The 1980 New Mexico Lobos football team was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

team that represented the

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...

in the

Western Athletic Conference The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Utah, Washington (state), Washington, and Texa ...

(WAC) during the 1980 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their first season under head coach Joe Morrison, the Lobos compiled a 4–7 record (3–4 against WAC opponents) and were outscored by a total of 364 to 246. The first game of the season proved to be most notable victory for the team, as the Lobos upset

BYU Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day S ...

, 25-21. The

Jim McMahon James Robert McMahon Jr. (born August 21, 1959) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons, most notably with the Chicago Bears. McMahon played college football at BYU, where he wa ...

-led Cougars went undefeated the rest of the season, finishing with a 12-1 record and #12 national ranking in the final

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

poll. The team's statistical leaders included Robin Gabriel with 1,083 passing yards, Jimmy Sayers with 691 rushing yards, Ricky Martin with 850 receiving yards, and kicker Pete Parks with 58 points scored.

Schedule

References

{{New Mexico Lobos football navbox

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

New Mexico Lobos football seasons

New Mexico Lobos football The New Mexico Lobos football team is the intercollegiate football team at the University of New Mexico. The Lobos compete as a member of the Mountain West Conference. Their official colors are cherry and silver. The Lobos play their home games a ...