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I mentioned earlier in the week that BYU has won 17 straight games played in the months of October, November and December. Included in that streak is a 7-game October win streak (dating back to a loss at Notre Dame in 2005). Well, guess who else has a 7-game October win streak going: the New Mexico Lobos.
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Plans are for WR Spencer Hafoka to dress on Saturday and go through pre-game warmups. A decision to clear or sit Hafoka for another week will be made at the time.
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Some notes about BYU's fast starts:
BYU has scored first in 27 of the last 30 games, and in 34 of 43 games overall under Bronco Mendenhall.
BYU has scored "first-touch" touchdowns (opening offensive or defensive possession) in 13 of the last 16 games.
During BYU's 15-game win streak, the Cougars have outscored the opposition 124-26 in the first quarter.
This season, the average halftime score is 27-3 in BYU's favor.
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In watching New Mexico game tape, the Lobos' 3-3-5 is being played as a 3-2-6 rather frequently. While you might think that a fifth or sixth defensive back would help the Lobos in pass coverage, New Mexico has been much stronger against the run (ranked 28th) than against the pass (ranked 99th in yards; 103rd in efficiency) this season. Rocky says he'll stick to his man-pressure philosophy against BYU. In the Albuquerque Journal, an exchange is cited in which Rocky is asked if he might play some zone against BYU's prolific pass attack this week:
"Sure, if we want to keep the score down and say we lost. Ain't no different getting beat by 50 than getting beat by three, and the only chance we've got is to get after their a__."
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LB Vic So'oto (broken foot) remains out, and is still in a non-weight-bearing situation. Efforts are being made to facilitate his return this season, but it's too early to say for sure if or when he'll make it back on the field.
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