Sean Reider covers college football for the Albuquerque Journal. A proud Michigan native, his previous bylines include The Daily Telegram (MI), The State News, and Mackinac Island Town Crier. Great answers, great insight, professional, self-aware. Nice job. Find him on Twitter here or read his stuff here.
1. What are New Mexico fans’ first thoughts of Auburn football right now?
Oh, the team that lost to New Mexico State? (Half) kidding there. It’s been a long, long time since New Mexico’s been regularly competitive with Autonomous 4/Power 5/BCS opponents, so there isn’t a healthy level of trash talk among fans as there would be against New Mexico State, UNLV, Fresno State, etc. I think Auburn’s loss to Cal has intrigued some fans… but on the road, at a legendary stadium, against a team that has just about every edge on paper, expectations are (rightfully) tempered.
2. What’s the vibe like in Albuquerque after a lackluster 0-2 start?
Honestly, pretty good? Nobody likes losing – and at some point, New Mexico’s gotta start winning games to keep fans in it – but I think everybody who follows the program understood this was a brutal schedule in year one of a rebuild. The fact they competed and afforded themselves quite well as big underdogs in both games to start has been a pleasant surprise to a lot of folks, though. And two years removed from having the worst offense in the country (we’re talking three passing touchdowns for the entire season), putting points on the board certainly helps, too.
3. Does Auburn’s loss to Cal, or even the loss to New Mexico State last season give the Lobos hope for another upset?
I’m inclined to say yes, but it’s tricky. On one hand, Cal showed some of the vulnerabilities Auburn has right now re: pass protection, quarterback play, etc. On the other hand, I have a hard time seeing Auburn put up five turnovers for a second-straight week. New Mexico State also came into Jordan-Hare last season as one of the hottest teams in the country, and they knew it; New Mexico, however, is very much a team still learning how to win. And if it isn’t perfect, they’re still going up against a bigger, faster and stronger Auburn team that would like nothing more than to quiet some of the noise around them. I think you’d expect them to come into Saturday focused on handling business and moving on.
Bottom line, I think that New Mexico’s shown they can bring the fight to heavily favored opponents is a real cause for some hope here. But there’s still a lot that has to go right for an upset to happen.
4. Montana State, really?
I’ll take a cue from Bill O’Brien here: FBS, FCS, NCIS, whatever, they’re a very good team. Not a lot of teams run the football as well as they do, and did they ever against New Mexico. Big Sky football is about as fun as it gets this year.
5. Who are your two most favorite Auburn Tigers of all time and why?
Man, I loved Kerryon Johnson when I was in high school – so, so fun to watch. Beyond that, hard not to mention Jimmy Buffett.
6. Name two Lobos that Auburn fans should lookout for.
It’s probably a copout to say the starting quarterback here, but yeah, look out for Devon Dampier: when he’s rolling, he’s a terrific watch and can get it going with his arm and legs. Defensively, cornerback Noa Pola-Gates led all FBS defensive backs last year in penalties, struggled mightily in coverage, didn’t play a defensive snap against Montana State…and ended up turning in the best performance of any New Mexico defender against Arizona. If he can carry that level of play over into this week, that’s gonna make a steep uphill climb a touch easier for the Lobos.
7. Name two Auburn Tigers that scare you the most.
I think Keldric Faulk could make some noise this Saturday – loved what I saw out of him last year. And I don’t know if he’ll be good to go come Saturday, but Cam Coleman ought to be one tough cover for New Mexico.
8. Where do you see each team having an advantage over the other?
For as out of sync as it looked at points against Cal, Auburn’s offense holds the edge against New Mexico’s defense until they prove they can reliably limit big plays on the ground and in the air. And I’ll give New Mexico a very slight edge in quarterback play – Dampier’s proved to be effective no matter what defenses have thrown at him, and Thorne’s status is (clearly) in question right now.
9. What’s your analysis and score prediction for this game?
Pretty simple: coming off a bye, I think New Mexico can put some points up on Auburn, but I don’t know if they can reliably contain Auburn’s playmakers. Auburn has one freak turnover early (deflected pick, muffed punt, pick your poison) but settles in for a 48-24 Homecoming win before turning the page to Arkansas.
10. What is the difference in a lobo and wolf?
There’s really no difference between a lobo and a wolf…but a lobo is technically a Mexican gray wolf if you wanted to get into it.
