RENO (Interstat) — Toa Fa’avae threw for 150 yards and a touchdown, and New Mexico’s defense kept Nevada out of the end zone in a 31-3 victory Friday at Mackay Stadium in an NCAA Football Bowl Division game. The Lobos improved to 8-1 while the Wolf Pack fell to 3-6 before an announced attendance of 15,290.

New Mexico set the tone early. Scottre Humphrey capped the opening drive with a 2-yard touchdown run with 11:31 remaining in the first quarter, and Kiefer Sibley added a 31-yard scoring run with 2:58 left in the quarter as the Lobos built a 14-0 lead. Nick Romero made both extra points. Nevada’s only points came on Jacob Fernandez’s 32-yard field goal with 37 seconds left before halftime, leaving New Mexico with a 14-3 advantage at the break. The Wolf Pack never found the end zone.

The Lobos stretched the lead in the third quarter when Humphrey scored again on a 1-yard run with 8:45 remaining. In the fourth, Fa’avae found Cade Keith for a 25-yard touchdown pass with 11:17 left, and Romero added a 37-yard field goal with 5:13 remaining to close the scoring. New Mexico’s defense did the rest, preserving a comfortable road win and keeping the Wolf Pack from mounting any comeback.

Fa’avae, a 195-pound quarterback from Concord, Calif., completed 14 of 20 passes for 150 yards and a touchdown and added 34 rushing yards on eight carries. He entered the game after completing 9 of 14 passes for 101 yards and rushing for 40 yards and a touchdown in New Mexico’s 21-16 win at San Jose State. Keith finished with four catches for 63 yards and a touchdown. Bailen George had four receptions for 44 yards, and Zhaiel Smith caught two passes for 14 yards. Sibley ran 12 times for 54 yards and a score and caught two passes for four yards. Cameron Mathews added four carries for 16 yards and a 6-yard catch. Tripp Walsh contributed a 1-yard run and a 14-yard reception, while Deshaun Buchanan had two carries for six yards. Dorian Patterson and DJ Darling each made a reception, Patterson for five yards and Darling for 11. Luke Moga completed both of his pass attempts for 11 yards. Marco Beltran Jr. returned one kickoff for 37 yards and four punts for 28 yards. Michael Kern punted five times for 205 yards, and Romero made four extra points and a 37-yard field goal.

Nevada quarterback AJ Bianco, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound passer, completed 14 of 31 attempts for 106 yards. Marshaun Brown caught two passes for 56 yards, Damien Morgan had four receptions for 20 yards and Donnie Cheers had four for 19. Gary Givens III made a 3-yard catch and Perrion Williams had a 1-yard reception. Herschel Turner carried six times for 12 yards and caught two passes for seven yards, while Janerious Jackson had one rush for five yards. The Wolf Pack moved the ball in spots but could not finish drives against a New Mexico defense that produced steady pressure.

Jayden Flaker made six tackles and a quarterback hurry for New Mexico, Darren Agu had four tackles, half a sack and a hurry, and Brett Karhu recorded four tackles, 1.5 sacks and a hurry. Tavian Combs and Mercury Swaim each finished with five tackles. Clay Martineau had four tackles and a hurry, CJ McBean had two tackles and a sack, and Xavier Slayton added a tackle, half a sack and two hurries. Frankie Edwards III and Austin Brawley each made three tackles. Jake DeVos, Drew Speech, Kader Diop, Eric McClain, Kevin Longstreet and Albert Tuakalau each made a tackle. Jalen Charles had one tackle and half a sack. The Lobos also got tackles from Jahmir Torres and Nick Romero.

Nevada’s defense was led by Dylan LaBarbera, who made nine tackles and a sack, and EJ Smith, who had nine tackles. Logologo Va’a added seven tackles, Larry Turner-Gooden and Isaiah Jordan each had six, and Poasa Utu and Jeremy Naborne-Owens each made five. Aiden Walker finished with four tackles. The Wolf Pack could not turn their defensive stops into points.

Nevada’s running game was limited throughout. Turner’s six carries for 12 yards led the Wolf Pack on the ground, and Jackson added five yards on his lone attempt. Bianco’s 106 passing yards were spread among several receivers, with Brown’s 56 yards on two catches accounting for more than half of the total. Morgan, Cheers, Givens and Williams combined for 10 receptions and 43 yards. Nevada’s defense got nine tackles apiece from LaBarbera and Smith, seven from Va’a and six each from Turner-Gooden and Jordan. New Mexico finished with four touchdowns and one field goal.

New Mexico’s win followed recent success that included a 21-16 victory at San Jose State, a 21-16 home win over North Dakota State, a 21-10 win at Hawaii and a 61-7 rout of UTEP. The Lobos also beat New Mexico State 42-18, Mercyhurst 70-7 and Central Michigan 38-7, with their only loss coming at Oklahoma. Nevada entered after a 27-0 loss at UCLA and had also dropped games to North Dakota State, Air Force, Middle Tennessee and Montana State. The Wolf Pack had beaten San Jose State, UTEP and Western Kentucky. The Lobos next face UNLV, while Nevada travels to Northern Illinois.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected New Mexico to win 36-21 entering the game, and Interstat’s ELO system gave New Mexico an 80.3 percent probability of victory. New Mexico was installed as a 10-point pregame favorite. The game’s total finished at 34 against an over/under line of 38.5.