“Obviously, this is going to be a great challenge for him this week... You don’t turn into Tom Brady overnight. There’s the process of continuing to get better … and we’ve certainly got to do a great job of protecting the football.”
He doesn’t need to be a Super Bowl-caliber quarterback; the Lobos just need him to Toa the line.
University of New Mexico sophomore quarterback Toa Fa’avae is making the biggest start of his collegiate career Saturday night when UNM (5-1, 2-0 Mountain West) entertains North Dakota State (6-1, 3-1) at University Stadium.
UNM is a 4.5-point favorite as it kicks off the crucial second half of its season and the meat of its conference schedule after feasting on MW bottom feeders UTEP and Hawaii.
All of college football knows the cherry and silver defense is the unit that makes the Lobos contenders to represent the Group of Six in this year’s college football playoff.
But the wildcard that could determine UNM’s postseason hopes is No. 13 and whether he is the school’s lucky or unlucky charm.
Fa’avae will make just the fourth non-platoon start of his career. He had a promising first game as the full-time QB at New Mexico State. He showed tremendous strides in the Lobos’ 61-7 win over UTEP, completing 15 of 19 passes for 249 yards with three touchdowns and one interception.
Fa’avae came back to earth in Hawaii, with a 5-for-10 night for 59 yards that included two interceptions and a lost fumble. He did have two huge fourth-down completions in the fourth quarter – one preceding his 21-yard touchdown run for the Lobos’ go-ahead score and the other allowing them to run out the clock to preserve a 21-10 victory.
“Obviously, this is going to be a great challenge for him this week,” Eck said of his young QB. “You don’t turn into Tom Brady overnight. There’s the process of continuing to get better … and we’ve certainly got to do a great job of protecting the football.”
The game features the nation’s top two defenses in points allowed per game. The Lobos are No. 1 in the country, allowing just 10.5 points per game; the Bison are No. 2 at 11.29 point per game allowed.
UNM also leads the nation in turnover margin at plus-17 (21 turnovers forced, four lost), but NDSU checks in tied for No. 8 at plus-8 (14 takeaways, six giveaways).
Which makes for a potentially low-scoring game determined by the offense that plays error-free the most.
The Lobos lost the turnover battle last week at Hawaii – for the first time this season – and was part of the reason they faced 10-0 halftime deficit in what was their worst first half in the Eck era.
For the game, UNM uncharacteristically and incredulously committed 16 penalties – six resulting in Rainbow Warrior first downs – and three turnovers. UNM twice snapped the ball over Fa’avae’s head. He had a 50-yard touchdown run called back because of a penalty.
Eck called Fa’avae’s first quarter interception against Hawaii the one poor decision he can’t repeat against a NDSU team that has its sights on a title in its debut season in the MW.
“I don’t think it was an expected blip,” Eck said of Fa’avae’s play on the islands, “but we’re not counting on Toa to single-handedly beat teams. We’ve got a great defense. We’re playing very good on special team, but we do need to avoid the gross misconduct errors, which I thought we had one in the game.”
The UNM Lobos face their biggest test yet against North Dakota State in a battle of the nation's top two defenses. Can sophomore QB Toa Fa’avae limit turnover errors and keep UNM’s College Football Playoff hopes alive?