There isn’t much time to relax for head coaches around the holidays. Some still have a full season ahead; others are planning recruiting trips around the country; and a few of them are concerned about their jobs.
A new car or suit may keep their spirits up for a day or two, but that’s not the gift that keeps their hopes high.
The only cure-all for coaches is winning. Thus, the best gifts that coaches can receive around the holidays are ones that they give themselves.
Bob Davie
Unfortunately for Davie, his wildest and very real Christmas dream of getting the Lobos to the Mountain West Championship game ended with Saturday’s loss to Colorado State.
However, there are still other ways Davie can make history this holiday season.
If UNM is able to upset Air Force this coming Saturday, the Lobos will clinch a winning record for the first time since 2007. The Lobos will also have a shot at earning the school’s first bowl victory in nearly a decade.
Davie did enough this season to earn the benefit of the doubt for a couple of seasons. His job security isn’t in question after some of the biggest upsets in program history.
The Nov. 14 win at Boise State will be talked about for years to come, and might be considered the turning point for the football program.
Yvonne Sanchez
A year after Sanchez’s job was in jeopardy, she was able to turn the program around and garner second-place finishes in both the regular season and the Mountain West Tournament.
The Lobos’ aspirations are set higher this year after their recent success, and they’ve been picked to finish second in the conference behind Colorado State, who won the Mountain West title last season.
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Sanchez boasts a deep squad that is led by one of best post players in conference in Khadijah Shumpert.
There’s also the matter of UNM’s winning streak at home, which will reach 15 games with a win against Nicholls State.
It’s amazing the turnaround Sanchez has performed with this program. She went from worrying whether she was in her last year as head coach to earning a well-deserved extension.
Craig Neal
After one of the worst seasons in recent memory, Neal is trying to bring back UNM’s winning ways.
Probably the gift Neal wants the most this year — besides winning — is a healthy team. UNM had to deal with the unfortunate news of Devon Williams career-ending condition earlier this season, but overall the team has been healthy.
UNM is also still in the early processes of coming together as a team. That was apparent in the Lobos’ first loss of the season at USC on Saturday.
When the team chemistry comes along, there shouldn’t be any reason for UNM not to contend.
The key for that to happen is health, and after last season’s slew of injuries, the law of averages should favor the Lobos to stay injury-free this year.
Thomas Romero-Salas is the culture editor for the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at culture@dailylobo.com.
