The G5 Hive Worker Bee Series 2024 - New Mexico State Aggies Defense Only Preview

[Music] [Music] he k [Music] guy too that could have a big year well let's move over to the defensive side of the ball and as you might expect there with that new head coach leading the way there for the agies there's a new defensive uh coordinator there and that's Joe Morris he comes to New Mexico state from Sam Houston State uh where he most recently served as their defensive coordinator what style of Defense can we expect to see from coach Morris yeah I mean that's uh that's to be seen a little bit right with uh with Personnel changes kind of learning on the Fly um you know some of the Personnel they had during spring ball it's different now you add guys you lose guys after Spring ball um but a lot of people around here are really excited about what Joe Morris can do uh that's Sam Houston defense last year they were tenacious um I think back to their BYU game last year when it was 14 nothing they lost but um their defense kept them in the game Sam Houston was here at agie Memorial Stadium last year um the New Mexico State offense kind of had their way in the first half and then he made some second half adjustments and the offense for the yagis could not push the football um so he impressed a lot of people during the course of last season and um a lot of the Personnel is new you know uh Nate drying did a wonderful job with the defense the last couple of years um if you asked me what was the biggest you know change going from uh the struggles of the program up until two years ago when the program started to flip I I think the play of the defense as a whole was a big part of it um you didn't have to score 40 points to win a game anymore you could win a game uh 20 to 17 or win a game 17 to1 because that defense was so good and uh you know uh Nate ring had great players um playing for that defense and a lot of those guys are gone so um I I think we'll get some of those questions answered early on during fall Camp let's talk about that person that's going to be running coach Morris's defense let's start with the defensive line I I'm trying to keep track of all of the you know the uh the transfers and if I'm counting correct they lost five guys to the portal but they also gained five guys from the portal tell me what do I need to know about this defensive line and what we can expect from them in 2024 well that was one of the things that um really helped the defense have success the last couple of years is they did a really good job of getting to the quarterback um they they ran a defense in which a linebacker was actually on the line for Nate riling he called this position the stud position um and Gabe Peterson ran that position and Gabe transferred to Houston uh but they really got after the quarterback and you know the key piece that does return is Buddha petti um he's the other guy who's at media day today for New Mexico state um you know Buddha played a little bit as a freshman had a guess a breakout year last year um was kind of under the r out of California in high school and um you know Buddha's Buddha is a name that a lot of people around here know well and I think you know he could have a breakout year and he's probably one of the key guys that needs to be a leader on that defensive line out of the gate all right well you know I kind of put py there in that linebacking group I mean I think by this the roster he's on an o line but you might play more defensive lineman there on on that stud position but the linebacking group loses their leading Tacker and I'm going to call him an Iron Man from a year ago Kean ellot he played 900 he dang near played about a thousand snaps that's just like amazing especially you know people coming on and off the field and and getting hurt and and whatnot so uh that was pretty amazing but while this room lost its fair share they have guys like son a peu and then like you said uh Buddha petti they're returning they also brought in Avery Morris from UTSA after Spring ball what can we expect from this room in 2024 son alpu uh you know another guy kind of like Donovan fael who you know last year at this time nobody was really talking about him and played a lot early and just started to gain the trust of the defensive staff and had a really good year um so you know I think his role is definitely bigger now uh the person you referenced earlier was kesan Elliott who was everywhere last year I mean he was an Iron Man he was a Workhorse and uh New Mexico state has always had good linebackers couple years ago they had Chris Ojo and Trevor Brohard and this time last year the question was well how do you replace those two can keesan Elliott handled the load he did uh kean's gone now to Arizona State so uh next man up might be son alpu um Tyler Martinez had a lot of snaps a year ago uh I I I think he'll be a big part of that linebacker career as well um you know so that's that's a big group you know going into the year that's of course an important group and there just isn't a lot of FBS experience in that room they added a lot of pieces but somebody has to step up um outside of the returners like Martinez and lpu well this defensive backfield was hit hard between the portal and graduation they lost their number two through number five leading tacklers from a year ago via the portal Dylan uh early and Keon glinton are are some of those guys that are coming back with the most game experience here in 2024 what are you expecting from them in the secondary in 2024 having those two guys back is key um Dylan's had a really good career keante was at Wyoming first and then came here so you know it's a different coaching staff so um and it's likely a different scheme so it's hard to say that continuity is huge but I think having somebody who's played at this level who's been in this program who knows what the grind is like that'll certainly help that crew um you know they were they were really good the last two years um you know miles Rouser kind of came onto the scene a year ago um Andre Seldon um who was a key part of that secondary the last two years and transferred um after Jerry Hill left Andre was at Utah State and Andre I don't know if you read this but he tragically passed away last weekend um um an accident um a diving accident at a at a Lake in Utah um Andre was just a wonderful player wonderful human beings so our our thoughts and prayers are with his family um so New Mexico State um you know has had to replace a lot of guys in that secondary because of the portal going back to December um but having early and glinton back those are those are two key pieces Josiah Cox is a name that's come up a lot um ever since a spring ball so um that crew is gonna have to be good you know and it goes hand in hand right if if the line can put pressure on the quarterback it makes uh the secondary better as well well and and it just seemed like that defense made big play after big play down the stretch during that 10- win season a year ago um do you anticipate some of those transfers that they brought in in the winter to make an impact for the Aggies in 2024 I know you mentioned Cox there that comes in from uh Arizona State but is there anybody else that you really anticipate stepping up there yeah they're gonna have to I mean there's GNA have to be players that step up probably some Jo guys um and that's the thing about you know Jo players whether you bring them in early or after Spring ball uh there is a learning curve so I've seen it before where you know somebody is there for Spring ball and maybe doesn't have it click until fall camp or somebody uh that misses Spring ball and just gets fall camp and it just takes deeper into the season for them to kind of understand things and make that transition um you know the key part of the defense the last two years I tell people this all the time one of the biggest reasons why the defense was so successful is because they had depth they were two or three deep deep at every single position and it didn't matter who was on the field you could give guys a rest and keep them fresh for the fourth quarter and there wasn't a drop off so building depth is is so crucial at this level and it's really hard to do at the group of five level and the really good group of five programs that's the separator is they have they have depth on defense and that's a big reason why New Mexico state was so strong defensively the last two years so if you had to pick a defensive player to have a breakout type season here in 2024 who are you picking uh well you know I I think Buddha PTI is probably the obvious choice um because he's been a guy the last couple of years but hasn't been a star um and we've been able to see him play and he showed glimpses of what he can be uh Noah aren is a guy who transferred in a couple years ago from Oklahoma Harold did recruit uh he's 66 he's 26 60 he looks the part um I think if he can put things together he could really have a big year so that's another guy to keep your eye on all right well with fall Camp coming up and and you kind of mentioned you know some of the strength previously have been the the defensive depth what are you know some position group or groups that you feel is the most concerning well I I think you look at defense probably linebacker uh dline where you have to replace a lot of players uh you know I think offensively the O Line's in good shape the quarterback room I still think will figure itself out running back room good wide receivers they're replacing a lot but I'm not sure how much they're going to have to throw the football this year especially early on so I think defense especially on the line and at linebacker um but they're excited about the guys they brought in that's you know that's the Wonder of the portal is sometimes you know it's addition by subtraction in some cases um and there were some really good players available late in the portal because um players can get lost in the portal sometimes right maybe maybe you're looking at how many stars they had in high school or um where they came from you know um maybe a guy that was at a Joo is a better option than somebody who only played in three games at let's say Oklahoma a year ago you know um because people forget about him so they do have options um you know in in Fall Camp I I just think now more than ever with the day and age of the transfer portal is is really really important for those couple of weeks to get ready for the season opener now talking about that transfer portal I don't know what the scholarship situation there is at New Mexico state are they pretty much set there going into the fall unless somebody falls into their laps or you know what is there anything that they're looking to add I think they're set um but you know I'm not 100% sure um it's been crazy because I've never seen it like this where recruiting is still going on you know pretty long after Spring ball right I mean with the portal reopening after Spring ball it just puts an interesting Wrinkle in everything um so there's been more shuffling than I've ever seen of course coaches players um but you know it's I remind folks um New Mexico state is losing players to the power conference right I mean a lot of the players went to Vanderbilt they had a guy go to Syracuse a guy go to Virginia um they're losing players to power conference schools so um that's what happens when you win right and and players have success and um you know it's it's a larger um there's more eyeballs on the program now because the Conference USA TV deal so a lot more people get to see New Mexico State football which is great but when you have success and more people see you sometimes that leads to you losing players you know during the transfer portal era yep well we talked about you know some opportunities there that they might be looking at but uh what would you say is the main strength of this team going into 2024 I I think it's definitely offensive line um barring injuries the offensive line is set um and they have pretty good depth behind those guys um you know it's just it's it's so key on offense right especially when you're going through a transition a quarterback um especially when you lost some key running backs to have that uh stabilizing Force up front and I joked with with Kanan Yaro the returning Center on a podcast a while back I said you know we don't talk about the offensive line when you're doing well unfortunately the media talks about the offensive line when they're struggling and I said you know we didn't talk about you guys enough last year because you were so consistent you played so well so I don't care who your quarterback is who your running back is um if your offensive line is disjointed if you get a lot of pre- snap penalties it's going to set the offense back and I I just don't anticipate that being a problem um I feel like that crew is really going to help with the transition at at both positions and I remind folks as well that Diego Pavia when he came here it wasn't like Diego was somebody that everybody was talking about we were his only FBS offer um so there's a chance that one of those quarterbacks can emerge and be a go-to guy and um you know be that diamond in the rough that that nobody was talking about going into the ear well you know talk about guys going to P4 schools when it comes to the recruitment of new players the retention of existing players because you have to do that kind of throughout the season it it seems like how has the nil and the transfer portal impacted New Mexico State well it's impacted it a lot but um the nil collective's been really good um uh Paul grind staff runs the collective and and Paul's an Allstar I mean they were ahead of this you know it wasn't like they were running behind they you know this was coming uh Paul was on it um they do really well especially for Conference USA group of five um so that's not a problem it's just you know it's hard for a group of five to compete with an SEC program uh one those SEC programs are you know recruiting uh your players that win the portal so you know I I I don't think New Mexico state is ever going to worry about um an SEC program taking players it would be an issue of they were losing key players to group of five schools and that's not the case it's it's players that are going to P5 programs I mean the fourth string quarterback I is at a is at a power conference program so it says a lot about what the program did the last two years especially last year um the collective's been unbelievable and the coaching staff's been unbelievable at uh you know losing players um and then finding a way to regroup and see what you need and then kind of retooling the roster on the Fly because that's not an easy process well it seems more and more like the demands of a head coach are really turning into more of like this general manager type role between the recruiting player retention fundraising and less of the X's and O's role I know Sanchez you know has been with the team for a while but you know not too long as head coach what do you see happening there at New Mexico state is there like a general manager type role already there that he can focus on the X's and O's or is he that general manager type person going out doing all that fundraising and whatnot he's doing a lot of that I mean it almost feels like he's working you know 24 hours a day every single day um he's always on the go um they do a lot of fundraising stuff with um nil supporters local sponsors and he's always there he's visible uh he's a great public speaker and he's extremely likable and part of that too is he's an Alum um you know if somebody from the outside comes in you they can they can talk to talk and you know maybe speak the lingo but I mean his Blood Sweat and Tears are in this place um you know I recall two years ago we did an interview with him after practice one day and it was rivalry week um they were about to play UTEP that weekend and he came over and he had a bloody nose I mean like he had a like his nose was cracked and um I asked him what happened I said coach you're bleeding he said I know and I said are you okay and he's like well I just I just did a a post PR his speech to the team and I got so fired up I headbutted one of the guys and he had a helmet ONN he's like I'm good though we're playing UTEP Saturday so like he gets it and you can't you can't teach that to somebody who's coming in from the outside I mean his Blood Sweat and Tears are in that stadium and now he gets the chance to be the head coach of his alma mater which is awfully cool and so rare and and like you said like you can't fake that like it's like and people and people can see through fake and you know they buy when they see stuff like that yeah it's so rare to have an Alum leading a program and it's so rare to have an Alum already on the staff ready to lead the program if there was a coaching switch and uh that's what happened I mean Jerry Hill left and it was during Christmas you know I I think might been like Christmas Eve or the day after Christmas but it was right around Christmas I mean I was at a Christmas party when the news broke and it wasn't long after that Tony Sanchez was the guy named as the head coach and um it's it's really hard to be able to promote somebody like that with FBS head coaching experience and um you know he was ready to go so you know it was a decision that was probably pretty easy for athletics director Mario moocha well given all the changes in coaching staff and Personnel what does success look like in 2024 for the aies that's a good question because I I've seen a lot of that on social media and the expectations now are are so high um when I got here you know it was three and n it was 2 and 10 it was three and N uh rarely did they get to 4- eight and then you win seven games two years ago and then the expectations start to kick out then we're expecting Bull games well last year they get to 10 pretty early right they get the double figure wins early they were getting top 25 votes they punched their tickets to the Conference USA title game relatively early so you know I think those are the expectations now and if you told somebody three years ago hey we're going to conference USA and and we want to we want to get championships and uh I think a lot of people would be like okay slow your Ru a little bit but that's the expectation now I mean you get there and you taste it you get double figure win so um I know from the fans perspective from the players staff perspective it's get back to a bll game again and and compete for a conference Championship well is there anything else that you would like to share or think that we should know about this 2024 New Mexico State agie football team uh it's an exciting time for the program it really is um you know it's an interesting time because you know I do think pre transfer portal if they were returning what they had last year what would have been back if there wasn't a portal um expectations would be extremely high I mean if you had a lot of those guys back that still had eligibility that transferred um I think people around here would be completely buzzing but I do think there's a little bit of let's and see from the fan basee because there's a lot of names they've never heard of before um but I also think they were in some livan rooms and able to get some guys that maybe they wouldn't have got a couple years ago because of where the program currently is the success of the program the last two years I think they're able to get a better player nowadays so I'm excited for August 31 and um August 31st is going to be fun game two against Liberty that that's that's the big test right I mean that's a rematch of the title game from last year year and um I think we'll find out a lot against Simo but really going to find out a lot in week two well Adam thank you again for sharing your time and knowledge with us today appreciate you having me go agies thanks so much all right if you're watching us on YouTube please hit that like And subscribe button and if you are listening to us in podcast form please rate and review on Spotify or apple podcast thank you all for your support and until the next time we are the g5ive [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] he [Applause] w [Music] [Music]