2019 New Mexico Lobos football team

2019 New Mexico Lobos football
Conference	Mountain West Conference
Division	Mountain Division
Record	2–10 (0–8 MW)
Head coach	Bob Davie (8th season)
Offensive coordinator	Joe Dailey (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Flexbone option
Defensive coordinator	Jordan Peterson (1st season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Dreamstyle Stadium
Uniform
Seasons ←  2018 2020  →

2019 Mountain West Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Mountain Division
No. 23 Boise State xy$		8	–	0					12	–	2
No. 22 Air Force		7	–	1					11	–	2
Utah State		6	–	2					7	–	6
Wyoming		4	–	4					8	–	5
Colorado State		3	–	5					4	–	8
New Mexico		0	–	8					2	–	10
West Division
Hawaii xy		5	–	3					10	–	5
San Diego State x		5	–	3					10	–	3
Nevada		4	–	4					7	–	6
San Jose State		2	–	6					5	–	7
UNLV		2	–	6					4	–	8
Fresno State		2	–	6					4	–	8
Championship: Boise State 31, Hawaii 10
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

The 2019 New Mexico Lobos football team represented the University of New Mexico in the Mountain Division of the Mountain West Conference (MW) during the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team played its games at Dreamstyle Stadium. It was the eighth season under head coach Bob Davie. ^[1] They finished the season 2–10, 0–8 in Mountain West play to finish in last place in the Mountain Division.

On November 25, Davie and New Mexico agreed to part ways. ^[2] He finished at New Mexico with an eight-year record of 35–64.

Preseason

Mountain West media days

The 2019 Mountain West Media days were held on July 23–24 at the Cosmopolitan on the Las Vegas Strip

Media poll

The preseason poll was released at the Mountain West media days on July 23, 2019. The Lobos were predicted to finish in sixth place in the MW Mountain Division. ^[3]

Mountain Division

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Boise State	120 (15)
2	Utah State	108 (6)
3	Air Force	73
4	Wyoming	66
5	Colorado State	52
6	New Mexico	22

Death of Nahje Flowers

On November 5, 2019, head coach Bob Davie issued a statement that defensive end Nahje Flowers had passed away; Flowers was 21. ^[4] Two weeks later, November 19, the cause of death was revealed to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Flowers had shared a note on social media before removing it minutes later. ^[5] Flowers' autopsy report stated that he did not have chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). ^[6]

In August 2020, Flowers' family filed a civil suit against the NCAA, the University of New Mexico, and Davie, alleging all three were negligent in the death of Flowers. Before his death, Flowers had been dealing with mental health issues and suicidal thoughts and was seeing a school psychiatrist who had been prescribing antidepressants and instructed Flowers to sit out for at least two games. ^[7] According to the lawsuit, Davie ignored the psychiatrist's advice and had Flowers continue to play. ^[8] The NCAA settled for an undisclosed amount in April 2024 while UNM paid $325,000 to settle the lawsuit two months later in June. ^[9]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 31	4:00 p.m.	No. 23 (FCS) Sam Houston State *	Dreamstyle Stadium Albuquerque, NM	LOBOTV	W 39–31	13,749
September 14	12:30 p.m.	at No. 7 Notre Dame *	Notre Dame Stadium South Bend, IN	NBC	L 14–66	77,622
September 21	2:30 p.m.	New Mexico State *	Dreamstyle Stadium Albuquerque, NM (Battle of I-25 / Rio Grande Rivalry)	ATTSNRM	W 55–52	27,269
September 28	4:00 p.m.	at Liberty *	Williams Stadium Lynchburg, VA	ESPN+	L 10–17	17,101
October 4	8:00 p.m.	at San Jose State	CEFCU Stadium San Jose, CA	CBSSN	L 21–32	16,119
October 11	6:00 p.m.	Colorado State	Dreamstyle Stadium Albuquerque, NM	CBSSN	L 21–35	15,393
October 19	2:00 p.m.	at Wyoming	War Memorial Stadium Laramie, WY	ATTSNRM	L 10–23	22,884
October 26	2:00 p.m.	Hawaii	Dreamstyle Stadium Albuquerque, NM	SPEC HI	L 31–45	12,617
November 2	8:30 p.m.	at Nevada	Mackay Stadium Reno, NV (Battle of the Wolves)	ESPNU	L 10–21	15,631
November 16	8:15 p.m.	at No. 21 Boise State	Albertsons Stadium Boise, ID	ESPN2	L 9–42	31,492
November 23 [lower-alpha 1]	12:00 p.m.	Air Force	Dreamstyle Stadium Albuquerque, NM	ESPN3	L 22–44	13,844
November 30	2:00 p.m.	Utah State	Dreamstyle Stadium Albuquerque, NM	Stadium on Facebook	L 25–38	11,611
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Mountain time

Source: ^{[10] [11]}

Game summaries

No. 23 (FCS) Sam Houston State

See also: 2019 Sam Houston State Bearkats football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 23 (FCS) Bearkats	0	16	7	8	31
Lobos	13	9	10	7	39

Statistics	SHSU	UNM
First downs	27	20
Total yards	558	485
Rushing yards	115	145
Passing yards	443	340
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	33:48	26:12

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Sam Houston State	Passing	Ty Brock	21/38, 258 yards, TD
	Rushing	Kyran Jackson	15 rushes, 66 yards
	Receiving	Dee Bowens	9 receptions, 130 yards, TD
New Mexico	Passing	Brandt Hughes	12/29, 218 yards
	Rushing	Ahmari Davis	16 rushes, 107 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Anu Somoye	3 receptions, 62 yards

Bob Davie experienced heart problems following the victory, forcing him to cancel the post-game press conference. ^[12] On September 5, run game coordinator/offensive line coach Saga Tuitele was named acting head coach. ^[13]

At No. 7 Notre Dame

See also: 2019 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lobos	0	7	0	7	14
No. 7 Fighting Irish	7	31	14	14	66

Statistics	UNM	ND
First downs	22	25
Total yards	363	591
Rushing yards	212	157
Passing yards	151	434
Turnovers	4	0
Time of possession	35:06	24:54

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
New Mexico	Passing	Tevaka Tuioti	6/13, 132 yards
	Rushing	Bryson Carroll	6 rushes, 69 yards, TD
	Receiving	Aaron Molina	2 receptions, 79 yards
Notre Dame	Passing	Ian Book	15/24, 360 yards, 4 TD
	Rushing	Ian Book	9 rushes, 46 yards, TD
	Receiving	Chase Claypool	4 receptions, 96 yards, TD

New Mexico State

See also: 2019 New Mexico State Aggies football team and Rio Grande Rivalry (football)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Aggies	17	14	7	14	52
Lobos	14	17	17	7	55

Statistics	NMSU	UNM
First downs	29	27
Total yards	489	598
Rushing yards	154	243
Passing yards	335	355
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	26:54	33:06

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
New Mexico State	Passing	Josh Adkins	30/47, 335 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Jason Huntley	12 rushes, 114 yards, TD
	Receiving	Naveon Mitchell	4 receptions, 105 yards
New Mexico	Passing	Tevaka Tuioti	16/28, 355 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Ahmari Davis	28 rushes, 133 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Jordan Kress	3 receptions, 122 yards, 2 TD

At Liberty

See also: 2019 Liberty Flames football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lobos	0	3	0	7	10
Flames	7	7	3	0	17

Statistics	UNM	LIB
First downs	18	19
Total yards	362	466
Rushing yards	223	160
Passing yards	139	306
Turnovers	2	1
Time of possession	30:33	29:27

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
New Mexico	Passing	Tevaka Tuioti	12/26, 139 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Ahmari Davis	18 rushes, 99 yards
	Receiving	Marcus Williams	3 receptions, 33 yards
Liberty	Passing	Stephen Calvert	24/36, 306 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Joshua Mack	14 rushes, 95 yards
	Receiving	Antonio Gandy-Golden	6 receptions, 144 yards, TD

At San Jose State

See also: 2019 San Jose State Spartans football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lobos	0	7	7	7	21
Spartans	6	20	0	6	32

Statistics	UNM	SJSU
First downs	20	19
Total yards	399	464
Rushing yards	238	52
Passing yards	161	412
Turnovers	6	1
Time of possession	27:32	32:28

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
New Mexico	Passing	Sheriron Jones	7/16, 127 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT
	Rushing	Sheriron Jones	11 rushes, 104 yards, TD
	Receiving	Jordan Kress	2 receptions, 46 yards, TD
San Jose State	Passing	Josh Love	24/36, 405 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Nick Nash	9 rushes, 29 yards, TD
	Receiving	Tre Walker	7 receptions, 130 yards

Colorado State

See also: 2019 Colorado State Rams football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	7	14	7	7	35
Lobos	6	8	0	7	21

Statistics	CSU	UNM
First downs	23	22
Total yards	551	345
Rushing yards	131	256
Passing yards	420	89
Turnovers	2	3
Time of possession	31:44	28:16

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Colorado State	Passing	Pat O'Brien	25/34, 420 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Marvin Kinsey Jr.	25 rushes, 85 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Warren Jackson	9 receptions, 214 yards, 2 TD
New Mexico	Passing	Sheriron Jones	8/17, 89 yards, INT
	Rushing	Bryson Carroll	26 rushes, 193 yards, TD
	Receiving	Marcus Williams	5 receptions, 58 yards

At Wyoming

See also: 2019 Wyoming Cowboys football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lobos	0	0	0	10	10
Cowboys	7	0	6	10	23

Statistics	UNM	WYO
First downs	20	21
Total yards	372	345
Rushing yards	169	259
Passing yards	203	86
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	24:47	35:13

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
New Mexico	Passing	Sheriron Jones	9/17, 143 yards
	Rushing	Ahmari Davis	14 rushes, 86 yards
	Receiving	Jordan Kress	4 receptions, 94 yards
Wyoming	Passing	Sean Chambers	9/15, 86 yards, TD
	Rushing	Xazavian Valladay	33 rushes, 127 yards, TD
	Receiving	John Okwoli	3 receptions, 33 yards

Hawaii

See also: 2019 Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rainbow Warriors	21	14	3	7	45
Lobos	3	0	7	21	31

Statistics	HAW	UNM
First downs	21	23
Total yards	578	500
Rushing yards	255	207
Passing yards	323	293
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	32:04	27:56

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Hawaii	Passing	Cole McDonald	17/30, 237 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Cole McDonald	9 rushes, 140 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Kumoku Noa	4 receptions, 120 yards, TD
New Mexico	Passing	Tevaka Tuioti	23/40, 293 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Ahmari Davis	16 rushes, 200 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Jordan Kress	4 receptions, 100 yards, TD

At Nevada

See also: 2019 Nevada Wolf Pack football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lobos	7	0	3	0	10
Wolf Pack	0	14	0	7	21

Statistics	UNM	NEV
First downs	17	21
Total yards	346	369
Rushing yards	109	64
Passing yards	237	305
Turnovers	0	0
Time of possession	25:15	34:45

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
New Mexico	Passing	Tevaka Tuioti	19/36, 237 yards
	Rushing	Ahmari Davis	15 rushes, 80 yards, TD
	Receiving	Marcus Williams	6 receptions, 74 yards
Nevada	Passing	Carson Strong	28/40, 305 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Devonte Lee	9 rushes, 68 yards
	Receiving	Romeo Doubs	11 receptions, 167 yards, TD

At No. 21 Boise State

See also: 2019 Boise State Broncos football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lobos	0	0	3	6	9
No. 21 Broncos	28	0	14	0	42

Statistics	UNM	BSU
First downs	16	23
Total yards	292	509
Rushing yards	117	215
Passing yards	175	294
Turnovers	2	2
Time of possession	31:51	28:09

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
New Mexico	Passing	Tevaka Tuioti	14/21, 175 yards
	Rushing	Kentrail Moran	10 rushes, 30 yards
	Receiving	Mannie Logan-Greene	5 receptions, 60 yards
Boise State	Passing	Jaylon Henderson	15/28, 292 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	George Holani	7 rushes, 73 yards
	Receiving	John Hightower	4 receptions, 124 yards, TD

Air Force

See also: 2019 Air Force Falcons football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Falcons	7	7	16	14	44
Lobos	7	3	6	6	22

Statistics	AF	UNM
First downs	20	19
Total yards	540	358
Rushing yards	213	268
Passing yards	327	90
Turnovers	1	1
Time of possession	27:35	32:25

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Air Force	Passing	Donald Hammond III	9/10, 327 yards, 4 TD
	Rushing	Taven Birdow	17 rushes, 110 yards, TD
	Receiving	Benjamin Waters	4 receptions, 171 yards, 2 TD
New Mexico	Passing	Trae Hall	5/7, 55 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Tevaka Tuioti	8 rushes, 79 yards
	Receiving	Cedric Patterson III	2 receptions, 29 yards

Utah State

See also: 2019 Utah State Aggies football team

	1	2	3	4	Total
Aggies	7	24	7	0	38
Lobos	0	6	12	7	25

Statistics	USU	UNM
First downs	21	21
Total yards	368	383
Rushing yards	196	276
Passing yards	172	107
Turnovers	1	4
Time of possession	23:53	36:07

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Utah State	Passing	Jordan Love	18/35, 172 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Gerold Bright	19 rushes, 113 yards, TD
	Receiving	Siaosi Mariner	3 receptions, 55 yards, TD
New Mexico	Passing	Trae Hall	10/21, 107 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Trae Hall	22 rushes, 115 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Cedric Patterson III	1 reception, 30 yards

Notes

1. The game between New Mexico and Air Force, originally scheduled for November 9, was rescheduled to November 23 due to the death of New Mexico player Nahje Flowers.

References

1. "Lobo Football Schedule Released". GoLobos.com. February 4, 2019. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
2. "New Mexico, Davie to part ways after 8 seasons". November 26, 2019.
3. "Boise State, Fresno State Picked to Win 2019 Mountain West Football Divisional Titles". TheMW.com. July 23, 2019. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
4. Wells, Adam (November 5, 2019). "New Mexico DE Nahje Flowers Dies at Age 21". Bleacher Report . Retrieved September 23, 2024.
5. Hellman, Sam (November 19, 2019). "Cause of death revealed for New Mexico's Nahje Flowers". 247Sports . Retrieved September 23, 2024.
6. "Medical examiner: No CTE found in Flowers' autopsy". KRQE. September 1, 2020. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
7. Gardner, Steve (August 25, 2020). "New Mexico, football coach Bob Davie sued over death of DL Nahje Flowers". USA Today . Retrieved September 23, 2024.
8. Virgen, Steve (August 25, 2020). "Suit alleges UNM, NCAA failed to protect Nahje Flowers". Albuquerque Journal . Retrieved September 23, 2024.
9. Heild, Colleen (June 26, 2024). "UNM settles wrongful death case involving Lobo football player for $325,000". Albuquerque Journal. Retrieved September 23, 2024.
10. 2019 New Mexico Lobos football schedule. FBSchedules.com Retrieved March 27, 2019.
11. "Air Force at New Mexico football game postponed to Nov. 23". FBSchedules.com. November 6, 2019. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
12. Tyree, Amber (September 1, 2019). "New Mexico's Bob Davie hospitalized with 'heart trouble' after win vs. Sam Houston, report says". Sporting News . Retrieved September 5, 2019.
13. Bumbaca, Christopher (September 5, 2019). "New Mexico coach Bob Davie will not make Notre Dame trip next week due to health concerns". USA Today . Retrieved September 5, 2019.