New Mexico State’s defense had plenty of time to think.
Southeast Missouri called a timeout facing 4th-and-inches on its own 34-yard line. The Redhawks were winning 16-15 with 4:09 left, but wanted to tighten its grip on the game with a first down.
The Aggies trailed for the entire evening, but a stop would give them a great chance to finally lead. NM State’s defense needed to make a stand.
New Aggies’ coach Tony Sanchez had a chance to talk to his team, but decided his assistants would do the talking.
“I kind of stayed out of the way,” Sanchez said. “Everyone was really calm and just going through their deal.”
Sanchez said little, and his team did everything. NM State got its stand. Senior defensive tackle Cole Schnettgoecke and sophomore safety Tayden Barnes stuffed SEMO running back Payton Brown for no gain to the joy of the Aggies’ home crowd.
They only became happier. Junior running back Seth McGowan notched his second touchdown of the game on the ensuing drive before Barnes played the hero once more by intercepting quarterback Paxton DeLaurent with 37 seconds left. The Aggies (1-0) survived the Redhawks (1-1) 23-16 and earned their first season-opening win since 2014.
“There was really no pressure,” Barnes said. “We knew we were going to come out and get the stop.”
There’s much to work on before welcoming reigning Conference USA champion Liberty to town. But for Sanchez, he’s happy to earn win No. 1 as NM State’s coach.
“They always say the biggest improvement you have is from week one to week two,” Sanchez said. “We definitely need to show that.”
McGowan makes impact in Aggie debut
After dozens of players departed after 2023, at least a few incoming transfers had to hit the ground running. Seth McGowan did just that.
The Butler Community College transfer and former Oklahoma running…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/mexico-state-football-aggies-top-152139474.html
Author : Las Cruces Sun-News
Publish date : 2024-09-01 15:21:39
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