Texas vs New Mexico St. College Football Handicapping
Texas head coach Mack Brown thinks the Longhorns can go undefeated. They won’t have any trouble getting off to a 1-0 start against a bad New Mexico State team.
Texas Longhorns (9-4) vs. New Mexico State Lobos (1-11)
Date: Saturday, August 31, 2013
Time: 8:00 PM ET
Venue: Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium
City: Austin, Texas
O/U Odds: 58
Spread: Texas -42.5
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The Longhorns ended last season on a high with a comeback win over the Oregon State Beavers in the Alamo Bowl. The team showed off their new no-huddle offense in that game, and they’ll carry that system over into this season.
David Ash will take the reins of the offense in his junior season. The team’s receiving corps was banged up throughout the offseason and preseason camp, but it sounds like all the big names will be back in time for the opener.
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They’ll need those athletes to be ready on the outside as the team looks to push the pace in their up-tempo attack under offensive coordinator Major Applewhite. That’s the plan, although don’t be surprised if they lean on a strong stable of running backs and an offensive line that returns all five starters sooner rather than later.
Defensively, the Longhorns’ biggest additions come from players returning from injury, namely junior linebacker Jordan Hicks and senior defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
With many other returning performers, the Texas defense isn’t short on veterans, and they’ll all be eager to get the bad taste out of their mouths from last season when they allowed an average of 192.2 rushing yards per game.
That rush defense will be put to the test in this contest against a New Mexico State team that knows how to run the ball.
Expect to see plenty of Kasey Carrier in this contest as the Lobos make good use of a strong offensive line that allowed only 12 sacks last season. The Lobos ranked fifth in the nation in rushing last season, and they’ll lean heavily on that unit again this season.
While the team did a great job of limiting sacks last season, they didn’t do such a great job of generating them. The Lobo defense compiled only 31 sacks over the last two seasons. Getting into the backfield was a problem all together, as they ranked 109th in the nation in tackles for a loss in 2012.
The team ranked last in the Mountain West in pass defense, so facing a big time Big 12 passing offense could mean a long day for the Lobos, especially if they give David Ash time to operate in the pocket.
Both teams will be looking to push the pace of play in this contest, and that could lead to fireworks, even if the majority of the points go up on one side of the scoreboard.
The over is 4-0 in New Mexico State’s last four games overall.
The play: Over 58
