New Mexico State Football 2019 Position Previews: Wide Receiver

Head Coach Doug Martin likes to call his own plays and most of those plays end up with the Aggies passing. That’s totally fine by me, especially this year because the Aggies return their starting quarterback and basically every single receiver.

Returning: OJ Clark, Drew Dan, Anthony Muse, Izaiah Lottie, Shea Holebrook, Andre Bodison, Caleb Mills, Tevis Abraham, Xander Yarberough

Adkins will have no shortage of options to throw to. Making this unit even more exciting are the JUCO players coming in.

Newcomers: Jared Wyatt, Terrell Warner, Robert Downs, Tony Nicholson (Grad transfer from Baylor)

None of the JUCOs stepped into a big role last year, but with the amount of options and tendency to throw, one of them should be able to find a role in the offense. Especially with the loss of the top receiver from last year, Johnathan Boone.

Departures: Johnathan Boone, Royce Caldwell, Bryce Roberts

Let’s not forget about the roles the running backs take in the passing game too. Jason Huntley was the #2 receiver last and Christian Gibson had eight catches as well.

While some of the established receivers aren’t the tallest (Clark is 5’7” and Huntley is 5’9”) they are shifty, quick and know how to get open. They have the ability to surprise defenses. I think that was a big reason why the Aggies had a lead against Minnesota last year.

Some of the bigger receivers (Bodison, Mills, Holebrook) will hopefully be able to make some noise this year and explode onto the scene, taking away some of the focus off the other players so they have more one-on-one coverage.

Baylor transfer Tony Nicholson will be another interesting player to watch. He had 344 receiving yards at Baylor over the last three years and hopefully his skills transition well into the Aggies offense.

If a receiver can burst onto the scene and draw defenses’ attention, like Jaleel Scott in 2017, then I think offense has the chance to put up 30 points a game (excluding the Alabama matchup).

This is the unit I am most excited to see play.