1980 New Mexico Lobos football team

The 1980 New Mexico Lobos football team was an American football team that represented the University of New Mexico in the Western Athletic Conference (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.^[1][2]

1980 New Mexico Lobos football
Conference	Western Athletic Conference
Record	4–7 (3–4 WAC)
Head coach	Joe Morrison (1st season)
Home stadium	University Stadium
Seasons ← 1979 1981 →

1980 Western Athletic Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 12 BYU $	6	–	1	–	0			12	–	1	–	0
Colorado State	5	–	1	–	1			6	–	4	–	1
Hawaii	3	–	3	–	0			8	–	3	–	0
Wyoming	4	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
San Diego State	4	–	4	–	0			4	–	8	–	0
New Mexico	3	–	4	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Utah	2	–	3	–	1			5	–	5	–	1
Air Force	1	–	3	–	0			2	–	9	–	1
UTEP	1	–	6	–	0			1	–	11	–	0
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The first game of the season proved to be most notable victory for the team, as the Lobos upset BYU, 25-21. The Jim McMahon-led Cougars went undefeated the rest of the season, finishing with a 12-1 record and #12 national ranking in the final Associated Press 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.^[3]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 6	BYU	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	W 25–21	16,840	[4]
September 13	at No. 17 Missouri*	Faurot Field Columbia, MO	L 16–47	60,318	[5]
September 20	at Texas Tech*	Jones Stadium Lubbock, TX	L 17–28	38,873	[6]
September 27	New Mexico State*	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM (rivalry)	W 52–19	22,543	[7]
October 4	at Wyoming	War Memorial Stadium Laramie, WY	W 24–21	27,778	[8]
October 11	Colorado State	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	L 26–31	19,154	[9]
October 18	Hawaii	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	L 14–31	15,813	[10]
October 25	at UTEP	Sun Bowl El Paso, TX	W 22–21	17,008	[11]
November 1	UNLV*	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM	L 7–72	14,250	[12]
November 8	at Utah	Robert Rice Stadium Salt Lake City, UT	L 21–49	21,248	[13]
November 22	at San Diego State	San Diego Stadium San Diego, CA	L 22–24	21,900	[14]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game