Photo Courtesy of Miles Lineberger.

In a historic first-time meeting, the New Mexico State Aggies traveled down south to match up against the University of Tennessee Volunteers in a homecoming showdown on Nov. 15.   

Aggie offense seemed to find their groove early in the game, something that has been a struggle in the past few matchups. In their last game against Kennesaw, the Aggies attained 316 total yards – only slightly above their average of about 303.2. Now, NMSU must take on the challenge of having to face this game against the No.1 team regarding yards gained in the nation.  

In finding their rhythm down in Knoxville, the Aggies brought out their ferocity early on a pass nearly picked off by Tennessee, the intended NMSU catcher got into a slight scuffle, establishing a sense of grit down on the field.  

With a touchdown pass thrown by Volunteer quarterback Joey Aguilar, wide receiver Chris Brazzell II caught the ball just short of the endzone, forcing Aggie defense to focus in hopes of resisting a Tennessee touchdown. 

Alas, Volunteer DeSean Bishop snuck through the pile to land Tennessee first up on the board at 7-0. Not long after play resumed with the ball in Aggie possession, a snagged interception by UTK’s Ty Redmond got the ball back in Tennessee’s hands, allowing Joey Aguilar to run 27 yards and into the end zone for another touchdown.  

Ending with a lengthy punt by freshman kicker David Barker to pin UTK at the 1-yard line, scoring was finalized at 14-0.  

SECOND QUARTER 

Despite NMSU’s success in moving the ball down the field, another touchdown for the Volunteers, caught in the end zone by wide receiver Braylon Staley, was produced quickly in the second quarter, moving the score up to 21-0.

With Bernock Iya snagging an interception for the Aggies, the second of the half, NMSU had a chance to get some points on the board. This added on to their record of being only 1 of 6  Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college teams with 20+ turnovers.

Momentums shifted as time ticked down, and as NMSU made their way closer to the endzone, a 32-yard field goal put New Mexico State on the board and stalled the drought of effective offensive plays for the Aggies. While NMSU remained in possession with less than a minute left, continued hopes for a big play were in place to defy Tennessee’s defense before halftime, but stayed at 21-3. 

QUARTER 3 

Kicking off the third quarter, Tennessee running back Star Thomas, who played two seasons for NMSU, scored on a 21-yard touchdown run to increase the Volunteers’ lead to 28-3. 

After Aggie quarterback Logan Fife went down due to a direct hit and was replaced by sophomore quarterback Adam Davonte, NMSU defense successfully fended off a near-touchdown Volunteer pass from Aguilar, boosting morale on the sidelines. 

Even with the Aggies’ newfound sense of motivation, Tennessee successfully got down to NMSU’s red zone, where the Aggies were unable to fend off a touchdown, resulting in another score boost to 35-3. 

With Davonte now calling signals, and Aggie offense moving the ball steadily downfield, Tennessee offense batted a pass out of the air for a 35-yard pick-six touchdown scored by defensive back William Wright to finish off the third quarter at 42-3.  

QUARTER 4 

As the fourth quarter started its countdown, NMSU wide receiver T.K. King caught a 39-yard pass to put the Aggies downfield almost immediately, moving the Aggies in scoring range, but he was shut down in all four attempts. 

“When you walk into a juggernaut like this, at their house, on their homecoming, with a sold-out crowd, and they give you opportunities [to score], you have to take advantage of them,” Sanchez said.  

Comparing the Aggies’ average of 69 ground yards per game, this matchup against UTK produced only 18. But, with the realization on the field of needing to rack up some final points, Aggie offense fought tooth and nail to reach the Volunteer’s red zone.  

Sneaking through the pack, Aggie Isaiah Rudison scored NMSU their first touchdown of the night, now at 42-9, which lasted until the final seconds ticked down, finalizing the score. 

“There’s a couple critical things that could have kept us in [the] ball game for a whole lot longer. But again, our guys showed some grit, they fought, [and] did some good things,” Sanchez said. 

Aggie football will return Saturday, Nov. 22, in El Paso, Texas, to face off against the University of Texas at El Paso Miners.