2008 New Mexico Lobos football team

2008 New Mexico Lobos football
Conference	Mountain West Conference
Record	4–8 (2–6 MW)
Head coach	Rocky Long (11th season)
Offensive coordinator	Dave Baldwin (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Base defense	3–3–5
Home stadium	University Stadium

2008 Mountain West Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 2 Utah $		8	–	0					13	–	0
No. 7 TCU		7	–	1					11	–	2
No. 25 BYU		6	–	2					10	–	3
Air Force		5	–	3					8	–	5
Colorado State		4	–	4					7	–	6
UNLV		2	–	6					5	–	7
New Mexico		2	–	6					4	–	8
Wyoming		1	–	7					4	–	8
San Diego State		1	–	7					2	–	10
$ – Conference champion and BCS representative as top non-AQ school to meet automatic qualification criteria Rankings from AP Poll

The 2008 New Mexico Lobos football team represented the University of New Mexico during the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season. New Mexico competed as a member of the Mountain West Conference (MW), and played their home games in the University Stadium. The Lobos were led by 11th-year head coach Rocky Long.

The Lobos upset ten-point favorites Arizona, 36–28.^[1] Against ninth-ranked BYU, New Mexico had a fourth quarter touchdown overturned due to a controversial penalty call. On fourth down with 21 yards to go, the Lobos then failed to convert for a first down. BYU scored on their next possession to clinch the victory, 21–3.^[1][2] New Mexico also played a close game against 10th-ranked Utah, which finished the season undefeated and ranked second in the nation. The Lobos were stopped at the Utes' goal line on fourth down, and eventually lost by a three-point margin.^[1]

New Mexico finished the season with a 4–8 record (MW: 2–6).^[3] It was the Lobos' first losing season in conference play since 2000.^[4] After the season, Rocky Long resigned as head coach. He was replaced by former Illinois offensive coordinator, Mike Locksley.^[5]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	4:00 pm	TCU	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	Versus	L 3–26	31,583
September 6	3:00 pm	Texas A&M*	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	Versus	L 22–28	28,007
September 13	6:00 pm	Arizona*	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM (rivalry)	CBSCS	W 36–28	32,337
September 20	5:00 pm	at Tulsa*	Chapman Stadium Tulsa, OK		L 14–56	30,000
September 27	6:00 pm	at New Mexico State*	Aggie Memorial Stadium Las Cruces, NM (Rio Grande Rivalry)	CN10	W 35–24	30,343
October 4	7:30 pm	Wyoming	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	mtn	W 24–0	28,752
October 11	4:00 pm	at No. 9 BYU	LaVell Edwards Stadium Provo, UT	mtn	L 3–21	64,105
October 18	4:00 pm	San Diego State	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	mtn	W 70–7	26,695
October 23	6:00 pm	at Air Force	Falcon Stadium USAFA, CO	CBSCS	L 10–23	25,101
November 1	7:30 pm	No. 10 Utah	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	mtn	L 10–13	30,901
November 8	8:00 pm	at UNLV	Sam Boyd Stadium Whitney, NV		L 20–27	13,154
November 15	12:00 pm	at Colorado State	Hughes Stadium Fort Collins, CO	mtn	L 6–20	17,401
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Mountain time

References

1. Phil Steele's 2009 College Football Preview, vol. 15, p. 190, 2009.
2. BYU extends nation's longest winning streak to 16 straight, ESPN, October 11, 2008.
3. New Mexico 2008 Archived 2012-10-13 at the Wayback Machine, College Football Data Warehouse, retrieved June 27, 2009.
4. Steele, p. 172.
5. Illini OC Locksley hired as head coach at New Mexico, CBS Sports, December 8, 2008.