Everything you need to know about New Mexico’s season opener against Central Michigan:Who: UNM (0-0) vs. CMU (0-0).When and where: 8 p.m. Saturday at University Stadium, where the Lobos have won seven straight games dating back to Nov. 2024.How to watch/listen: FS1 will carry UNM-CMU with Carlo Jimenez (play-by-play) and Petros Papadakis (analyst) on the call. Robert Portnoy (play-by-play), DonTrell Moore (analyst), Ned James (sideline) and J.J. Buck (pregame show) will broadcast the game via radio on the Lobo Radio Network (770 AM/96.3 FM).Who’s favored: UNM is listed as a 12.5-point favorite, per DraftKings. The over/under is set at 46.5 points.Top storyline: Thursday, head coach Jason Eck announced that Jack Layne, UNM’s starting quarterback last year, will undergo season-ending surgery to address a nagging elbow injury. He also said UNM will play multiple quarterbacks against CMU in lieu of naming a true starter.Monday, he didn’t add much more.After holding a three-player quarterback competition throughout fall camp – one with no clear winner – Eck was hesitant to share details on what UNM’s multi-quarterback system might look like come Saturday.For instance, when Eck was asked if UNM would play all of its top three quarterbacks (sixth-year senior James Laubstein, junior Luke Moga and sophomore Toa Fa’avae) against CMU?“Potentially,” he answered, “but not definitely.”Or if he could share how UNM will split reps among said quarterbacks, whether it’s between two or three players?“(We’re) probably still finalizing that this week,” Eck said. “It could be (series by series), could be certain plays that are built for a guy and, you know, subbing the guy during the series.”And if he would publicly name a starter – as in who will literally take the first snap – before Saturday’s game?“No,” he said, “we’ll figure that out. We’re still evaluating through practices this week, and I wanna help sell those last few tickets. So I don’t wanna give (it) away – it’s like a ‘to be continued’ episode.“Get your tickets, come to the game and you’ll find out Saturday night who the starter’s gonna be.”But if Saturday will be the first real look at how UNM manages a quarterback-by-committee approach, Eck does have some notable experience overseeing a similar system. As the offensive coordinator at Division II Minnesota State-Mankato in 2014, the Lobos’ second-year head coach called a two-quarterback offense that averaged 40 points per game and fueled a 14-1 finish.After that season – Eck’s first as a playcaller – he said he thought it “definitely was not a negative” to run a multi-quarterback system. Nor does he view it as a problem that needs to be solved, a position in need of a full-time starter.He saw it work once – and believes it can work Saturday.“(Wide receivers coach Carson Walch) mentioned, ‘(the) NFL’s kinda (the) best practice – you don’t see any NFL teams doing th
Content Source: Yahoo News
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