UNM downs Fresno State behind Jacory Croskey-Merritt's career day

FRESNO, Calif. — All week long, the questions were about the quarterbacks.

About how Dylan Hopkins would start, but Devon Dampier would have more than his fair share of opportunities. How New Mexico would ride with whoever had the hot hand.

On Saturday, Jacory Croskey-Merritt was the answer.

With 200-plus rushing yards and two touchdowns, Croskey-Merritt powered New Mexico to a 25-17 victory over Fresno State, snapping the Lobos’ three-game losing streak in the process.

“It’s just a blessing,” Croskey-Merritt said of his career night. “I’m so excited, words can’t even explain the way I feel. I wanna say thank you to God, thank you to my teammates, everybody around for making me better.”

Of UNM’s 518 yards of total offense, Croskey-Merritt — affectionately known as “Bill” to his coaches and teammates — ran for 204 while wide receiver Caleb Medford accounted for a career-high 122 on six catches. The two transfers combined for all three of the Lobos’ touchdowns, with Croskey-Merritt’s serving as the go-ahead in the third quarter.

Croskey-Merritt is now three touchdowns away from tying DonTrell Moore’s 20-year old single-season record of 19 rushing touchdowns.

“For all this to even happen, I’m just so thankful for everybody who’s life I’ve came across while being in Albuquerque,” Croskey-Merritt added. “They’ve really made me feel special.”

Defensively, the Lobos turned in their best performance of the year, holding Fresno State to 218 total yards — just 52 in the second half. Notably, UNM shuffled players up front to manufacture a pass rush and cornerback Donte Martin broke up a pass in the third quarter to tie Glover Quin’s career pass breakup record (31).

“We got pressure with the four-man rush all night long,” UNM head coach Danny Gonzales said. “I thought they played hard. I thought they played their tails off, I thought they kept them off balance — (Fresno State) didn’t know where it was coming from.”

Despite being 22.5-point underdogs at kickoff, the Lobos (4-7, 2-5) won their first game at Fresno State (8-3, 4-3) in 29 years, the last coming in a 49-32 win on Oct. 29, 1994.

After opening with a drive into the red zone, UNM got on the board first with Luke Drzewiecki’s 38-yard field goal. Fresno swung ahead quickly, however, taking a 14-3 lead off rushing touchdowns from backup quarterback Logan Fife (9-for-16 passing, 125 yards) and running back Malik Sherrod (51 yards on 13 carries).

Drzewiecki pitched in another 38-yard field goal midway through the second quarter, trimming UNM’s deficit to 14-6. Then, after holding the Bulldogs to a three and out, the Lobos drove to midfield and handed off to Croskey-Merritt, who cut up the middle and down the sideline before diving across the plane for his 15th rushing touchdown of the year and a halftime score of 14-12.

But any momentum UNM had heading into the second half was tested early in the third quarter. On the Lobos’ first drive of the third, Hopkins (8-for-18 passing, 124 yards) threw an interception over the middle to linebacker Levelle Bailey — only for Lobos wide receiver Andrew Erickson to punch it out and D.J. Washington to come up with it off the return.

On the Lobos’ following drive, Hopkins threw another interception after the ball deflected off Medford’s hands and into safety Dean Clark’s gloves. UNM’s defense came up with another three and out in response, setting up a 10-play, 97-yard drive capped by Croskey-Merritt’s 10–yard touchdown to make it 18-14 with 2:30 left in the third.

“I was proud of our football team because we finally overcame some adversity,” Gonzales said. “I mean, that third quarter in six other games this year has gone in the complete opposite direction. And our kids, they refused to allow it to happen tonight.”

With Fresno State suddenly scratching for points, they turned to their regular starter Mikey Keene (9-for-16 passing, 58 yards). UNM forced a fifth straight punt, and after Dampier dropped a snap and recovered it, he looked downfield and whipped the ball to Medford for a 33-yard touchdown to make it 25-14 in the fourth.

“He chucked it up there, and there you go,” Gonzales said of Dampier’s broken-play touchdown. “The young man, he’s special. And that was a huge touchdown.”

After both teams traded punts, the Bulldogs embarked on a 15-play, 63-yard drive capped by kicker Dylan Lynch’s 44-yard field goal. UNM got the ball back with 3:23 left and successfully drained the clock, setting up the 25-17 final and one of the biggest wins of the Gonzales era.

“After everything we’ve been through over the last three weeks, I’m really proud of our coaches (for) staying focused and keeping the team focused,” Gonzales said. “And then I’m really proud of our football team. Because as hard as that is to overcome those opportunities and still fight every day and expect to win — and I’ve never for one second not saw fight in this football team, even when the scores were lopsided.

“And their preparation wasn’t any different. But it was still focused. And they just kept fighting tonight and stayed together. And I mean, I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

UNM — which, on account of poor Academic Progress Rate numbers, is assuredly eliminated from bowl contention — returns home for its season finale against Utah State on Nov. 24.