Mendenhall addresses Wysong injury, Wyoming and that forward pass (or was it?) in press conference

New Mexico head coach Bronco Mendenhall said he didn’t have an update on wide receiver Luke Wysong’s status ahead of UNM’s game against Wyoming on Saturday at University Stadium.

After suffering an apparent leg injury during the Lobos’ opening drive in a 17-6 loss at Colorado State, Wysong missed the rest of the game and was seen wearing a walking boot on his left foot in the second half. The redshirt junior leads UNM (3-5, 2-2) in receptions (50) and receiving yards (663), the fourth and fifth-best marks in the Mountain West, respectively.

A team captain, Wysong last week was named to the Biletnikoff Award watch list — given annually to the best receiver in college football.

“I don’t, and probably won’t all the way until we play,” Mendenhall said during a press conference Monday when he was asked if he had a Wysong update. “And that could be for a lot of our guys. But, yeah, no word yet.”

Without the Rio Rancho native last Saturday, UNM (3-5, 2-2) got career performances from wide receivers Ryan Davis (nine receptions, 146 yards) and Michael Buckley (seven receptions, 90 yards) but failed to score a touchdown for the first time all season.

Mendenhall said Wysong’s absence helped create a different dynamic for an offense that had scored 50 or more points in three straight games prior to Saturday.

“(Wysong’s) production is one component,” he said. “Chemistry with (quarterback Devon Dampier), another component, (and) leadership, another component. None of that means it’s insurmountable — I was really encouraged by Ryan Davis, really encouraged by Michael Buckley, (running back) Eli Sanders, (running back Sol-Jay Maiava-Peters).

“But I think what we all saw clearly is, without all the pieces, it seemed to shift more and more towards Devon. Not only in throwing, but running, and that wasn’t necessarily by design. But you could just see Devon feeling that he had to do more and more and more.”

Dampier completed 23 of 40 passes for 319 yards and led UNM in rushing with 105 yards, but threw two interceptions and lost a fumble in the red zone for his second straight game with three turnovers.

“He’ll battle back,” Mendenhall said. “He’s resilient, he’s confident. He’s an amazing football player and a great young man, and he’ll respond really well.”

UNM also was without wide receiver Caleb Medford (10 receptions, 200 yards, two touchdowns on the season) and running backs Javen Jacobs (277 yards, three touchdowns) and Na’Quari Rogers (250 yards, four touchdowns) against Colorado State. All three suffered undisclosed injuries during a 50-45 win over Utah State on Oct. 19; Mendenhall did not offer an update on any of them on Monday.

“We’re hopeful,” he said. “That’s the best way to put it.”

A look at Wyoming

To Mendenhall, there’s “about eight” teams in the Mountain West that more or less look the same on a week-to-week basis: “Just battling and scrapping, and the games are close,” he said, “and I don’t think you’re ever quite sure who’s going to win.”

Wyoming is one of them.

The Cowboys (1-7, 1-3) have struggled under first-year head coach Jay Sawvel, but Mendenhall isn’t putting much stock into their record.

“If you look at (Wyoming’s 27-25 loss to Utah State on Saturday) and look at our game versus Utah State, it came down to the very last series for both,” he added. “Wyoming’s played a lot of games really tough, really close. And the difference between one win, three wins, five wins that I’ve seen in this league, man, those margins are really thin.”

Despite returning seven starters on offense, Wyoming’s has largely struggled: The Cowboys are averaging a paltry 18.1 points per game with the 118th-ranked passing offense in all of college football.

In a move to get more production, Sawvel said that redshirt freshman quarterback Kaden Anderson will make his first career start against UNM.

The 6-foot-4, 221-pound Texas native completed 15 of 24 passes for 182 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions in relief of Evan Svoboda against Utah State.

“I thought he performed well the other night,” Sawvel said during a press conference Monday. “He had probably two plays that were like, ‘You know what, be careful with this,’ but I thought, overall, he did a really good job of keeping us in a rhythm and keeping us in a flow.”

Sawvel added that running back Harrison Waylee (947 rushing yards, five touchdowns in 2023) will make his season debut against UNM.

The 5-10, 212-pound senior missed the first eight games of the season with a knee injury.

Overturned

Few calls had more of an effect Saturday than Dampier’s ill-fated pitch to Sanders in the second quarter.

After Sanders sprinted down the sideline for a first down, officials abruptly announced the play was under review and later overturned it, ruling the play an illegal forward pass.

Two plays later, running back Kobe Johnson returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown to give Colorado State a 14-3 lead.

On Monday, Mendenhall made it clear he didn’t agree with the call.

“The video probably can’t be replayed any more — like it will short-circuit,” he joked. “I’ve seen it as many times from as many angles. I’ve seen it from my head, laying on my back, looking sideways, with a laser, with my ruler …

“I didn’t think it was forward. But I don’t make that decision.”