The Roadrunners extended their losing streak to four games this Saturday as they came up short against the University of New Mexico Lobos, 21-9. The Roadrunners scored the first nine points of the game before the Lobos reeled off 21 straight in front of a crowd of over 30,000 at the Alamodome.

The game saw two starting quarterbacks pulled in favor of their backups. UTSA’s backup true freshman Blake Bogenschutz, replaced senior Tucker Carter midway through the second quarter. Bogenschutz would go on to complete 10 of his 16 passes and throw for 169 yards, but it was not enough to save the game for the Roadrunners.

“Offensively, that’s as bad of a game as I’ve seen since I’ve been here,” claimed Head Coach Larry Coker. “We’ve obviously got to do better.” UTSA’s only scoring drives were led by Bogenschutz – one to end the first half, and one to begin the second half.

The 80-yard drive to end the first half ended with a 20-yard field goal from senior kicker Sean Ianno. The drive stalled after Bogenschutz fumbled the snap at the two-yard line, forcing the Roadrunners to take the field goal.

The Roadrunners’ scoring drive to begin the second half was highlighted by a 23-yard circus catch by senior wide receiver Marcellus Mack. The catch placed the Roadrunners at the UNM six-yard line, allowing sophomore running back Jarveon Williams to run in for the six-yard touchdown on the following play. The extra point was blocked.

Those two drives aside, the Roadrunners struggled to put together much on offense. The Roadrunners only converted four of 12 plays on 3^rd down and turned the ball over twice. When asked what could be done to improve the offense, Williams responded, “We have to keep executing. We just got to keep practicing and grinding. This thing will turn around and we’ll be on top.”

On the defensive side of the ball, the Roadrunners could not seem to catch a break either. The Roadrunners defense allowed 370 total yards – 283 of those on the ground – giving the Lobos averaged 5.9 yards per rush and 9.7 yards through the air. Senior safety Triston Wade led the defense with 10 tackles, including one for a loss. Junior linebacker Drew Douglas contributed with eight total tackles of his own, and senior linebacker Jens Jeters managed to get the only sack for the Roadrunners.

“We’re not going to point any fingers,” explained Jeters. “That’s not us as a team. It (the game) is a team effort. We played well, but we just weren’t the better team today.”

The Roadrunners have experienced four straight losses before in 2012, and responded by racking up three straight victories to end the season.

With eight games still remaining in the year, UTSA still has time to fulfill their hopes of receiving a bid to a bowl game. Since all of the remaining games for UTSA are conference games, the Roadrunners have the opportunity to focus on reaching the C-USA championship game in December.

UTSA will get their first chance to turn things around this Saturday, Oct. 11, against Florida International University. The game will be UTSA’s annual homecoming game, and kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.