The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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122 ■ THE WOLVERINE 2025 FOOTBALL PREVIEW BY CLAYTON SAYFIE In a shocking move, head coach Bronco Mendenhall left New Mexico for the same job at Utah State last December. Men- denhall, the former head man at BYU (2005-15) and Virginia (2016-21) came out of retirement to lead the Lobos in 2024 but departed after just one season. New Mexico and Utah State have gen- erated similar results in recent seasons, so the move is considered lateral in some respects, but the Aggies will join the new-look Pac-12 in 2026, which is pro- jected to have a media deal much more lucrative than what's left behind in the Mountain West. Mendenhall led New Mexico to a five- win campaign in 2024, stacking more wins than in any season since 2016 (nine). The Lobos were one game shy of earning bowl eligibility for the first time in six years, falling to Hawai'i, 38-30, to con- clude the regular season. It's tough to say new head man Jason Eck has a chance to build on the momen- tum Mendenhall created, though, after taking over following three successful seasons at Idaho, an FCS-level program. The roster is almost entirely different, with nearly all the talent that helped the Lobos rank fourth nationally in total of- fense (484.3 yards per game) gone. The Lobos rank 135th nationally in ESPN.com's returning production met- ric (128th on offense, 133rd on defense). New Mexico saw dozens of players transfer out, including 11 that landed at Power Four institutions, six of those on the offensive side of the ball, including first-team All-MWC quarterback Devon Dampier (Utah). There are no players on the roster that logged a pass or rush at- tempt last season, and the top seven re- ceivers left as well. The 47-year-old Eck is a rising star in the coaching profession, however, and he's proven his teams can rise to the oc- casion. The former Wisconsin offensive lineman beat two FBS teams in his three seasons at Idaho, taking down Wyoming in 2024 and Nevada in 2023, and the Van- dals trailed by only three points with less than six minutes to play in a 24-14 sea- son-opening loss to Big Ten champion Oregon last season. In six outings against FBS opponents, Eck's Vandals went 2-4 with no losses by more than 14 points. New Mexico has only four returning starters on a defense that ranked worse than 125th nationally in scoring (130th), total (131st), rushing (126th) and passing (129th) defense. There's major uncer- tainty on that side of the ball. The most notable returner on defense is redshirt senior linebacker Randolph Kpai, who finished third on the team with 80 tackles, including 4.5 for loss, last sea- son. The offense has even fewer returnees, but it does have a quarterback with fa- miliarity playing for Eck and the coaches who came over from Idaho. Junior Jack Layne moved along with the staff from Idaho, after throwing for 1,472 yards and 14 touchdowns in seven outings in 2024. He dealt with an elbow injury this spring, however. Montana State running back trans- fer Scottre Humphrey, a 5-foot-10, 201-pound junior, was named a second- team All-American by FCS Football Cen- tral last season, rushing for 1,386 yards (seventh in the FCS) and 16 touchdowns. His game could translate well to the FBS level, after leading the Big Sky and checking in third in the FCS with 7 yards per carry a season ago. Another key pickup was Kansas State wideout transfer Keagan Johnson. The senior hauled in 53 receptions for 586 yards and 3 touchdowns over the last two seasons. ❑ New Mexico Is Starting From Scratch In 2025 2025 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2024 Result Aug. 30 at Michigan — Sept. 6 IDAHO STATE — Sept. 13 at UCLA — Sep. 27 NEW MEXICO STATE W, 50-40 Oct. 4 at San Jose State — Oct. 11 at Boise State — Oct. 18 NEVADA — Oct. 25 UTAH STATE W, 50-45 Nov. 1 at UNLV — Nov. 15 Colorado State L, 17-6 Nov. 22 at Air Force W, 52-37 Nov. 29 SAN DIEGO STATE W, 21-16 REASONS FOR OPTIMISM • Jason Eck's coaching acumen • Skill position transfers • Defense needed to start from scratch anyway Idaho went 4-7 the year before Eck took over, and he led them to the FCS playoffs in each of his three seasons. He landed some solid transfers that will make plays on offense as he attempts another rebuild. REASONS FOR CONCERN • Little returning production • Challenging schedule • Spring injury to QB Jack Layne New Mexico has Michigan and UCLA on the schedule in the first three weeks, so the Lobos need to be ready to roll right away, even with new players and coaches across the board. GAME 1 • NEW MEXICO LOBOS • AUG. 30 QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: 0-0 Head Coach: Jason Eck, 0-0 (1st year) at New Mexico, 26-13 overall (4th year) 2024 In Review: 5-7, 3-4 Mountain West Final 2024 Ranking: Unranked Returning Starters: 6 (1 offense, 4 de- fense, 1 specialist) Last Bowl Appearance: 2016 (New Mexico Bowl vs. UTSA, W 23-20) RETURNING LEADERS Passing: None Rushing: None Receiving: Michael Buckley (103 yards) Tackles: Randolph Kpai (80) Sacks: Dimitri Johnson (2) Interceptions: Dimitri Johnson (1) Linebacker Randolph Kpai started his career at Nebraska (2021-23) but did not appear in any games before breaking out with 80 tackles in his first season at New Mexico. PHOTO COURTESY NEW MEXICO ATHLETICS