Ground Games Could Decide Jacksonville State and New Mexico State in Key CUSA Showdown

Conference USA's busy run of weekday football continues Wednesday night with a doubleheader, and the later game carries the most weight in the league race. Jacksonville State visits New Mexico State at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2, following Kennesaw State against Middle Tennessee at 7 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network.

DraftKings Sportsbook lists Jacksonville State as a 3.5-point favorite, with the total set at 49.5 points. Conditions in Las Cruces look pleasant, with a few clouds, a low near 56 degrees and light, variable winds.

The stakes are clear in the standings. Liberty, listed at -1000 to reach the conference title game, is tied for first at 3-0 in league play with Jacksonville State, while New Mexico State sits right behind at 2-1. The Gamecocks are -200 to reach the CUSA Championship Game for a third straight year, and the Aggies are +500 to get there for the second time in school history, after 2023. Liberty visits New Mexico State on Nov. 7 but does not face Jacksonville State in the regular season.

Jacksonville State arrives on a four-game winning streak, though three of those wins came by four or fewer points. The latest was a 27-24 home victory over Florida International on Oct. 13. Quarterback Caden Creel led the sixth game-winning drive of his career, highlighted by a 34-yard third-down pass to Ronnel Johnson that reached FIU's 8-yard line. Garrison Rippa then kicked the winning 26-yard field goal with 44 seconds left, and FIU missed a 49-yard attempt at the buzzer.

Rippa has 47 career field goals, two short of the school record, and his six game-winning field goals in the final minute of regulation or overtime are a CUSA record. Since moving up to the FBS in 2023, Jacksonville State has won eight games on a score in the final minute of regulation or in overtime. The Gamecocks have also won 11 straight and are 13-1 in weekday CUSA games, the league's best mark over the past four years. The lone loss came against Liberty in 2023.

Jacksonville State has scored a rushing touchdown in 65 consecutive games, an NCAA-best streak that is 25 games longer than the next active run among Division I programs, Montana State of the FCS at 40. Creel has at least two total touchdowns in six straight games and is the only FBS quarterback averaging at least 225 passing yards and 70 rushing yards. One wrinkle for those watching closely: the Gamecocks' defense has allowed a touchdown in the final 1:41 of the first half in all six games against FBS opponents.

New Mexico State is 5-1 all-time at home in weekday CUSA games, with the only loss coming last year against Missouri State. The Aggies are coming off a 30-24 win at Sam Houston last Wednesday, their first road victory after losing the first three away games by double digits. Tailback James Jones ran for 178 yards and a score, the most by an Aggies back since November 2019. He has passed 2,000 career rushing yards across FBS and FCS and leads CUSA at 111.0 yards per game, 10th nationally.

The Aggies' rushing offense has improved sharply. It averages 151.4 yards per game, second in the league, after ranking last nationally in 2025 at 77.3. New Mexico State has topped 200 rushing yards three times this season and won each game. Jacksonville State allows 156.4 rushing yards per game.

Defensively, New Mexico State leads CUSA by allowing 109.1 rushing yards per game, 30th nationally and a pace that would be a school record. In conference games alone, the Aggies give up just 51.3 rushing yards per game, best among all FBS teams in league play. Miami of Ohio is next at 68.0. This is the first season since at least 1994 that New Mexico State has held four opponents under 75 rushing yards.

Each of Jacksonville State's last seven road CUSA games has been decided by seven points or fewer. With both teams leaning on the run, the clock could keep moving. The SportsLine model projects a 27-24 Jacksonville State win. The series is tied 1-1, and the teams last met in 2024.