LAS CRUCES N.M. – Aggie fans were eager for a third straight bowl game for the first time in school history going into the 2024 season, but that was not the case as the NMSU football team finished with just a 3-9 record including a 2-6 conference record. What started off as a promising season with a win in their home opener for the first time since 2014 slowly turned into a disaster.
The resignation of former head coach Jerry Kill in 2023 resulted in multiple key players transferring. Tony Sanchez, one of Kill’s assistant coaches, was named the next head coach and he brought in some talented players, including running backs Mike Washington and Seth McGowan who became the first duo to record over 600 yards each in a season since 2003.
Washington had eight rushing touchdowns on the year which is the most he has had in a season in his collegiate career. He also received one touchdown against the University of New Mexico Lobos to give him nine total. Even though the Aggies did not have the season they wanted, Washington saw a lot of positive things to build on for the offseason.
“I believe to have a rebuild bounce back team like we did, we had a decent season,” Washington said. “We were able to work with what we had at the time and still win games.”
Washington still believes the team will improve significantly going into the 2025 season and has high expectations for himself that he wants fans to be aware of.
“Although we didn’t have the season we wanted, we still came to work every single game,” Washington said. “Next year will be a shocker for sure.”
McGowan had a bounce-back season in his return to Division I football rushing for three touchdowns and receiving three touchdowns as well.
Abraham Montaño made his name known in Las Cruces by proving to be one of the best kickers in school history. Ethan Albertson was an outstanding kicker for the Aggies the previous four seasons, so finding a replacement like Montaño was needed. He did not miss a single extra point all year and managed to make all his kicks from less than 40 yards. He made 10 total kicks from over 40 yards including five from more than 50 yards. He even set a school record with a 59-yard field goal against the UTEP Miners in the final game of the season. Washington, McGowan and Montaño were all bright spots for the Aggies.
Former NMSU quarterback Diego Pavia was among the many players who transferred to another school, so finding a new quarterback was an important task for the coaching staff during the offseason. Despite their efforts, quarterback struggles were a problem all year long. Parker Awad was named the starter ahead of the Aggies week-one matchup with FCS opponent Southeast Missouri State University and he remained the starter for the first three games before junior transfer Santino Marucci was given an opportunity to showcase his skills. Kentucky transfer Deuce Hogan also saw action in two games but a collarbone injury kept him sidelined the remainder of the season after a 48-0 loss against Fresno State.
Senior Brandon Nuñez also saw action toward the end of the season and started in just one game against Conference USA opponent Florida International University. He made his name known when he rallied the Aggies to a 33-30 win on a Tuesday night matchup with Louisiana Tech. He recorded two rushing touchdowns in the second half and gave the Aggie faithful something to cheer about.
Awad was the primary quarterback out of all four players as he started in six of the seven games he played in. He threw seven passing touchdowns for 1,079 yards on the season. He only accounted for four interceptions. He also had one rushing touchdown early in the year against Liberty.
The Aggies struggles on the road was an issue as they finished just 1-5 away from Las Cruces with their only win coming in the last one of the season against a below average Middle Tennessee team. Their prior five road losses were all defeats of 20 or more points, but they managed to pull off a remarkable 36-21 win against the Blue Raiders Nov. 23.
At home, the Aggies finished just 2-4 but remained competitive in all of them. Their two wins came against Southeast Missouri State and Louisiana Tech in intense matchups. They led by 14 early in the second quarter against Liberty in the second game of the season and by 17 early in the game against I-10 rival UTEP. Both these games resulted in losses which upset fans, especially students.
Band member Xzavier Gutierrez is a student who was frustrated with how the season played out especially toward the end.
“I’m very disappointed about the loss against UTEP, obviously because it was a rivalry game,” Gutierrez said. “I’m not too sure what the next steps will be for the team next year, but I think there has to be some serious changes if there’s going to be success.”
Another home loss came against the University of New Mexico Lobos 40-50. Despite scoring the most points in a game all year, it was not enough to secure the win. Another loss took place against Western Kentucky who finished second in the CUSA standings. The Aggies lost 41-28 despite cutting the deficit to just three midway through the third quarter after trailing by 17 at halftime.
The Aggies offensive struggles were not the only thing holding them back. Their defense started off strong in the first couple games of the season, but slowly took a hit as time went by. It was rare when both the offense and defense were solid consistently. It was either they put together only a strong offensive performance or vice versa. When the offense struggled, the defense got tired and could not get stops regularly which led to their downfall.
Sanchez was not pleased with his team’s performance throughout the season especially with how it ended. Back-to-back wins would have been huge for the team’s confidence going into the offseason but they could not get it done.
“It’s an embarrassing loss, and a crappy way to end the season,” Sanchez said in the final postgame conference of the season following the Aggies 42-35 loss against UTEP.
Wednesday, Dec. 4, was early signing day and the Aggies picked up 14 new players to start the offseason. They will look to keep on building from these recruits and find more who will help them pick up more wins next season. Fixing the quarterback and defensive struggles will be a point of emphasis for Sanchez and his staff.
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