New Mexico
CSU Rams vs. New Mexico: How to watch, storylines and staff predictions
New Mexico (3-4, 2-1 in MW) at Colorado State (4-3, 2-0 in MW)
When/where: 3 p.m. Saturday/Canvas Stadium
TV/Radio: Altitude Sports/Rams Radio Network
BetMGM Line: CSU +7.5, O/U 65.5
Weather: 74 degrees, partly cloudy
Three storylines
Slowing the Lobos: New Mexico’s offense is explosive. The Rams must find a way to defuse it. Last week, the Lobos outscored Utah State 27-7 over the final 25 minutes en route to a 50-45 shootout victory. A week prior, UNM beat Air Force 52-37, marking the Lobos’ first back-to-back 50-point games in 108 years. So the Lobos have scored 50-plus points in three straight going back to a 50-40 win over New Mexico State. UNM boasts a top-20 offense in scoring (37.4 points per game), rushing (218.9 yards per game) and total offense (470.3 yards per game). The Rams’ defense, especially its secondary, was vulnerable in the second half of a 21-13 victory at Air Force last Saturday. The Rams must find a way to slow receiver Devon Dampier, who grabbed 10 passes for a career-high 156 yards at USU.
Run to daylight: If CSU can run the ball as it has been, it should win. The Rams’ running game has made a 180-degree turn. Last season, the Rams averaged just 92.2 yards rushing per game — ninth-worst in the nation. The Rams have nearly doubled that output this season, racking up 180.6 yards per game. Anchored by center Jacob Gardner, the offensive line has been opening big holes for running back Avery Morrow, who’s rushed for 100-plus yards in four straight games. He should make it five against a UNM rushing defense that is yielding 240.1 rushing yards per game, the third most in the nation.
Streaking: The Rams, tied for the lead in the Mountain West Conference and playing for their first bowl appearance since 2017, must keep winning the games they should win. Saturday’s game qualifies as that kind of game. However, the Lobos have been snapping losing streaks of late. They had lost five straight to Air Force before beating the Falcons. They had lost seven straight to Utah State before beating the Aggies. But now comes the hard part: UNM has lost 12 straight games against CSU, and the last time it won in Fort Collins was in 2006.
Predictions
Patrick Saunders, sportswriter: CSU 41, New Mexico 21
The Rams will cut out the mistakes that prevented them from blowing out Air Force and they’ll control this game from the outset. Don’t be surprised if CSU rushes for close to 250 yards at Canvas Stadium. And don’t be surprised if its running game sets up some big-yardage passes from Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi to Caleb Goodie, who made a sensational one-handed grab and turned it into an 85-yard touchdown reception vs. Air Force.
Sean Keeler, sports columnist: CSU 35, New Mexico 31
Ah, Bronco Mendenhall, CU’s current football coach in an alternate timeline and another universe. The Lobos have already forged an identity as a wacky, wide-open team that can score on anybody … and can’t stop a soul. They’re the anti-Air Force, a bunch who’ll dare Jay Norvell and CSU to engage them in a track meet. Don’t take the bait. If the Runnin’ Rams don’t rush for 220 on these guys, they ain’t trying. And after a fourth quarter at Air Force left some CSU fans grumbling about game management again, they really, really need to try.
Kyle Newman, sportswriter: CSU 34, New Mexico 20
The Lobos are riding a three-game win streak, having scored 50 or more in each of those victories, but the momentum stops here. Avery Murrow runs for over 100 yards for a fifth straight game, helping CSU get out in front early and run their win streak to 13 over UNM. Meanwhile, a few takeaways by the Rams’ defense allow it to quell some of the Lobos’ firepower on that side of the ball and pull away in the second half.
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Originally Published:
New Mexico leaders are backing a bipartisan bill after 12 confirmed U.S. screwworm cases, including one case in a Lea County dog.
SANTA FE, N.M. – New Mexico leaders are backing a bipartisan bill after 12 confirmed U.S. screwworm cases, including one case in a Lea County dog.
New Mexico State Veterinarian Dr. Samantha Holeck said the parasite has spread to New Mexico, though officials say they have not found any human cases.
“This is also not a political issue this is a nationwide issue that we all need to address because it affects all warm blooded animals including humans,” Holeck said.
U.S. Reps. Gabe Vasquez and Teresa Leger Fernandez support the Protect America’s Herds Act.
The bill would create a grant program to train people to identify, treat, prevent and report screwworm. It would also support more livestock inspections and education for ranchers.
Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez said she heard concerns from tribal leaders about the cost of protecting cattle herds.
“I spoke with one of our tribal leaders today and they have cattle operation and they’re worried, and they’re talking about how much more money they’re having to pay to go make sure they check on their herds and there are extra costs,” Leger Fernandez said.
Funding would prioritize states and tribal communities most at risk for screwworm outbreaks.
State health officials said screwworm is not a food safety issue. They also said ranchers should stay alert but not alarmed.
New Mexico isn’t done with Meta yet. After the second phase of a landmark trial, the state is asking a judge to make the company pay almost $1 billion to address harm done to young people in New Mexico, SourceNM reports. In a court filing, attorneys with the New Mexico Department of Justice argue that Meta’s addictive design features and recommendation algorithms “substantially contributed to the increase and severity” of problems including depression and eating disorders. The state wants a judge to order Meta to pay $953 million into a fund for public education and behavioral health programs, reports Fox News.
- After the first phase of the trial in March, a jury found the company endangered children and misled the public about its platforms’ safety. Meta was ordered to pay $375 million in damages, $5,000 for each violation.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez has argued Meta executives prioritized profit over minors’ safety, ignored internal warnings, and misrepresented what they knew about harms to young users. In the second phase, First Judicial District Court Chief Judge Bryan Biedscheid heard arguments on whether the company’s actions created a public nuisance, the Santa Fe New Mexican reports. Final filings in that phase of the trial were submitted Friday. Beyond potential financial penalties, Biedscheid will also rule on the state’s request for Meta to make changes including stricter age controls and “safer algorithms” that “do not prioritize engagement over well being.”
Meta says New Mexico is overreaching, warning that the proposed mandates are “impractical and ill-considered” and “would risk leaving teens less safe, infringe on parental rights, and stifle free expression.” Meta argues that New Mexico hasn’t proven that its platforms affect mental health outcomes. In court filings, Meta has claimed that the state is seeking $3.7 billion, not $953 million, but Chief Deputy Attorney General James Grayson says the higher figure is an expert’s estimate of the cost to fund all child mental health interventions in the state. “We’re not trying to hold Meta responsible for mental health harms in general in New Mexico, only for what social media has cost,” Grayson tells the New Mexican.
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