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It's not all about the long term for Mumme. He expects many of the 18 players in this year's recruiting class to play right away, including Paden and Scott at linebacker, fellow junior college standouts Colston at running back and Norman at offensive tackle and Davenport at place-kicker or punter.

Seven of these players were brought on board in December. The Aggies improved their depth with two   Continue Reading This Post >>

bleedCrimson.net has once again teamed up with Blue Ribbon Yearbook to provide our readers with the college football's most comprehensive preview. Blue Ribbon Yearbook is considered to be the best and most comprehensive publication in college football.

KICKERS

Junior Paul Young (6-0, 172) led the team in scoring last year with 67 points. A transfer from Hudson Valley Community College in 2006, Young hit 12-of-18 field goals and 31-of-34 PATs in a relatively strong first season.

He’ll have some competition this year from within. Freshman Jordan Davenport (5-10, 170) is an incoming recruit who can boot the football. Sophomore Ryan Jastram (6-1, 198) will also get a look. He handled kickoffs last year with 59, averaging 47.9 yards a kick with one touchback.  Continue Reading This Post >>

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The secondary dropped off significantly last year from 14 interceptions as a team in 2006 to seven, the second-lowest total in the WAC. The Aggies recovered only seven fumbles as well en route to finishing last in the league and No. 113 in the land in turnover margin at minus-1.15.

Senior Derrick Richardson (5-11, 190) is one of three returning starters who hope to rally the troops. The strong safety was second on the team in tackles last year with 108. He did a litany of things for the Aggies, with three tackles for loss, a sack, an interception, four pass breakups, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble. He’s often the last line of defense.  Continue Reading This Post >>

bleedCrimson.net has once again teamed up with Blue Ribbon Yearbook to provide our readers with the college football's most comprehensive preview. Blue Ribbon Yearbook is considered to be the best and most comprehensive publication in college football.

Middle linebacker and top tackler Dante Floyd has left Las Cruces, giving Mumme a big hole to fill. He had 124 tackles from the heart of the Aggies defense last season, but Mumme does welcome back two starters at outside linebacker in senior La Auli Fonoti (6-4, 253) and junior Jamar Cotton (6-0, 216).

Fonoti made 63 tackles in 12 games, including two sacks. He also had two pass breakups and two fumble recoveries, giving Mumme a complete package on one side of the defense. Cotton does a pretty good job holding up his end of the bargain as well. He managed 35 tackles, including a half sack and a forced fumble.  Continue Reading This Post >>

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As you may have guessed, the defense employed by New Mexico State is an unusual 3-5-3. There are only three down linemen in this formation with one of the seven returning starters being senior defensive end Rhyan Anderson (6-5, 263). The University of Miami transfer started all 13 games last year, finishing with 12 tackles, two quarterback hurries and a sack.

The other two ends who figure into Mumme's plans are junior Kawika Shook (6-3, 248) and senior Oren Long (6-2, 260). Shook red-shirted last year after managing five tackles as a freshman. Long played in seven games, finishing with five tackles.  Continue Reading This Post >>

bleedCrimson.net has once again teamed up with Blue Ribbon Yearbook to provide our readers with the college football's most comprehensive preview. Blue Ribbon Yearbook is considered to be the best and most comprehensive publication in college football.

Of the eight returning starters on offense, three of them are up front. In 2006, the offensive line as a unit yielded 40 sacks. Last year, that number dipped to 28, good enough for fifth in the WAC. By comparison, Fresno State led the way with only 18, but considering the Bulldogs attempted 215 passes to the Aggies’ 429, that 10-sack difference isn’t a bad thing.

The three returning starters are senior center Richie Bolin (6-1, 291), senior right guard Polo Gutierrez (6-2, 304) and sophomore left guard Chuck Taylor (6-3, 345). Having the three inside guys back means Mumme has to find several tackles ready and able to pass protect. Mike Martinez and James Farrelly did a good job last year, but they’re gone, leaving Mumme with some gaping holes to fill.  Continue Reading This Post >>

bleedCrimson.net has once again teamed up with Blue Ribbon Yearbook to provide our readers with the college football's most comprehensive preview. Blue Ribbon Yearbook is considered to be the best and most comprehensive publication in college football.

If there is one phase of the offense that won’t keep Mumme up late nights pacing the floor, it’s the wideouts. All three starters are back, including senior Chris Williams (5-8, 157), who missed the last five games of the season with a shoulder injury. (bleedCrimson.net Editorial Note: Chris Williams' season ended after he suffered a broken collarbone against Idaho)

In only eight games, he caught 56 passes for 772 yards and 11 touchdowns. This all-purpose player also returned five kickoffs for 116 yards and six punts for 100. He was still chosen a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award, despite missing the last month of 2007. Williams was also second-team All-WAC. In his best game of the year, he corralled nine receptions for 221 yards and two touchdowns in the big win over rival UTEP.  Continue Reading This Post >>

bleedCrimson.net has once again teamed up with Blue Ribbon Yearbook to provide our readers with the college football's most comprehensive preview. Blue Ribbon Yearbook is considered to be the best and most comprehensive publication in college football.

You get the idea Mumme is preparing for the future at running back, what with three freshmen and two junior college prospects perhaps figuring into his plans in fall camp. Not that there’s anything wrong with that given the circumstances.

He lost top rusher Justine Buries to graduation, leaving junior Tonny Glynn (5-8, 192) to fend for himself. They were part of a one-two punch last year that almost accounted for 1,000 yards between them. Glynn finished second for the Aggies with 456 yards and a team-high four rushing touchdowns. The Aggies managed only 10 last year, and two of those were by Holbrook from in close.  Continue Reading This Post >>

bleedCrimson.net has once again teamed up with Blue Ribbon Yearbook to provide our readers with the college football's most comprehensive preview. Blue Ribbon Yearbook is considered to be the best and most comprehensive publication in college football.

Information in this team report is as of June 20.

With Boise State’s Taylor Tharp and Hawaii’s Colt Brennan missing from the WAC scene, senior Chase Holbrook (6-5, 246) is now the top gun in town. Last year, he had numbers that would have turned most heads, throwing for 3,866 yards and 26 touchdowns. He missed the better part of two games—going down early in a shellacking at Boise State and missing the following week in the one-point loss at LaTech— before returning to finish out the season with a win and five losses.

That’s been the problem with Holbrook; he is a significant piece in a puzzle still in progress. Whether his payoff is a chance at a bowl berth or just managing to win more games than losing, Holbrook needs help. He finished fifth nationally in passing yards a game (322), eighth in total passing yards, second in completions per game (31.75) and fourth in completion percentage (.702) last season, but it wasn’t enough.  Continue Reading This Post >>

bleedCrimson.net has once again teamed up with Blue Ribbon Yearbook to provide our readers with the college football's most comprehensive preview. Blue Ribbon Yearbook is considered to be the best and most comprehensive publication in college football.

Information in this team report is as of June 20.

While New Mexico State’s offense has come into its own since head coach Hal Mumme took over the program three years ago, the defense is still trying to find its way.

After another season of yielding numbers that left their scoring defense ranked in the triple digits nationally, Mumme turned to veteran Joe Lee Dunn to overhaul the unit. The new defensive coordinator promptly hired two assistants who crossed paths with him during his days at Mississippi State. His most recent college job was at the University of Memphis.   Continue Reading This Post >>