Dreiling and Wright Earn Prestigious AFCA 35 Under 35 Selections

WACO, Texas – The future is bright within the NM State football program. Monday, the American Football Coaches Association announced a pair of NM State assistants have been selected to participate in the 2024 35 Under 35 Coaches Leadership Institute.
 
Co-Defensive Coordinator Nate Dreiling and Tight Ends and Special Teams Coordinator Tyler Wright were chosen from a field of over 175 highly qualified applicants. The AFCA 35 Under 35 Coaches Leadership Institute is a prestigious program aimed at identifying and developing premier, future leaders in the football coaching profession.
 
After taking over as the defensive coordinator ahead of the 2022 season, Dreiling turned a defense which was ranked 127^th in the nation in total defense and guided it to becoming the most improved unit in the country – jumping 98 spots to 29^th in the nation.
 
This season, at just 33 years old Coach Dreiling guided an Aggie defense which finished the regular season as the top-ranked scoring defense in Conference USA – allowing just 19.7 points per game during the Aggies’ 13-game regular season schedule. This is a tremendous improvement from prior Aggie teams as the NM State defense gave up an average of 40.4 points per game the season before Dreiling’s arrival. Dreiling’s defense was also among the nation’s best with its back against the wall – ranking fourth among FBS…