Thursday, August 28, 2014

Aggie Memorial Stadium in Las Cruces

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The New Mexico State Aggies will be hoping that they can take advantage of playing an FCS team to start the season when they take on the Cal Poly Mustangs on Thursday night. This will be the first time that these two teams have played each other since 1997.

Cal Poly ended up in the middle of the pack in the Big Sky Conference last season and finished with 6-6 overall record. The Mustangs are expected to improve this season thanks to them having just about every key member of their team returning this year.

The best returning offensive player on Cal Poly is running back Kristaan Ivory, who rushed for 1,113 yards last season. Linebacker Nick Dzubnar, who had 112 tackles and four sacks last year, will be back to lead the defense.

New Mexico State lost its first seven games in 2013 and finished with a 2-10 record. Their defense, which gave up nearly 45 points per game, was one of the worst in the country. The one thing the Aggies had going for them last year was their passing game, which averaged 240.5 yards per game.

If the Aggies want to end up near the top of the Sun Belt standings in 2014, they will need their defense to improve and their senior wide receivers to have big seasons. Jerrel Brown and Adam Shapiro, who combined for 68 receptions and 915 yards a season ago, will be the top players to watch on New Mexico State's offense.

Injuries to Watch

Cal Poly Mustangs

08/22/14 RB Kristaan Ivory Suspension out indefinitely

New Mexico State Aggies

No Injuries to report at this time

Josh's Pick: Take New Mexico State

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