ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — It wasn’t long ago that Saturday’s New Mexico Bowl game, which pitted No. 23 North Texas against San Diego State, seemed filled with quarterback uncertainty.
A week ago, Aztecs starting quarterback Jayden Denegal underwent non-throwing shoulder surgery to repair an injury suffered in the season opener. The Mean Green’s Drew Mestemaker, who led the nation with 4,129 passing yards and scored 31 touchdowns, also entered the transfer portal.
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While Denegal will miss the bowl game and be replaced by Burt Emanuel Jr., redshirt freshman Mestemaker, who went from an undrafted walk-on to a star capable of commanding name, image and likeness deals, will still play.
“I think, especially for me, I’m not the kind of guy who’s going to quit the team and leave before we’ve accomplished something,” Mestemaker said in explaining his decision to play. “I feel like we have more to do. I don’t want to go out the same way we went out. I know we’re a better team than we were against Tulane, so my thing is, I want to come back and finish it the right way and get our 12th win of the season.”
For the Aztecs, Emanuel is a junior transfer from Central Michigan and the son of former NFL wide receiver Bert Emanuel, who played eight seasons, primarily with the Atlanta Falcons.
comparative study
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The game pits North Texas (11-2), which leads the nation in scoring (44.8 points per game) and total offense (504 yards per game), against stingy San Diego State (9-3), which ranks fifth in scoring defense at 12.6 points per game.
Aztecs coach Sean Lewis said destroying Mean Green’s offensive scheme is crucial.
“We’re going to try to limit all of their explosive playmakers,” he said. “I think when you watch all these bowl games, who gets the quick start, who gets the quick start, is going to be critical because for us, we’ve been close to a month without playing. So we just want to do a good job of our communication, our alignment, our assignments and try to impact a really good quarterback as much as possible.
North Texas will look to continue doing what it does best.
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“They have players all over the floor, flying around, always taking care of the ball,” Mestemaker said. “We’ve seen great defenses and they’re just another great defense that we have to go against.”
Run, baby, run
The Aztecs’ game plan calls for an emphasis on the ground attack regardless of who takes the snaps, so expect to see a lot of running back Lucky Sutton, who leads the Mountain West Conference with 1,237 yards and 10 touchdowns.
“Our offense is definitely trying to step in every moment and try to continue to build our confidence,” Sutton said. “Throughout the season we’ve been improving and getting better and better and just going out there and doing our job and controlling the things that we can control.”
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Clogged production lines will be part of the average green goal.
“They’re a very physical team, and really, no matter which quarterback comes in, I don’t think it’s going to change their style,” said North Texas interim coach Drew Swoboda, who replaced Eric Morris after he left for Oklahoma State. “They’re tough up front. They want to set up the run. They’re going to shoot and pass, but they’re going to be a physical, tough football team.”
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