ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico hired Bronco Mendenhall as its new head football coach Wednesday.
The 57-year-old Mendenhall compiled a 135-81 record over 17 seasons at BYU and Virginia and was 7-7 in bowl games before he stepped away from coaching following the 2021 season.
He’s the 33rd head coach in New Mexico’s football history and succeeds Danny Gonzales, who was fired Nov. 25 after a 4-8 season. Gonzales had an 11-32 record over four seasons with the Lobos, who haven’t had a winning season since 2016.
All 11 of Mendenhall’s BYU teams went to a bowl and he guided Virginia to three bowl games, including the Orange Bowl in 2019.
Mendenhall, who played safety and linebacker at Oregon State from 1986-87 and was a team captain, started his coaching career as a graduate assistant with the Beavers before becoming a position coach or defensive coordinator at Utah’s Snow College, Northern Arizona and Louisiana Tech.
