NMSU fires running backs coach, general manager

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Just two days after the start of fall camp, one of New Mexico State’s key assistants is no longer with the program.

NMSU assistant head coach, general manager and running backs coach David Cobb was fired after a university review, a program spokesperson told the Journal on Friday.

Cobb, 33, had served in a variety of roles on NMSU’s staff since 2023. Considered one of the Aggies’ most valuable staffers, he was promoted to assistant head coach and general manager in January 2025.

It is unclear why the university fired Cobb.

“Before the start of football camp, David Cobb was placed on administrative leave,” an NMSU spokesman said in a statement to the Journal. “Following the university’s review process, coach Cobb was separated from the program and the university.

“Our athletics department remains committed to upholding the highest standards of integrity, compliance and professionalism. Out of respect for the process and university policy, we will have no further comment regarding this matter.”

Cobb did not immediately respond to the Journal’s request for comment. News of his termination was first published early Friday on “Aggregator,” an NMSU-centric Substack published by James Baca.

Cobb was not at NMSU’s practice Friday, according to the Las Cruces Sun-News. Speaking with media members afterward, NMSU head coach Tony Sanchez said the program was working through who might coach the Aggies’ running backs following Cobb’s firing.

“We’ll have something to announce next week,” he said. “Obviously the administration is dealing with stuff, so I can’t really comment on that right now … But yeah, we’ve got that taken care of, and we’ll announce that early next week.”

Cobb joined NMSU’s staff in 2023 as the program’s director of scouting and NFL liaison under former head coach Jerry Kill. After Kill was replaced by Sanchez, Cobb was promoted to running backs coach and oversaw a room with a pair of All-Conference USA honorees in Seth McGowan and Mike Washington.

Cobb maintained his on-field coaching duties when he was promoted to assistant head coach and general manager entering the 2025 season. As the program’s GM, he helped manage the Aggies’ recruiting efforts, player contracts and NIL payments.

Before joining NMSU, Cobb served as a scout for the Carolina Panthers and a scouting intern for the Tennessee Titans, the team that drafted him as a fifth-round pick in 2015.

Cobb spent three years in the NFL after a successful playing career at Minnesota. The former All-Big Ten running back notably ran for 1,626 yards as a senior, setting a new program record for rushing yards in a single season.

Sean Reider covers college football and other sports for the Journal. You can reach him at sreider@abqjournal.com or via X at @lenaweereider.

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