NM State football receives boatload of awards after win over Auburn

DALLAS – Following one of the most impressive wins in program history, New Mexico State has collected a slurry of awards and that continued on Monday morning as Diego Pavia and Gabe Peterson were named CUSA Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively.

The Aggies were also recognized as the Cheez-It National Team of the Week. The honor is selected by the All-America Committee of the Football Writers Association of America, and this marks the first time that NM State has earned this award from the FWAA.

The weekly awards are presented by Blenders Eyewear and are voted on by a panel of the league’s media.
 
Junior quarterback Diego Pavia led the Aggies’ charge offensively in the 31-10 victory over SEC opponent Auburn on Saturday, Nov. 18, inside Jordan-Hare Stadium. In the bout, Pavia finished the day with 201 passing yards and three passing touchdowns to mark the ninth time this season that the Albuquerque, N.M., native has thrown multiple touchdown passes in a game. The three-touchdown effort is also the first time since the season opener that Pavia has thrown three touchdowns this year.
 
Pavia’s efforts also led to the Aggies becoming just the second team this season to score more than 30 points against Auburn. Pavia also rushed eight times for a total of 35 yards – leading him to remain one of just 10 quarterbacks in the country to lead his team in both passing and rushing.
 
With Saturday’s performance, Pavia now ranks 18th in the nation in passing TDs (22), 12th in the nation in passing yards per completion (12) and 33rd in the nation in total offense per game (266.3).
 
Defensively, the Aggies dominant performance was led by sophomore outside linebacker Gabe Peterson who finished the game tied for the team lead in tackles with six, including four solo tackles, two tackles for loss and one sack. With consistent pressure from the edge, Peterson led a defensive charge which limited the ninth-ranked rushing attack in the country to 65 yards on the ground and just 15 rushing yards in the second half.
 
By holding the Tigers to fewer than 100 rushing yards, Peterson and the Aggie defense became just the second unit to accomplish this feat during the last two season. The 65-yard rushing total is also the fewest by an Auburn offense Alabama held the Tigers to 22 yards on the ground in the 2021 meeting between the two storied rivals.
 
With the pair of awards, the Aggies have now stacked up five CUSA Player of the Week honors amid their first season in the league. This also marks the second time this season that Diego Pavia has garnered weekly recognition from the conference.

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