1. Ball security: Weather will be poor and could be anequalizer for both teams. It’s fair to say the team with the fewest turnovers in any game will win, but that may be magnified in this game.
2. Run the ball: Again, this will be important for both teams especially in bad weather. But if UW can run the ball well, it takes less pressure of true freshman quarterback Austyn Carta-Samuels in the passing game. There could be a lot of tipped passes and deflections. A good running game would eliminate that.
3. Force turnovers: New Mexico has had problems with turnovers this season, while UW has been solid in both forcing them defensively and eliminating them offensively. Forcing a few turnovers early would really help the Cowboys.
4. Fast start: Nothing breaks the will of a struggling team more than getting them down early and often. UW must play well the entire 60 minutes, but if it can jump out to a big early lead it could end up cruising in a game like this.
5. Play like a favorite: The Cowboys are double-digit favorites to win this game, and they need to play like it. They need to show why they are considered that big of a favorite. With four of its final six games after this one on the road, a win here and in somewhat convincing fashion should help this team’s confidence.
With the weather turning, I am heading to Laramie today to make sure I am there for Saturday’s game. I did this for the 2003 UW-New Mexico game in Laramie due to a blizzard. But that was in late November, not early October.
Will try and get up an update from Laramie. The live blog is still set to launch at 11 a.m. Saturday. The link is
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