A red-hot start and late comeback push led by the third-string quarterback isn’t enough for New Mexico State, who suffer a 42-25 defeat to the New Mexico Lobos for their first Rio Grande Rivalry loss in three seasons.

Things got off to as good of a start as they possibly could’ve for New Mexico State, with UNM quarterback Sherion Jones’ first pass attempt on the third play from scrimmage getting tipped at the line and intercepted by NM State linebacker Terrill Hanks, who brought it back 28 yards for his first career pick-six.

The Aggies really looked like they would dominate after another defensive stop set up a six play, 57 yard New Mexico State touchdown drive capped off by a Matt Romero touchdown rush from two yards out in the opening minutes of the first, but the second quarter was another story for NM State’s offense, like it has been all season long for head coach Doug Martin’s squad.

UNM shut down NM State’s offense, particularly the quarterbacks, picking off three passes (two from Romero and one from Nick Jeanty) that led to 14 points and a deciding lead change.

“Obviously the quarterback position is just a mess right now. Until you have a quarterback who can operate you don’t have a chance, so we’ve got to find that guy,” Martin said. “Right now we’re a dysfunctional offensive football team. I thought our defense played pretty well… and again, if our offense is helping our defense by scoring some points and keeping them off the field a little bit, it’s probably a little different.”

The second quarter quarterback struggles led to Martin throwing in redshirt freshman Josh Adkins in for the remainder of the game — something that has felt like it’s been a long time coming for the offense.

Adkins played well considering the sudden change and his lack of experience, completing 12 out of 21 of his passes for 168 yards and a touchdown that came off a swing pass to Jason Huntley early in the fourth quarter, but rookie mistakes in the form of late throws cost the Aggies two interceptions — one of was were returned for a touchdown — that sealed the deal for UNM.

“As a backup, this is what you try to prepare for, you know? You can never really prepare for the moment exactly but I was excited, I was confident and I was ready to go out there,” Adkins said. “Every day I’m going to get better… I’m not really satisfied [with this performance]. At the end of the day, we got an L, and we need to get Ws.”

Going forward, Adkins, who presented the highest upside in the quarterback room since fall camp, will be the man for Martin’s offense, starting next Saturday against UTEP in El Paso after upperclassmen Romero and Jeanty’s disappointing runs of running the show.

“The thing that Josh did that was good is he threw the ball where he was suppose to throw it for most of the night. He was late on two throws and it cost us two interceptions but at least he’s throwing it where he’s suppose to and he’s not sitting there and staring at the rush,” Martin said when asked about his young passer. “He gave us the ability to move the ball and he’s really bright. He may give us a chance to be an effective offensive team.”

While the quarterback performances will be the big story coming out of this game, the group that deserves a bulk of attention and (if there is any) praise is the defense, who played well despite giving up 42 points.

Not a lot could be done about UNM’s first three scoring drives coming from short field position (of 30 yards, 27 yards and six yards respectively) set up by offensive or special teams mistakes.

Defensive coordinator Frank Spaziani’s unit also drastically improved against the run, holding the Lobos to 3.3 yards per carry after giving up 5.9 through the first three games. Forty-two (technically 35 because of the defensive touchdown) is still too many points to allow, but the Aggies could be in good shape if they get any help out of their offense.

At 0-4, New Mexico State has their backs against the wall heading into next weekend’s matchup against the also winless UTEP, making it an absolute must win. With the future in Adkins taking over at quarterback, next Saturday will be very telling for NM State’s future this season and beyond.