ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – University of New Mexico Athletic Director Fernando Lovo hasn’t been on the job for a full week yet and he’s already tasked with finding a head football coach at New Mexico. Bronco Mendenhall has signed a six-year deal with Utah State worth over $12.9 million.
Mendenhall is returning to his home state after his first season at New Mexico, a 5-7 campaign that left his Lobos one win away from becoming bowl-eligible. Utah State will pay Mendenhall’s 2 million dollar buyout to UNM over the course of a three-year period. The question now is who will replace Mendenhall? Lovo said in a press release Friday that a nationwide search has begun and elite candidates are already starting to inquire about the job.
KRQE Sports thought of some possible candidates. UNM has not listed anyone yet, but in our sports department, we came up with the following names: Gary Patterson, the former TCU head coach, was once a defensive coordinator at UNM and a finalist for the head job back in 1998 which went to Rocky Long.
Matt Wells was in the running when New Mexico hired Mendenhall. Wells, a former Texas Tech head coach and New Mexico assistant is currently co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Kansas State.
Terance Mathis is a former NFL receiver who interviewed with New Mexico during the last vacancy. Mathis is currently the head coach at Morehouse College.
Holmon Wiggins is a former UNM running back who spent five seasons under Nick Saban at Alabama and was considered the number two recruiter in the country during his time there from 2019 to 2023. Wiggins’s wife is also from Albuquerque. He is currently the co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach at Texas A&M.