The portal is open. Where do the Lobos need help?

The season is over.

The portal is open.

And the Lobos could use some help. 

With the transfer portal opening Friday, New Mexico coaches can start contacting entered players to fill some roster needs heading into head coach Jason Eck’s second season with the program.

Four positions where the Lobos might look to add:

Edge rusher

This is perhaps the most obvious need for UNM. After adding edge rushers Keyshawn James-Newby (9 sacks) and Brett Karhu (7.5 sacks) last offseason, the Lobos’ pass rush broke out with 225 pressures and 36 sacks — the best mark in the Mountain West and most for the program in 20 years.

James-Newby and Karhu, however, are out of eligibility and will be one-and-dones with UNM. Defensive end Darren Agu (2 sacks) did resign with the program last month, but it’s clear that UNM will have to use the portal to replace some of James-Newby and Karhu’s remarkable production.

Cornerback

The good news for UNM here? Cornerback Frankie Edwards (47 total tackles) resigned with the program and will be back next season with two years of eligibility remaining. That’s after the 5-foot-10, 174-pound sophomore showed some real growth this season, finishing as the Lobos’ second-highest graded corner in coverage, per Pro Football Focus.

The bad news? The rest of UNM’s top four corners (Jon Johnson, Abraham Williams and Jayden Sheridan) are out of eligibility, and won’t return. Bank on the Lobos’ to hit the portal in search of starting production and depth at corner heading into next season. 

“Jon Johnson was such a good player, and I just think we have to get our numbers up at corner anyway,” Eck said in a news conference previewing the Rate Bowl. “There were some times this year where we got a little thin when we had an injury at corner.”

Wide receiver

After returning only nine catches from last year, the Lobos hit gold by adding Kansas State transfer Keagan Johnson, who led UNM with 61 catches for 772 yards and three touchdowns this season. The rest of the receiver room was solid but far from stellar. Amid a season that saw the Lobos pass catchers struggle with injuries, only one non-Johnson receiver (Shawn Miller) finished with more than 10 catches; in fact, only three receivers caught passes this season.

Now, will UNM deal with as many injuries at receiver next season? Probably not. And they do have help on the way from the prep ranks, with five freshman receivers (including three-star recruit Massiah Mingo) coming in this summer.

But Eck consistently mentioned UNM’s struggles to get open against man coverage this season, especially against good defenses. It’d be wise to add a receiver or two to not only help in that regard, but add a little more experience to the room, too.

“I think that’s an area that we have to improve this offseason. We gotta be able to move the ball consistently against good defenses,” Eck said in a news conference after the Rate Bowl.

Offensive tackle

This is perhaps a lesser priority, but certainly a need that was apparent in UNM’s final two games against San Diego State and Minnesota. The Lobos stressed positional flexibility on the offensive line and got plenty of quality snaps from underclassmen Kaden Robnett, Malik Aliane, Jaymar Tasi and Tyler Lawrence, but none of them had prototypical tackle size.

And when they lined up against players like Minnesota’s Anthony Smith, that showed in a big way. If nothing else, consider this a need as the Lobos look to take the next step as a program.

“I think we need a few more tackle bodies in the program, maybe some older guys,” Eck said a news conference previewing the Rate Bowl. “You look at, like, (6-1, 310-pound Malik Aliane) this year — (he was) playing tackle with really, a little bit more of an inside guard, center body type.”

Sean Reider covers college football and other sports for the Journal. You can reach him at sreider@abqjournal.com or via X at @lenaweereider.