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FACTS & STATS: Site: Spartan Stadium (30,456) -- San Jose, California. Television: ESPN3.com. Home Record: NMSU 0-2, SJSU 0-1. Away Record: NMSU 1-0, SJSU 0-2. Neutral Record: NMSU 0-0, SJSU 0-0. Conference Record: NMSU 0-0, SJSU 0-1. Series Record: San Jose State leads, 14-3.

GAME NOTES: In an effort to break out of a slump that has now stretched beyond a full calendar year, the San Jose State Spartans prepare for the arrival of the New Mexico State Aggies this weekend for a Western Athletic Conference showdown in the Golden State.

San Jose State is not only winless so far this season, the team has in fact dropped 13 consecutive decisions, the longest losing streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Last Saturday, the team opened its WAC slate against Nevada and nearly broke out of the doldrums, but still ended up suffering a 17-14 defeat at home. The loss for SJSU was the sixth in a row on its own field and the 10th straight in conference play.

The last win for the Spartans came on September 18, 2010 with a 16-11 triumph over Southern Utah. The last win for the program over another member of the FBS was back in 2009, a 13-10 victory over this same New Mexico State squad. In fact, that three-point win is the only such triumph over another FBS opponent since November 1, 2008 when the Spartans took down Idaho (30-24) on the road.

As for the Aggies, they haven't had an easy road by any stretch of the imagination over the last few years either, the team winning just two of 12 outings a year ago and posting three victories in both 2008 and 2009. New Mexico State actually stunned more than a few people when they defeated Minnesota (28-21), on the road no less back on September 10, but then the squad fell right back into the loss column with a 16-10 setback against rival UTEP at home in Las Cruces last weekend.

Despite their recent struggles, the Spartans actually lead the all-time series by a count of 14-3, although NMSU did post a 29-27 win last season at home against SJSU.

Against the Miners, New Mexico State fell behind by a couple of field goals in the second quarter but then came back with a 14-yard TD pass from Andrew Manley to Taveon Rogers, adding a 20-yard field goal by Tyler Stampler in the second half, but the three-point lead for the hosts failed to stand up. Manley finished the meeting 20-of-37 with 242 yards, but he was under constant pressure and was taken down for six sacks. Because of those takedowns of Manley the team finished with a mere 16 net rushing yards on 29 attempts. After last week's performance it should come as no surprise that the Aggies are last in the WAC and 117th in the country in rushing with just 51.7 ypg. The offensive line has been knocked around to the point where they've permitted 3.67 sacks per outing, the highest rate in the WAC and 115th in the country entering play this week.

The defense for the Aggies wasn't all that bad against UTEP, holding the Miners to just nine completed passes and 124 yards through the air, although the run defense was a bit more lenient with 195 yards allowed. However, take away the one 60-yard run by Joe Banyard and the stats appear much more manageable from NMSU's perspective. Boyblue Aoelua was credited with 11 tackles, all on assists for the Aggies, while David Niumatalolo was credited with one sack, another tackle for loss and a forced fumble for the group. Through three games Niumatalolo has logged 4.5 TFLs and is first on the team with three sacks as well. Unfortunately, if you take Niumatalolo out of the equation the Aggies have gotten little pressure on opposing quarterbacks with a total of just two sacks otherwise. However, the secondary has been more than holding up its end of the bargain by limiting teams to just 191 ypg through the air, the group showing a pass efficiency defense rating of 99.32 which is actually tops in the WAC right now.

Against the Wolf Pack, San Jose State controlled the ball for barely 24 minutes and converted just 4-of-14 on third down, yet the hosts lost by a mere three points to an opponent that's been known as an offensive juggernaut the last few seasons. Brandon Rutley, who finished with 86 yards on 17 carries, and quarterback Dasmen Stewart both scored rushing touchdowns for the Spartans, the latter converting a mere 3-of-14 passes for 21 yards when he remained in the pocket. Fellow signal-caller Matt Faulkner connected on 10- of-19 pass attempts for 131 yards and an interception. No matter who steps in under center for the Spartans, the fact remains that the team has a pass efficiency rating of just 80.07 after three games, worst in the WAC and 117th in the country so there needs to be another way for this offense to get the ball moving. Rutley could be part of the answer, although he's averaging less than 60 yards per game so far this season and has never had a 100-yard rushing game in his SJSU career.

Even though this year's version of the Nevada offense is a far cry from what the program has run out there the past few seasons, the Pack still piled up 261 rushing yards in their attack of the Spartans, effectively keeping the ball away from San Jose State in the process. If there was any good news to be taken out of yet another losing effort, its that the Spartans have progressively allowed fewer points in each game this season, going from 57 posted by Stanford in the opener to 27 by UCLA on September 10. SJSU had a total of five players credited with double-digit tackles, led by James Orth with 12 stops to go along with one forced fumble. While there are always plenty of tackles to go around, what the Spartans are severely lacking is pressure beyond the line of scrimmage right now. The team is one of only a handful in the FBS still without a sack in 2011 and right now the program is averaging just 3.0 tackles for loss per game which is last in the WAC and 116th in the country.

This is one of those games where you really can't get a handle on how either team will perform based on recent events. However, if there was ever an opponent that the Spartans could possibly beat, this would be the one.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: San Jose State 21, New Mexico State 13