Orono, Maine -- Maine begins its 130th season of football, and the first in the tenure of new head coach
Jordan Stevens, on Saturday, Sept. 3 when the Black Bears travel for their first ever meeting with New Mexico at 8 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. MT.
Saturday's game will be broadcast live on My50 TV in the Albuquerque region and streamed nationwide on the
Mountain West Network. The game can also be heard worldwide on the
Black Bear Sports Network and locally in Maine on
103.9 FM, 101.3 FM, 95.1 FM, 100.5 FM, 1450 AM, 1310 AM.
The contest will mark the furthest the Black Bears have traveled for a regular season game (2,458 miles) since taking on Hawai'i in 1990 (5,147). Maine is 63-59-5 all-time in its season openers. The Black Bears will be looking for their first road season opening win since defeating Norfolk State in 2013. This is Maine's first time opening its season at a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) opponent since a 24-21 loss at UConn in 2016.
| University of Maine (0-0, 0-0 CAA) at New Mexico (0-0, 0-0 Mountain West) |
| Date & Time |
Saturday, Sept. 3 at 8:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. MT |
| Venue |
University Stadium (39,224) | Albuquerque, N.M. |
| Watch |
TV: My50 TV | Web Stream: Mountain West Network |
| Listen |
103.9 FM, 101.3 FM, 95.1 FM, 100.5 FM, 1450 AM, 1310 AM | GoBlackBears.com | TuneIn |
| Live Stats |
GoBlackBears.com |
| Game Notes |
Maine | New Mexico |
| Twitter |
@BlackBearsFB |
- Maine will be looking for its fifth win against a FBS opponent in school history. This will be Maine's 28th time in which it has matched up against an FBS program. The Black Bears have three wins against FBS opponents; a 35-10 win last season at UMass (2021); a 31-28 win against Western Kentucky in 2018, a 24-14 win over UMass in 2013, and a 9-7 triumph at Mississippi State in 2004. Maine is 4-23 all-time against FBS level programs.
- First-year head coach Jordan Stevens (Maine '10) takes on New Mexico in his first action as head coach of his alma mater. Maine returns 14 starters (8 Off./7 Def.) including quarterback Joe Fagnano, leading rusher Freddie Brock (720 yd/7 TDs), All-CAA tight end Shawn Bowman, and All-CAA center Michael Gerace. Maine also welcomes back four of its top six tacklers from a year ago including leading returner Adrian Otero (63 tkls). Fagnano enters the season ranked 11th on Maine's all-time passing yards list (3,424) and has been extremely efficient with just six interceptions in 408 career attempts.
- The Lobos, picked sixth in the six team Mountain West Mountain Division preseason poll, enter the season coming off a 3-9 campaign, 1-7 in Mountain West action. Led by third-year head coach Danny Gonzalez, a New Mexico alum, New Mexico looks to turn things around after finishing last in FBS in yards per game (235) in 2021 while averaging just 12.2 points. The Lobos will start Kansas transfer Miles Kendrick at quarterback. On defense, the Lobos allowed 28.4 points per game. The Lobos lost each of their top three rushers from a year ago along with starting QB Terry Wilson Jr. but return top receiver Luke Wysong. On defense, the Lobos welcome back top tackler Jerrick Reed II (89).
- The Black Bears return three starters on an offensive line which ranked third in the CAA and 22nd in all of FCS after allowing just 1.36 sacks per game. Since 2015, no CAA team has allowed fewer sacks than Maine. The Black Bears led the CAA and ranked third in the nation a year ago with just nine turnovers lost on the season.
Tale of the Tape
| Maine (CAA rank) |
Category |
New Mexico (MW rank) |
| 25.0 (4) |
Points |
12.2 (12) |
| 337.9 (8) |
Total Offense |
234.9 (12) |
| 128.3 (7) |
Rushing Yards |
120.8 (8) |
| 209.6 (5) |
Passing Yards |
114.1 (11) |
| 13/18 |
Rushing TDs/Passing TDs |
5/10 |
| 29:33 (10) |
Offensive Time of Possession |
29:51 (6) |
| 27.0 (10) |
Points Allowed |
28.4 (10) |
| 386.9 (11) |
Total Defense |
363.1 (4) |
| 161.4 (10) |
Rushing Yards Allowed |
143.2 (5) |
| 225.5 (9) |
Passing Yards Allowed |
219.8 (5) |
| 14/22 |
Rushing/Passing TDs Allowed |
17/19 |
| 27.4 (5) |
3rd-Down Conversions |
25.4 (12) |
| 36.0 (7) |
3rd-Down Conversion Defense |
38.6 (6) |
A Maine Win Would...
...Be Maine's fifth win over an FBS opponent.
...Give Maine wins against FBS opponents in back-to-back years for the first time in school history.
...Be Maine's first season opening win since 2019.
...Be Maine's first season opening road win since 2014 (at Norfolk St.).
...Be Coach Stevens' first head coaching victory.
...Be Maine's first win over a Mountain West opponent.
-UMaine-
