Haddy Barghouti
SJSU football players run drills at practice preparing for its fi rst confrence game of the season. The Spartans are 1-3.
San José State, sitting at 1-3 after nonconference play, looks to open its first conference game with a win against the University of New Mexico.
New Mexico, who sits at 3-1 and is tied for the third-best record, is also in its first conference game.
The teams last met in 2023, when SJSU won 52-24, and the Spartans lead the all-time series 15-5-1.
The Spartans are led by senior quarterback Walker Eget, who is coming off a career-high 473 passing yards against Stanford.
Lobos’ quarterback Jack Layne is also coming off a strong outing, throwing for a season-high 303 yards against New Mexico State.
SJSU head coach Ken Niumatalolo praised New Mexico and Layne, noting that the Spartans are in for a tough conference test.
“We know we’re going to have our hands full with a really good team,” Niumatalolo said. “You’ve got a guy that recognizes their offense, and he’s played really well, everything operates through him.”
Niumatalolo continued by saying New Mexico is a balanced team, noting its ability to run and pass the ball, mix up personnel, and play solid defense.
Both offenses have been neck and neck, with the Spartans holding a slight edge in the passing yard ranks.
SJSU ranks No. 65 in the FBS with 1,596 yards, while New Mexico sits at No. 70 with 1,564, according to a NCAA statistics webpage.
The Spartans currently sit No. 11 in the conference, but with a win, and some help from other results, they could move into a tie for first.
Spartans sophomore wide receiver Danny Scudero enters the first conference game with confidence as he is ranked third in the nation in receiving yards.
He has 33 receptions, 514 yards and three touchdowns this season.
Scudero was recently named to the 2025 Fred Biletnikoff Award watch list, the Tallahassee Quarterback Club (TQC) Foundation announced, according to the SJSU athletics webpage.
“As of right now it’s a new season, at least we are 0-0 going into conference play,” Scudero said. “So I kind of just got to take that and focus on Mountain West Conference play, that’s it. Focus on going 1-0 each week.”
Spartans offensive coordinator Craig Stutzmann said the offense still has mistakes to clean up.
“Catching the football 100%, when we run the football clean up the penalties,” Stutzmann said. “I think some of those penalties in critical situations, closing out the game or in the red zone or third and 5 turns into third and 10 with a false start holding call puts you behind the sticks when you’re trying to milk the clock.”
SJSU is coming off a game with drops from the receiving corps despite having three receivers with more than 100 yards.
The Spartans were called for eight total penalties, the most they have had in a single game this season.
The Lobos are 5-for-11 on fourth downs this season, while the Spartans have struggled defensively, allowing opponents to convert 10 of 12 fourth-down attempts, according to College Football Stats.
Spartans defensive coordinator Derrick Odum is confident in his defense to bounce back and emphasizes playing a strong four quarters, especially during late stretches.
“We are trending in the right direction, I see a lot of positives that don’t get seen in the stat book,” Odum said. “I think they’re a really close-knit group, and they’re eager to get back out and play another game, and we have good leadership in that regard.”
The Spartans’ defense has continued to force fumbles, however, they are still looking for their first interception of the season.
SJSU is scheduled to host New Mexico at CEFCU Stadium on Friday at 7 p.m., marking the first of eight conference games.