Donovan Porterie Class: Junior Hometown: Port Arthur, Texas High School: Memorial HS Height / Weight: 6-3 / 208 Position: Quarterback Birthdate: 05/29/1987 Experience: 2L

All-MWC Candidate

NEW MEXICO:

Two-year starter who emerged as one of the top quarterbacks in the Mountain West Conference in 2007 and will push for all-conference honors this fall with a greater mastery of second-year offensive coordinator Dave Baldwin's scheme...2008 marks the first time in his college career that he had the same offensive coordinator and system in back-to-back years...will be counted on to increase his leadership role in `08 with 6 senior starters gone from the 2007 offensive unit...was much more vocal during the spring and was voted team captain by his teammates...a calm, poised passer who displays a strong arm with a smooth, quick delivery...he has polished his mechanics and footwork in order to improve his consistency, and coaches say he could finish his career as one of the best QBs in program history...is a pass-first quarterback, but does a nice job of moving in the pocket to avoid the rush...4 games over 300 yards passing and already ranks among the top-10 all-time at UNM in passing yards (3,973 - 5th), TD passes (21 - T-8th), completions (315 - 5th), completion percentage (57.2% - 2nd) and effeciency rating (126.3 - 5th)...does a nice job taking care of the football with just 11 career interceptions for a 1.9 TD to INT ratio...12-6 as the starting QB, but has a 12-4 record in games he has started and finished...won the first 3 starts of his career in `06, all come-from-behind victories, to lead the Lobos back into the bowl hunt...has engineered 4 second half comebacks in his career, including 2 game-winning drives on the final possession of the 4th quarter...took over the starting QB job midway through the `06 season after beginning the year third on the depth chart...teammates named him Most Improved Player following the season...was the first freshman to start at QB for UNM since Stoney Case in 1991...Case went on to earn Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year honors as a senior in 1994 and enjoyed a 6-year NFL career...2-time MWC Offensive Player of the Week...named Most Valuable Offensive Scout by his teammates in 2005...he and former Texas standout RB Jamaal Charles (now with the Kansas City Chiefs) played in the same backfield at Port Arthur (Texas) Memorial HS...both parents recently retired from the military...dad was a master sergeant in the Army and mom was a master sergeant E7 in the Air Force...last name is pronounced POUR-ta-ree.

2007 (SOPHOMORE):
Turned in an outstanding season in his first year as a full-time starter...showed the potential to be one of the premier QBs in the nation...threw for 3,006 yards - the best by a Lobo since 1994 (Stoney Case) and 4th on the UNM single season list...ranked third in the MWC in passing yardage (231/game) and passing TDs with a career-high 15...his 9 interceptions were the 2nd-fewest among the 8 MWC QBs with at least 250 attempts...2 picks came on dropped passes...ranked 5th in passing efficiency (126.3)...connected on 58.4% (244-418) of his passes...244 completions ranked 3rd on the UNM single season list...also did a fine job of moving in the pocket and throwing the ball away, taking just 24 sacks on the year...became the first Lobo in 9 years with back-to-back 300-yard passing games (vs. New Mexico State and Arizona) and added a 3rd 300-yard effort in the New Mexico Bowl...had efficiency ratings of over 150 in 6 games, including a career-best 218.03 vs. New Mexico State.

`07 HIGHLIGHTS:
vs. Nevada (New Mexico Bowl)...Threw for a career-high and Lobo bowl record 354 yards en route to Offensive MVP honors...completed 56% of his passes (20-36) and his 2 TD passes were the most by a Lobo in a bowl game since 1946...got off to a sensational start, completing 7-11 for 172 yards and 2 TDs in the first quarter alone...facing 3rd-and-5, he hit Marcus Smith in stride across the middle for a 66-yard score on the 3rd play of the game...later floated a perfect pass over the secondary for a 39-yard TD to Travis Brown on a 2nd-and-15 play...had 271 yards at halftime, but attempted just 12 passes in the second half (83 yards)...season-long 12-yard run to convert a 3rd-and-10 play deep in UNM territory early in the 3rd quarter.

vs. Colorado State...Got back on track with a solid passing performance...effeciency rating (156.3) was the best in 6 games as he completed 21-29 (72%) passes for 211, 2 first half TDs and no INTs...stood in against the rush to complete several big passes.

vs. Air Force...Just 169 yards passing (16-28), but lost over 100 yards on several key dropped passes, including one that turned into his lone interception...also had a 21-yard TD pass negated by a questionable illegal shift penalty...12-yard TD pass and game-tying 2-point coversion pass to TE Chris Mark on back-to-back plays to close the 1st half.

at San Diego State...Threw for 239 yards (18-35) and a TD, but tied a career-high with 2 interceptions...one pick came when the intended WR fell down across the middle of the field...however, he was at his best when it mattered most...led UNM on its longest drive of the season, marching the team 94 yards on 13 plays for a game-tying TD with less than 3 minutes to play in the 1st half...7-10 passing for 88 yards, including a 25-yard TD on the drive...capped the night with an 8-play, 65-yard game-winning drive with under 2 minutes to play...3-4 for 35 yards and picked up 14 yards rushing on 2 scrambles on the final drive to lead the Lobos to the improbable victory.

at Wyoming...Strong performance against the nation's No. 8 defense in tough weather conditions...completed 14-23 passes for 215 yards and broke the game open for the Lobos when he hit Travis Brown in stride down the middle with a perfectly thrown 63-yard TD pass just 4 plays after a 2-hour weather delay late in the 2nd quarter...did a fine job of standing in against the rush to make big throws downfield.

vs. Sacramento State...Threw for 239 yards (20-27), with a 24-yard TD and no interceptions, in just 3 quarters of action...completed passes to 7 different receivers...long pass of 40 yards.

at Arizona...Sensational performance to lead the Lobos to a landmark road win against one of the Pac-10's most experienced and talented defenes...had all his tools on display as he threw for 327 yards on career-highs of 29-41 passing (71%)...matched his career-best with 3 TD passes coming...made the momentum-changing play of the game when he hit Travis Brown in the back of the end zone from 38 yards out on a perfectly thrown ball with 0:03 left in the 2nd quarter...score gave UNM a lead it would never relinquish...opened the game 9-9 for 57 yards and a 6-yard TD on 3rd-and-goal...miscommunication resulted in a 2nd quarter INT that snapped a streak of 133 attempts (6 games) without a pick.

vs. New Mexico State...Put the offense on his back in to lead the Lobos to a pivotal win in a shootout with the rival Aggies...completed 17-24 passes (71%) for 342 yards, 2 TDs (36 & 26 yards) and 0 INTs en route to MWC Offensive Player of the Week honors...completed 13 of his last 14 attempts and was 5-5 for 149 yards and a TD in the decisive 4th quarter...led the Lobos to scores on their final 6 possessions (3 TDs, 3 FGs).

2006 (REDSHIRT FRESHMAN):
Honorable Mention Freshman All-American (Sporting News) who gave the Lobos a real spark in the second half of the season after stepping into the starting lineup...missed the final 2 regular season games after being injured late in the 3rd quarter on Nov. 11 vs. TCU...went 3-2 as a starter...led the team to come-from-behind victories in his first three starts, including two on the road...engineered game-winning scoring drives in the final 5 minutes of the 4th quarter in back-to-back games (vs. Utah, at CSU)...12-17 passing for 153 yards, 2 TDs and an INT in the 4th quarter of those 2 games...completed 54% of his passes (61-112) for 831 yards with 5 TDs and 2 INTs in his 5 starts (played only 2 1/2 quarters vs. TCU and one half vs. San Jose State)...QB efficiency rating of 127.95 as a starter...350-yard game vs. Utah was the 2nd-highest in the MWC during the year...officially appeared in 8 contests in `06...got half the snaps at quarterback vs. Wyoming (7-17, 68 yards) and one series vs. UTEP (2-3, 34 yards) before taking over the starting job in week 7...lined up as a slot WR on his first collegiate play at New Mexico State and tossed a 34-yard TD to Marcus Smith on a reverse pass - his only snap of the evening.

`06 HIGHLIGHTS:
at Colorado State...Bottled up in the 2nd and 3rd quarter, but came alive once again in the 4th quarter, completing 5-6 passes for 73 yards, including a perfectly thrown 35-yard TD to Travis Brown...was at his best with the game on the line with less than 3 minutes to play, guiding the offense on a methodical 10-play, 63-yard drive that culminated in Kenny Byrd's game-winning 33-yard FG as time expired...3-3 passing for 33 yards, scrambled 6 yards for a 1st down and drew the Rams offsides with a hard count to convert a key 3rd-and-5 play with 1 minute remaining...finished the day 15-25 for 195 passing yards, 1 TD and no INTs.

vs. Utah...Named MWC Offensive Player of the Week after a breakout performance against one of the league's toughest defenses, leading UNM to the biggest comeback in school history...finished with a career-high 350 yards on 19-33 passing with 3 TDs and an INT that glanced off the hands of the intended receiver...yardage was the most by a Lobo in 3 years and the best by a UNM freshman since Stoney Case threw for 393 against Air Force in 1991...hit just 3 of his first 11 passes for 47 yards, as the Lobos' fell behind 24-3, before catching fire late in the 2nd quarter...finished 16-22 for 303 yards, including TDs of 40, 42 and 5 yards...led UNM to scores on 4 of its first 5 possessions of the 2nd half, all of which covered at least 55 yards...3-4 passing for 29 yards and scrambled 16 yards to convert a 3rd-and-9 play on the Lobos' game-winning TD drive late in the 4th quarter.

at UNLV...Solid performance in his first career start...finished with 168 yards a TD and an INT on 13-27 passing, but made several plays to help win the game and did not give the Rebels any easy chances with bad turnovers...led the Lobos to TDs on their first two drives of the game (8 plays, 54 yards and 7 plays, 57 yards).

HIGH SCHOOL:

A 2005 graduate of Port Arthur (Texas) Memorial HS...decorated prep quarterback who was rated by Rivals.com as the No. 3 quarterback in Texas and 17th nationally...completed 81 of 149 passes for 1,149 yards, 10 TDs and just 3 interceptions as a senior...chosen the second-best quarterback at a Nike camp last summer at LSU...Super Gold first team in the Golden Triangle area around Houston...three-year letterman for head coach Dean Colbert...led the Titans to the district title last year before losing to Houston Lamar in four overtimes in the first round of the state playoffs...handed the ball off to Jamaal Charles, who went on to earn Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors for the national champion Texas Longhorns in 2005...a two-year starter on the basketball team and a member of the Honor Roll with a 3.4 cumulative GPA...also received Academic All-America recognition.

PERSONAL:

Born May 29, 1987, in Port Arthur...age is 21...full name is Donovan Wayne Porterie...son of Herman and Deborah...older brother, Alex, played receiver at Prairie View A&M and was a scout team player for New Mexico in '05 and '06...an uncle, Mark Granger, was an offensive tackle at Oklahoma State in the early `90s...major is University Studies.