New Mexico

How Auburn Stops Dual-Threat New Mexico QB Devon Dampier

Published

1 year ago

September 11, 2024

How Auburn Stops Dual-Threat New Mexico QB Devon Dampier

University of New Mexico quarterback Devon Dampier brings an exciting style of player to the field against the Auburn Tigers this Saturday. In the unfriendly confines of Jordan-Hare, the Lobos quarterback aims to make the raucous crowd sit on their hands and start booing the Tigers.

Granted, Auburn should dispatch New Mexico with relative ease and little worry. Yet, people felt the same way about California and that went completely out the window. To win this game and right the ship, Auburn must a find a way to bottle up the dual threat passer early. If not, the Tigers will endure a long, very unpleasant day on The Plains.

Athletic Makeup

Standing five-foot-ten and weighing 200 pounds, Dampier does not strike an imposing figure on the field. The first word that describes the New Mexico sophomore is comfort. Dampier just looks relaxed in the pocket, even with the rush breathing in his face.

Toughness remains an intangible quality that presents itself on the field. Dampier will stand in the pocket to deliver a pass, regardless of who bears down upon him. Despite the smallish frame, he does not show an ounce of reticence with throwing the ball down the field. The ball shows surprising pop and location.

Moreover, Dampier will shift the pocket to obtain a clear view of his receivers. Meanwhile, the other half of Dampier’s talent palette, his running ability, should sit at the top of Auburn’s concerns. Although tough enough to barrel through the A gap, Dampier will get to the outside and explode through arm tackles. Singled up on the perimeter versus a linebacker makes life easy for him.

Dampier was a problem in the Lobos loss to the Arizona Wildcats. He threw for 260 yards and three touchdowns without being sacked and added 130 yards and two touchdowns rushing.

Game Plan

Above all else, the Tigers must contain Dampier. Close off the boundaries and stay focused on the side contain. In basic parlance, stay home. If a defender tries to make the play backside, the next time, New Mexico will run what looks like the same play with motion or misdirection. Next, clog the passing lanes.

Remember, the Lobos list Dampier at five-foot-ten. In reality, figure him standing at five-foot-nine or shorter. By driving the blockers back towards the quarterback, Dampier cannot see unless he takes the snap from a deeper shotgun.

Identically, leave the line games out of the plan. Stunts will create gaps and visibility. For the first time in a while, Auburn actually needs to play conservative and basic. Lastly, get him on the ground. Make sure Dampier hits the ground. While smallish, he possesses good strength to break tackles and create space.

Reality

If Auburn plays smart, they can neutralize Devon Dampier. Now, the word smart remains the important designation. Again, until it becomes consistent: Auburn should win this game. Yet, after a disaster against California, the seed of doubt appears. Auburn’s defense played well enough to beat Cal. Now, they must go further to beat Dampier and New Mexico.

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New Mexico

New Mexico deserves speedier game commission appointments

Published

6 hours ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

New Mexico deserves speedier game commission appointments

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New Mexico

What bills have been filed for New Mexico’s 2026 legislative session?

Published

18 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

What bills have been filed for New Mexico’s 2026 legislative session?

The governor sets the agenda for the session, including for the budget, so here is what they are looking at so far.

SANTA FE, N.M. — As the regular session of the New Mexico Legislature is set to begin Jan. 20, lawmakers have already filed dozens of bills.

Bills include prohibiting book bans at public libraries and protections against AI, specifically the distribution of sensitive and “Deepfake” images

Juvenile justice reform is, again, a hot topic. House Bill 25 would allow access to someone’s juvenile records during a background check if they’re trying to buy a gun.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham sets the agenda and puts forth the proposed budget lawmakers will address during the session. The governor is calling for lawmakers to take up an $11.3 billion budget for the 2027 fiscal year, which is up 4.6% from current spending levels.

Where would that money go? More than $600 million would go to universal free child care. Meanwhile, more than $200 million would go to health care and to protect against federal funding cuts.

There is also $65 million for statewide affordable housing initiatives and $19 million for public safety.

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New Mexico

Understanding New Mexico’s data center boom | Opinion

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Understanding New Mexico’s data center boom | Opinion

Paul Gessing, Rio Grande Foundation
| Las Cruces Sun-News

After years of failure to land a “big fish” business for New Mexico’s economy (or effectively use the oil and gas revenues to grow the economy) Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham with the help of her Economic Development Secretary Rob Black have lured no fewer than three large data centers to New Mexico. These data centers are being built to serve the booming world of Artificial Intelligence (AI), and they will have profound impacts on New Mexico.

It is our view that having these data centers locate in New Mexico is better than having them locate elsewhere. While we have many differences of opinion with this governor, we are pleased to see her get serious about growing and diversifying New Mexico’s oil-dependent economy albeit quite late in her second term.

Sadly, the governor and legislature have chosen not to use broad based economic reforms like deregulation or tax cuts to improve New Mexico’s competitiveness. But, with the failure of her “preferred” economic development “wins” like Maxeon and Ebon solar both of which the governor announced a few years ago, but haven’t panned out, the focus on a more realistic strategy is welcome and long overdue.

Currently, three new data centers are slated to be built in New Mexico:

Oracle’s Project Jupiter in Santa Teresa with an investment of $165 billion.
Project Zenith slated to be built in Roswell amounts to a $11.7 billion investment.
New Era Energy & Digital, Inc. While the overall investment is unclear, the energy requirement is the largest of the three at 7 gigawatts (that’s seven times the power used by the City of San Francisco).

What is a data center? Basically, they are the real-world computing infrastructure that makes up the Internet. The rise of AI requires vast new computing power. It is critical that these facilities have uninterrupted electricity.

That electricity is going to be largely generated by traditional sources like natural gas and possibly nuclear. That contravenes New Mexico’s Energy Transition Act of 2019 which was adopted by this Gov. and many of the legislators still in office. Under the Act electrical power emissions are supposed to be eliminated in a few years.

With the amount of money being invested in these facilities and the simple fact that wind and solar and other “renewable” energy sources aren’t going to get the job done. In 2025 the Legislature passed and MLG signed HB 93 which allows for the creation of “microgrids” that won’t tax the grid and make our electricity more expensive, but the ETA will have to be amended or ignored to provide enough electricity for these data centers. There’s no other option.

New Mexicans have every right to wonder why powerful friends of the governor can set up their own natural gas microgrids while the rest of us face rising costs and decreased reliability from so-called “renewables.” Don’t get me wrong, having these data centers come to New Mexico is an economic boon.

But it comes tempered with massive subsidies including a 30-year property tax exemption and up to $165 billion in industrial revenue bonds. New Mexico is ideally suited as a destination for these data centers with its favorable climate and lack of natural disasters like hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods. We shouldn’t be giving away such massive subsidies.

Welcoming the data center boom to New Mexico better than rejecting them and pushing them to locate in other states. There is no way to avoid CO2 emissions whether they happen here or somewhere else. But, there are questions about both the electricity demand and subsidies that must be addressed as New Mexico’s data center boom begins.

What will the Legislature, radical environmental groups, and future governors of our state do to hinder (or help) bring these data centers to our State? That is an open question that depends heavily on upcoming statewide elections. It is important that New Mexicans understand and appreciate these complicated issues.

Paul Gessing is president of New Mexico’s Rio Grande Foundation. The Rio Grande Foundation is an independent, nonpartisan, tax-exempt research and educational organization dedicated to promoting prosperity for New Mexico based on principles of limited government, economic freedom and individual responsibility

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