The 2023 New Mexico Bowl was a

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

bowl game played on December 16, 2023, at University Stadium in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

. The 18th annual New Mexico Bowl game featured the

New Mexico State Aggies The New Mexico State University teams are called the Aggies, a nickname derived from the university's agricultural beginnings. The mascot is known as " Pistol Pete". NMSU's colors are crimson and white. Since 2005 the Aggies have competed in the ...

Conference USA Conference USA (C-USA or CUSA) is an intercollegiate athletic conference whose current member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. C-USA's offices are l ...

and the Fresno State Bulldogs of the Mountain West Conference. The game began at approximately 3:45 p.m.

MST The Master of Studies or Master in Studies (M.St. or MSt; ) is a postgraduate degree at the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, University of St Andrews, the Australian National University, University of Dublin and the University of Ne ...

and was aired on ESPN. The New Mexico Bowl was one of the 2023–24 bowl games concluding the 2023 FBS football season. The game was sponsored the

Isleta Pueblo Pueblo of Isleta ( tix, Shiewhibak , kjq, Dîiw'a'ane ; nv, Naatoohó ) is an unincorporated community and Tanoan pueblo in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States, originally established in the . The Southern Tiwa name of the pueblo ...

and officially known as the Isleta New Mexico Bowl.

Teams

Consistent with conference tie-ins, the game featured the

from

and the Fresno State Bulldogs from the Mountain West Conference. This was the 20th meeting between Fresno State and New Mexico State. Entering the game, the Bulldogs led the all-time series, 18–1, with the Aggies' sole win coming on November 22, 2011, in Las Cruces by a score of 48–45. On two occasions, Fresno State and New Mexico State were in the same conference, playing together in the Big West Conference from 1983 to 1991 and in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) from 2005 to 2011.

New Mexico State

The Aggies started the season just 2–3, including a 41–30 loss to a

UMass The University of Massachusetts is the five-campus public university system and the only public research system in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The university system includes five campuses (Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth, Lowell, and a medical ...

team that went on to finish the year with a 3–9 record. However, the Aggies finished their 13-game regular season with an eight-game win streak, punctuated by a 31–10 blowout upset over SEC foe

Auburn Auburn may refer to: Places Australia * Auburn, New South Wales * City of Auburn, the local government area *Electoral district of Auburn *Auburn, Queensland, a locality in the Western Downs Region *Auburn, South Australia *Auburn, Tasmania *Aub ...

, a game in which the Aggies were 25.5 point underdogs. The Aggies earned a berth in the Conference USA Championship, where they battled back and forth with an undefeated Liberty squad, but ultimately lost, 49–35. The Aggies entered the New Mexico Bowl with a record of 10–4. This was New Mexico State's first New Mexico Bowl. Following the

2022 Quick Lane Bowl The 2022 Quick Lane Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 26, 2022, at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The eighth annual Quick Lane Bowl, the bowl featured New Mexico State, an FBS Independent, and Bowling Gr ...

, which the Aggies won, it was the first time they appeared in back-to-back bowl games since the

1959 Sun Bowl The 1959 Sun Bowl featured the New Mexico State Aggies and the North Texas State Eagles. Background New Mexico State represented the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association (BAAA) and finished tied for third in Warren B. Woodson's second ...

and

1960 Sun Bowl The 1960 Sun Bowl featured the 1960 New Mexico State Aggies football team, New Mexico State Aggies and the Utah State Aggies football, Utah State Aggies. This was the 27th Sun Bowl (26th held between college teams), and was played at Kidd Field in ...

Fresno State

Despite the graduation of star quarterback

Jake Haener Jake Haener (born March 10, 1999) is an American football quarterback for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Washington and Fresno State. High school career Haener attended Monte Vista i ...

, the Bulldogs still aimed to contend for a Mountain West title. Fresno State won their first five games, including two

Power Five The Power Five conferences are the five most prominent and highest-earning athletic conferences in college football in the United States. They are part of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of NCAA Division I, the highest level of collegiate ...

wins over

Purdue Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

(39–35) and Arizona State (29-0). They earned a ranking in the AP poll, but quickly lost it after a Week 6 defeat by Wyoming. With starting quarterback

Mikey Keene Mikey Keene is an American football quarterback for the Fresno State Bulldogs. He previously played for the UCF Knights. High school career Keene attended Chandler High School in Chandler, Arizona. As a junior, Keene recorded 193 complet ...

battling injury, the Bulldogs lost their final three regular-season games to fall out of contention for a Mountain West Championship. The Bulldogs entered the New Mexico Bowl with a record of 8–4. This was Fresno State's fourth New Mexico Bowl, tying New Mexico for the most appearances in the game. The Bulldogs held a record of 1–2 in prior editions of the New Mexico Bowl, their sole win coming in the 2021 edition.

Game summary

Statistics

References

External links

Game statistics
at statbroadcast.com {{Fresno State Bulldogs bowl game navbox New Mexico Bowl New Mexico Bowl New Mexico Bowl New Mexico Bowl New Mexico State Aggies football bowl games Fresno State Bulldogs football bowl games