was one of three passes Barnes defended on Saturday night – a mark that ties him for first among CUSA defenders through one week of action.

Barnes’ distinction marks the seventh time an Aggie has garnered CUSA player of the week honors since joining the league last season. He also becomes just the second Aggie to earn CUSA defensive player of the week recognition – joining Gabe Peterson who did so in 2023.

THE WORLDWIDE LEADER

Once again, the Aggies will find themselves on the national stage as Saturday’s contest will be aired live on ESPN2. This will mark the seventh time in the last three seasons that the Aggies will be featured on the worldwide leader in sports – stretching back to the 2022 season opener.

This will represent one of six Aggie games that will be featured on a national broadcast, including two of the first three games.

After colliding with Liberty on ESPN2 on Sept. 7, the Aggies will take on Fresno State on TruTV on Sept. 14.

Later in the season, fans can find the Aggies on TV for three consecutive weeks. First, NM State will be featured on ESPN2 on Oct. 9 as it battles Jax State on the road. Then, the Aggies will host LA Tech on ESPNU on Oct. 15. The Aggies’ final midweek game will be shown on CBS Sports Network on Oct. 29 when they visit Miami for a bout with FIU. Lastly, the SEC network will be home to the Aggies’ matchup against Texas A&M on Nov. 16.

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE

Historically, the Aggies have not exactly protected their home turf, however, that narrative has changed as of late. Entering the 2022 season, NM State held an all-time record of 77-136 inside Aggie Memorial Stadium. Including Saturday’s win over SEMO, the Aggies are now 10-3 across the last three seasons. Additionally, since dropping the home opener last year, the Aggies have rattled off six consecutive home victories.

NINE STRAIGHT

Similar to their newfound success at home, the Aggies have become a force during the regular season as they will look to win their 10th straight regular season game on Saturday against Liberty. The Aggies’ current nine-game win streak in non-postseason play has only occurred three times previously in program history. NM State last accomplished this across the 1959-61 seasons (14 games) and also did so from 1922-23 (11 games) and from 1911-12 (12 games).

UPDATING THE RECORD BOOKS

On Saturday, Aggie fans witnessed a pair of plays that had not happened in quite some time. For the first time since Nov. 12, 2016, the NM State defense recorded a safety as a SEMO holding penalty that occurred in the end zone resulted in a safety.

The Aggies also tallied their first blocked punt since Sept. 22, 2018, as wide receiver Kordell David bursted through the block to get his fingertips on a punt in the third quarter.

GOOD ON GOOD

The Aggies and Flames have formed somewhat of a rivalry since first crossing paths in 2018. Including the 2018 and 2019 seasons when the two sides played twice in both years, NM State and Liberty have now faced off seven times since 2018.

While the Flames hold a 5-2 all-time record against the Aggies, the last three final scores have represented just how competitive this series has become. Including the Aggies’ 49-14 win in 2022, NM State has outscored the Flames by a combined score of 101-96 across the most recent three matchups.

Additionally, if Saturday’s rematch of the 2023 Conference USA Championship game is anything like the previous seven matchups, fans could be in store for a high-scoring affair as the winning side has posted an average score of 39.6 points across the series’ history.

For complete coverage of the NM State football program, visit NMStateSports.com – the official home of Aggie athletics – and follow the Aggies on Facebook (NM State Football), Twitter (@NMStateFootball) and Instagram (@NMStateFB).

Article posted by:

Levi Gwaltney

Levi Gwaltney is the Editor In Chief of Las Cruces Digest. The Editor makes editorial and posting decisions regarding content published on this site. In most cases, the Editor makes little if any contribution to content published, and takes no credit for the content of republished posts. If available, the source or author of posts is provided at the top of the article.