2026 New Mexico State
2–4 (1–1 Conference USA), coached by Tony Sanchez. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Mercyhurst 51–14Sep 5
By 37 points, its widest win.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 29 | at Florida State | L 17–34 | 31% |
| Sep 5 | vs Mercyhurst | W 51–14 | 79% |
| Sep 12 | at Hawai’i | L 19–29 | 30% |
| Sep 26 | vs New Mexico | L 18–42 | 33% |
| Oct 1 | vs Western Kentucky | W 34–13 | 41% |
| Oct 7 | at Florida International | L 3–22 | 32% |
| Oct 21 | at Sam Houston | Preview | 47% |
| Oct 28 | vs Jacksonville State | Preview | 33% |
| Nov 7 | vs Liberty | Preview | 33% |
| Nov 14 | at Missouri State | Preview | 38% |
| Nov 21 | vs Delaware | Preview | 52% |
| Nov 28 | at Middle Tennessee | Preview | 42% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
- Record
- 2–4
- Conference
- 1–1 tied for 4th in Conference USA
- AP now
- Unranked
- Points
- 142–154
- Coach
- Tony Sanchez
- Elo
- 1367 −17 this season
- SP+ rating
- -13.7 No. 121 of 138; offense No. 118, defense No. 107, special teams No. 112
- SRS
- −14.3 No. 119 of 138 in FBS
- Returning
- 24% of last season’s EPA, No. 93 of 136
- Recruiting class
- No. 136 roster talent No. 135 in FBS
- Offensive coordinator
- David Yost
- Defensive coordinator
- Joe Morris
- Offense
- Spread
- Defense
- 4–2–5
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | -0.05 | 39% | 1.36 | 121st of 138 |
| Defense | 0.09 | 41% | 1.16 | 62nd of 138 |
| Opponent-adjusted | 0.01 off 0.11 def | 40% off 42% def | — | 126th off 71st def |
Passing and running
| Pass success | Depth of target | Deep throws | Line yards | Stuffed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 41% | 10.2 yds | 17% | 3.30 | 12% |
| Defense | 43% | 7.6 yds | 8% | 2.80 | 20% |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played. Passing and running: depth of target is how far downfield passes traveled in the air; deep throws are the share thrown deep, of the passes whose depth and direction the play-by-play describes (about half); line yards are the running yards per carry credited to the blockers; stuffed is the share of carries stopped at or behind the line. The defense’s line is what its opponents did. From CollegeFootballData.com, 2025 on.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 3.4 | own 27 | 17% allowed |
| Defense | 4.0 | own 31 | 14% caused |
CORE rating -13.6, 120th of 138 (offense -10.6, defense 3.0).
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Trey Hedden QB | 906 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Trey Hedden QB | 5 TD |
| Rushing yards | James Jones RB | 599 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | James Jones RB | 3 TD |
| Receiving yards | Tyler King WR | 286 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Tyler King WR | 3 TD |
| Tackles | Nicolas Sessions S | 51 tkl |
| Sacks | Gabe Peterson DE | 4.5 sacks |
| Interceptions | De’Marcus Peters CB | 1 INT |
Top recruits in the 2026 class
| Xavier Rucker RB | ★★★ | No. 1308 |
| JaDarius Sanders WR | ★★★ | No. 1474 |
| Jamaun Thompson DE | ★★★ | No. 2052 |
| Jaylyn Manning LB | ★★★ | No. 2743 |
| Garrett Stennett S | ★★★ | No. 2846 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2026 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Running backs | 1 | 3.0 | 0.866 |
| Receivers | 1 | 3.0 | 0.862 |
| Offensive line | 1 | 3.0 | 0.815 |
| Defensive line | 1 | 3.0 | 0.850 |
| Linebackers | 1 | 3.0 | 0.835 |
| Defensive backs | 1 | 3.0 | 0.830 |
| Whole class | 6 | 3.0 | 0.843 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Roster 105
The 2026 roster105 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2026 line; 57 have a stat line. See the roster
Transfers in 25
The 2026 portal James Jones RB | ★★★ | from  Delaware State |
 Armond Owens OL | ★★★ | from  Grambling |
 Carson Su’esu’e TE | ★★★ | from  Oklahoma State |
 Javon Gillespie CB | ★★★ | from  East Texas A&M |
| Jordan-Lebron Downey DL | ★★★ | from Livingstone |
 Lyndon Ravare WR | ★★★ | from  Kennesaw State |
 Terrell Washington Jr. RB | ★★★ | from  Iowa |
 Tyler Keinath OL | ★★★ | from  Boise State |
 Vic Shaw DE | ★★★ | from  UTSA |
 Amaurey Brooks CB | ★★★ | from  Fordham |
 Devin Ellison WR | ★★★ | from  Washington State |
 James Williams OL | ★★★ | from  UTEP |
And 13 more, lower-rated or unrated.
Transfers out 24
And 12 more, lower-rated or unrated.
2026 Conference USA standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville State | 3–0 | 5–2 | |
| Liberty | 2–0 | 5–1 | |
| Western Kentucky | 2–1 | 3–4 | |
| Middle Tennessee | 1–1 | 3–3 | |
| Florida International | 1–1 | 3–3 | |
 New Mexico State | 1–1 | 2–4 | |
| Missouri State | 1–1 | 2–4 | |
| Delaware | 0–2 | 2–4 | |
| Kennesaw State | 0–2 | 1–5 | |
| Sam Houston | 0–2 | 1–5 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.