New Mexico routs UTEP 61-7
Team pages: UTEP · New Mexico
New Mexico routed UTEP 61-7. Share this game
We had New Mexico favored. It won.
How it swung
Before kickoff, our ratings gave New Mexico a 97% chance, and the closing betting line (New Mexico was a 23.5-point favorite) put it at 97%.
New Mexico · Q3 13:28SafetyQ3 7:1986-yard TD run
UTEP · Q4 13:11New Mexico 61-7 UTEPNew Mexico wonMove across the chart, or tap a numbered swing, to see any play.UTEP 7-61 New MexicoUTEP lostMove across the chart, or tap a numbered swing, to see any play.No single play moved the chance by 20 points.
No single play moved the chance by 20 points.
How to read this chart
Starts from the pregame line (New Mexico -23.5), at 97% for New Mexico (the play-by-play feed's kickoff number, moved to match the line; our model's and the betting line's own numbers are in “The betting line, and the fans”). Dots are the biggest swings; ticks under the chart are scores. Outlined diamonds mark rare plays.Every drive
New Mexico scored on 7 of its 11 drives; UTEP on 1 of its 12.
New Mexico’s drives are teal, UTEP’s amber. A line runs from where a drive started to where it ended; a filled dot means it scored.
What it cost
UTEP’s chance to win the conference fell from 1% to 0%.
Win the conference
Before the game (October 2, 2026) → after this result, in our model.
Box score
New Mexico 61, UTEP 7
New Mexico covered −23.5 by 30.5. The total, 68, went over 47.5.
| Team totals | UTEP | New Mexico |
|---|---|---|
| Total yards | 270 | 492 |
| Passing | 8 of 18, 101 yds | 17 of 23, 262 yds |
| Rushing | 35 for 169 yds | 42 for 230 yds |
| First downs | 11 | 24 |
| Third down | 4 of 12 | 7 of 12 |
| Fourth down | 1 of 3 | 2 of 3 |
| Turnovers | 5 | 1 |
| Penalties | 8 for 62 yds | 4 for 40 yds |
| Time of possession | 28:32 | 31:28 |
UTEP leaders
- Passing EJ Colson 6 of 12, 45 yds, 1 INT
- Rushing Raymond Moore III 11 for 134 yds, 1 TD; EJ Colson 8 for 24 yds
- Receiving Kam Thomas 3 for 47 yds; Carver Cheeks 3 for 25 yds
New Mexico leaders
- Passing Toa Faavae 15 of 19, 249 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
- Rushing Cameron Mathews 6 for 108 yds, 1 TD; Scottre Humphrey 13 for 47 yds, 1 TD
- Receiving DJ Darling 3 for 75 yds; Bailen George 2 for 62 yds, 2 TD
No rain through the game
70° at kickoff · no rain recorded
October game-day temperatures at University Stadium (NM)
Drag along the chart, or step through the game.
Where this weather comes from
Measured at Albuquerque International airport, 1.9 miles away. Rain is NOAA's radar-and-gauge estimate at the stadium and wind is an airport reading; neither is measured on the field. Game times come from the play-by-play, good to a minute or two. Source: National Weather Service, through the Iowa Environmental Mesonet; rain radar from NOAA MRMS, through Iowa State University. Field direction from OpenStreetMap contributors.Before kickoff
Recent games, the series and the betting line below are as they stood going in; the season profile is the season so far.
Recent games
Last 4 games
UTEP · 1-3
Rated 212th in our preseason ratings, 197th now, up 15 spots.
1-3 in its last 4 — but nothing on this résumé beats a top-40 team yet.
L 0-51 @ OklahomaTop 25 #19 of 668
lost by 51 as a 40.5-point underdog
Last 4 games
New Mexico · 3-1
Rated 73rd in our preseason ratings, 58th now, up 15 spots.
3-1 in its last 4 — but nothing on this résumé beats a top-40 team yet.
W 42-18 @ New Mexico State #149 of 668
won by 24 as an 11.5-point favorite
Week by week
New Mexico
- Wk 1Wvs Central Michigan38-7
- Wk 2Wvs Mercyhurst70-7
- Wk 3Lat Oklahoma6-14
- Wk 4Wat New Mexico State42-18
UTEP
- Wk 1Lat Oklahoma0-51
- Wk 2Wvs Texas Southern51-10
- Wk 3Lat Michigan17-52
- Wk 4Lvs Oregon State7-33
Power rating by week
New Mexico is rated 10.1 points ahead as of week 4. Our power rating by week; higher is better.
Matchups
Biggest mismatch: UTEP’s EPA/play against New Mexico, 98 points
Each row ranks the two sides among all teams. The longer the line, the bigger the mismatch.
UTEP’s EPA/play against New Mexico’s defense
UTEP offense, 2nd percentile · New Mexico defense, 100th
UTEP’s passing EPA against New Mexico’s defense
UTEP offense, 2nd percentile · New Mexico defense, 97th
UTEP’s explosive plays against New Mexico’s defense
UTEP offense, 85th percentile · New Mexico defense, 8th
Season profile, all the rows
Season profile
The series
New Mexico leads the series 37-31-2
70 meetings since 1934 · New Mexico won the last meeting
- 2022New Mexico 27-10
- 2021UTEP 20-13
- 2014UTEP 31-24
- 2013New Mexico 42-35
- 2010UTEP 38-20
Each line is New Mexico’s chance to win through that meeting. Older meetings have no play by play, so no line.
Line, fans and home field
The betting line, and the fans
New Mexico fans are feeling it about like the typical fanbase this week (46th among FBS fanbases), and the other side is no happier.
New Mexico favored by 23.5 · Total 47.5
How games like this usually go
New Mexico by 23.5, and it went to form
Half of games8 in 10 gamesThis game
The band is where a favorite’s chance ran in the 411 games since 2025 with a favorite of 21.5 points or more.
The market
The spread moved 2.5 points toward New Mexico.
The total fell 6 points.
Spread: −21 → −23.5 · Total: 53.5 → 47.5
The books’ cut: 3.7%, the margin built into the odds
Weather at kickoff
Mild and dry. Feels like 72° at kickoff.
UTEP at New Mexico · Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026 · University Stadium, Albuquerque
- 72°feels like at kickoff
- Dryno rain at kickoff
- 98weather score, Comfortable
At kickoff, Oct. 3, 2026.
Weather score: 0 to 100, higher is better, for the first 3 hours and 20 minutes of the game. Ideal is 100, Comfortable 90 to 99, Mixed 75 to 89, Rough 50 to 74, Harsh under 50.
Kickoff times that Saturday
Games in this time zone used 4 kickoff times that day, local time (kickoffs within 30 minutes of each other count as one). This game is ringed. At University Stadium that day, a 10 am or 5:30 pm kickoff would have scored 100, against 98 at 2 pm.
- 10 am: 100, Ideal
- 2 pm: 98, Comfortable (this game)
- 4 pm: 98, Comfortable
- 5:30 pm: 100, Ideal
Weather score at each kickoff time.
Tap a dot to read that kickoff time.
At kickoff, Oct. 3, 2026. Wind is not drawn here; gusts are in each score.
Home field
New Mexico is worth +2.5 points (±4.0) more at home than on the road since 2018 — bottom third of FBS, 21st percentile.
39% at home, 27% on the road against FBS opponents (16-25 home, 13-36 away).
Our model gives every stadium the same flat 2.3-point home edge (why); the books use about 3. Against the closing line this stadium reads -2.1 at home vs. away over 97 games — inside the ±6.0 noise, so the flat number is the honest one here.
5,100 ft of altitude — real, and smaller than the folklore: high venues run a point or two better against the number, noisily. The visitors travel about 228 miles to get here.
Where next
Conference standings
Place in the conference, then conference record.
- New Mexico5th0-0
- UTEP7th0-0