UNM football notebook: DE Darren Agu is back with the Lobos after missing camp, first two games

In the minutes before New Mexico kicked off at Michigan, it was well past midnight in London.

And Darren Agu couldn’t find the channel.

“So I had to watch it on FaceTime through my girlfriend’s phone,” UNM’s junior defensive end said Monday. “She had the phone pointed at the screen, and I was watching the game through FaceTime.”

Much to Agu’s pleasure, he’ll be a little closer to Lobo games going forward. The 6-foot-6, 244-pound London native is “super happy” to be back with the program after missing UNM’s first game and fall camp while he was stuck in England with visa issues.

A Vanderbilt transfer, Agu got back into Albuquerque on Friday after he had been stuck in his home country since May. But shortly after his visa interview in June, he was told it was entering an “administrative process” while they reviewed his social media accounts.

“They just said I have to wait,” Agu said. “But they never told me how long. That was the most worrying part. I didn’t know when I’d get my visa.”

As he waited, Agu mirrored UNM’s summer schedule to stay in football shape, running, lifting and doing field work at home. In the meantime, he reached out to UNM’s Global Education Office, which he said helped speed up the process of getting his visa approved.

“I had two options: either give in and just sit, not do anything and come back in that shape, or work hard and come back in the best shape I can,” Agu said. “I picked the second option.”

Now back with the Lobos, could he see the field against UCLA come Friday?

“We’ll see how he comes along … He’s eligible to play so long as he doesn’t miss a practice this week,” head coach Jason Eck said Tuesday. “There’s a seven-day acclimation period that you have to (complete) before you can play in a game.

“ … We’ll see how he looks, and definitely – if he’s ready – we’ll certainly use him.”

Notes and quotes

— How is UCLA transfer safety Clint Stephens treating Friday’s game? “It’s almost like playing your rival in high school,” he said. “Almost like a homecoming game … (UCLA), they’re my friends, my old teammates after the game.

“But right now, they’re still just the opposite team — nameless, faceless opponents.”

Stephens joined UNM this spring after spending three seasons with the Bruins.

— Monday, UCLA head coach Deshaun Foster offered his scouting report on UNM: “This offensive coordinator (Luke Schleusner) is really good,” Foster said. “He does a good job (with) what he has. He schemes pretty well and gets guys open; has a lot of movement. So it’s good that our defense was going against us this whole training camp with a lot of movement, so they should be used to that.

“And then defensively, they got a middle linebacker and a defensive tackle that can play. There’s guys over there, there’s talent on that side of the ball and you know they’re gonna be excited and ready to play against UCLA in the Rose Bowl.”

— One season after finishing as college football’s second-most penalized team, UNM has been called for the least amount of penalties (3) of any program in the country this season; Ohio State, Notre Dame, Georgia, Air Force, Wisconsin, Purdue and TCU are tied for second place with five flags.

As for UCLA? The Bruins have been flagged 17 times for 195 yards through two games.