Aggies cruise in weekday action against Sam Houston

LAS CRUCES, N.M. – Coming off of just five days' rest, Head Coach Tony Sanchez guided the Aggies to one of their most dominant wins of his tenure, beating Sam Houston 37-10 in a midweek Conference USA matchup at Aggie Memorial Stadium. The win moves the Aggies to 3-0 at home for the first time since 2007 and pushes NM State to its seventh 3-2 start to a season since 1975.

In total, excluding a drive in the closing seconds of the first half, the Aggies scored on all but two of their drives, including adding points on each of their last four drives to tally 27 second-half points - a mark they had not reached in a full game this season.

While both sides were able to generate some productive offense in the opening quarter, a missed field goal for Sam Houston and a fumble for the Aggies inside the Bearkat 10-yard line would prevent any points from being scored in the opening 15 minutes of action. Following a fumble on its opening drive, the NM State offense bounced back on its second possession of the game as Logan Fife led the Aggies on a 15-play, 87-yard drive that eventually ended with a chip shot for Ryan Hawk to get the Aggies on the board.

The Aggie defense would then force a three-and-out on the ensuing Bearkat drive. This would set the Aggie offense up near midfield with just over five and a half minutes left in the half. The Aggies would waste no time, and after completions of 12 yards to Donovan Faupel and 26 yards to Shawn Brown, Logan Fife would sneak the ball in from the 1-yard line to tally the first rushing touchdown of his Aggie career.

With the Aggies ahead by 10 points, Sam Houston was finally able to get on the board by way of a 51-yard field goal with just 35 seconds remaining on the clock. While the Aggies carried a one-score lead into the locker room, NM State controlled the first period, racking up 196 total yards to the Bearkats’ 97.

In the second half, the Aggies quickly had to punt; however, the NM State defense did its job and came away with the first of three takeaways as Cole Schnettgoecke jumped on a ball that hit the ground after Sam Houston quarterback Hunter Watson threw a pass that was ruled to be a backwards pass. This turnover led to more points for the Aggies as Ryan Hawk hit another short kick (32 yards) to put the home side ahead 13-3 with 3:30 remaining in the third quarter.

Sam Houston did show life on its next drive as Watson found Alton McCaskill for a touchdown to pull the Bearkats’ deficit to three points as the third quarter neared the end. However, the Aggies immediately answered back with a touchdown of their own as Kadarius Calloway logged the team’s second rushing touchdown of the evening, pushing the lead to 10 points.

The following kickoff then proved to be one of the most impactful plays of the game as the Sam Houston return man muffed the kick, leaving the opportunity for Josiah Charles to slide in and recover the ball for the Aggies at the two-yard line. Three plays later, Logan Fife would find PJ Johnson III standing alone in the end zone to help extend the Aggie lead to 17 points with just over 11 minutes remaining in the game.

NM State would later force a turnover on downs before tacking on another field goal to move the score to 30-10. Then, with the game already in hand, safety Naeten Mitchell gave the Aggies more insurance as he made a spectacular defensive play to break up a pass and come away with his first interception as an Aggie before returning the interception 71 yards for the Aggies' second defensive touchdown in the last six days. This would be the finishing touches on the Aggies’ largest victory over a Conference USA opponent in their three-year history in the league.

NUMBERS OF NOTE

• TK King made his NM State debut on Thursday, recording a career-best 132 receiving yards while adding a touchdown. His 54-yard grab in the third quarter is the second-longest reception of the season for the Crimson & White, behind a 55-yarder hauled in by Donovan Faupel against Bryant.
• Logan Fife finished with 255 passing yards, adding one touchdown through the air and one on the ground. Fife has now surpassed 250 yards passing in four straight contests, all of which came against FBS opposition. 
• The senior connected on 19 of his 26 passing attempts, posting a completion percentage of 73.1%. The last Aggie with a completion percentage that high was a 16-for-20 Diego Pavia (80.0%) against Western Illinois on Sept. 2, 2023. Pavia’s mark of 76.2 (16-21) against Liberty on Nov. 26, 2022, was the last such instance against an FBS foe. 
• Kadarius Calloway recorded the highest individual single-game rushing total for NM State this season, totaling 68 yards on 15 carries. Calloway also posted the longest individual rush of the year for the Crimson & White, toting the rock for 29 yards. 
• Calloway also notched career bests with both five catches and 44 receiving yards.
• Max Dean punted just once in the win, marking the first time with one or fewer boots since Sept. 2, 2023,      versus Western Illinois.
• Nate Mitchell recorded his first career interception, returning it 71 yards for a touchdown - scoring the first of his career and the team’s first pick-six since Nov. 23, 2024 (Dylan Early).
• Defensive lineman Ezra Christensen wreaked havoc in the Bearkat backfield all night long, recording six total tackles, including two tackles for loss and one sack to go along with three quarterback hurries.
• Through five contests this season, the Aggies have recorded at least one turnover in each game. In 2024, NM State accomplished this feat in just seven of 12 games. 
• The Aggie offensive line held strong on Thursday, allowing just one sack on the day. NM State running backs averaged just over 4.0 yards per carry, racking up their first multi-rushing touchdown outing of 2025. 
• NM State played clean on that side of the ball, only picking up one flag across 57 total snaps.

UP NEXT

NM State’s second and final bye week of the year awaits as Tony Sanchez’s squad gears up with 11 days of preparation. The Aggies will next be in action following their longest trip of the regular season, battling Liberty on Tuesday, Oct. 14, from Lynchburg, Va. The Flames (1-4) are off this weekend before visiting UTEP next Wednesday, Oct. 8. The matchup will air on CBS Sports Network at 5:00 PM MT (7:00 local). Coverage will also be available via 99.5 FM KXPZ and nmstatesports.com/stats.