It's Year 2 for Tony Sanchez as New Mexico State's coach. Here's what he had to say about this season's Aggies.
It's time for Tony Sanchez to try again.
New Mexico State's coach is entering his second season at the helm. His first season fell below his expectations with a 3-9 (2-6 Conference USA) campaign, and now he's tasked with rebuilding NM State in 2025.
"This is the last I'll talk about it. It was a tough season," Sanchez said at the Conference USA Kickoff in Frisco, TX, on July 22. "You come in off a great year, and then you watch this transition that unfolds and the amount of guys you lose. But I gotta give our guys credit, they played hard."
Sanchez believes the Aggies lacked firepower and has brought in 54 newcomers to address it, many of whom are expected to play key roles. Among them are running back transfers Dijon Stanley (Utah) and Kadarius Calloway (California), who Sanchez glowed about on Tuesday.
"(Calloway's) a big, strong kid. 220 pounds, runs well... and we've seen him in the summer, and he's a really good player," Sanchez said. "The thing about (Stanley) is we've had a young man named Monte Watkins. Well, he runs like that. He catches the ball extremely well out of the backfield. He's a willing blocker. He can get you the hard yard."
Sanchez also believes the plethora of new pass-catchers should make NM State more athletic.
"We were really depleted in that wide receiver room. We've done a good job there," Sanchez said. "After you work with your guys through spring football, and you see some of that athleticism and speed, you're like, 'Okay, we're gonna be alright there.'"
Here are more takeaways from Sanchez at the CUSA Kickoff:
Fife is still the guy
Sanchez reaffirmed his declaration after NM State's spring game. Montana transfer Logan Fife is the starting quarterback.
Fife was one of the Aggies' two player representatives on Tuesday alongside linebacker Tyler Martinez. Sanchez called Fife a "natural leader" and says the way teammates have rallied around him is a reason he brought him to Texas.
"The way that the team has clung around him, the way the guys respond to him and respect him, his leadership ability, the way he speaks on the field and gets after guys in a good way," Sanchez said. "You can tell when guys are... pulled to somebody, and he's got that presence, and he's got that pull and people want to be around him."
Sanchez again calls for one portal window
Sanchez is one of many coaches who dislike the spring transfer portal window.
He noted it forces coaches like him to continue rebuilding after spring football, with NM State losing several starters like running back Seth McGowan, defensive end Buddha Peleti and offensive lineman AJ Vaipulu in the spring. Sanchez says one window in the winter that starts as early as possible would be better, believing it would lessen the burden on Group of Five teams.
"It's completely nonsensical," Sanchez said. "You look at the NFL, you look at (MLB), the NBA, you have a free agency period. It opens. You deal with it. It ends. You coach your team for a year, and then you go from that to the second transfer portal. You scratch your head and go, 'What's that for?' Teams that didn't do a good job, and now they need to go raid teams like us and other teams because your quarterback didn't pan out or you had an injury in spring ball."
OL is shaping up
The Aggies need four new offensive line starters, as right guard BJ Tolo is the lone returner.
Sanchez says San Jose State transfer left tackle Malik Williams will be one to watch, and also praised North Texas tackle transfer Ma'Kyi Lee for his spring football performances. Fellow transfers Florian Staehler (Towson) and Janik Ogunlade (Florida A&M) started at left guard and right tackle, respectively, for their former teams last season.
Sanchez said starting experience will be a priority for the four new starters.
"When we walked out of spring, we knew we needed to hit on a couple of guys," Sanchez said. "You don't really know until you get rolling in the summer, but the one indicator is... If they've played college football, and they've started games, you've got a shot. If not, you're just guessing. So we've got some guys who've started a lot of college football games in their careers."
Yost is 'phenomenal'
A key newcomer resides in Sanchez's coaching staff.
New offensive coordinator David Yost, previously a Division I OC at Missouri, Utah State, Texas Tech and FIU, will now call plays. He's worked extensively with Fife in the offseason, and brings decades of coaching experience dating back to 1988.
Sanchez praised Yost, calling him a "phenomenal" addition who will bring balance to the Aggies' offense.
"He's the first pure quarterback coach we've had since I've been there in the last four years," Sanchez said. "That was one of the biggest things. I wanted to hire an OC, but I wanted to hire a guy who developed quarterbacks. We struggled there, obviously, last year.
"He's just got a wealth of knowledge, and I just felt like we needed a guy that had been around the block a little bit and knew how to create a dynamic run game. We all know he knows how to throw the ball, but he's done a really good job when he's had good backs, and we've got some really good, talented guys there. David Yost has been a huge addition to the staff and to the entire program."
This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: Takeaways from Tony Sanchez at the Conference USA media day
Category: General Sports
