Staff Report
The UNM football team will showcase its strength and power in its annual Night of Champions weightlifting exhibition today at University Stadium.
The format will be a little different than past years. The move outside is to accommodate the increased number of fans. Also, this year's 28 participants will be divided into two teams, a Cherry and Silver squad, and will compete in 14 one-on-one bouts. The team with the most one-on-one wins will be the winner. Four different lifts - the bench press, incline press, power clean and squat - will be attempted.
"We have our eyes on a few records that we think will be broken," strength and conditioning coordinator Mark Paulsen said in a University statement. "Plus, we might be in store for a few surprises as well. There should be a lot of energy out there with their teammates and the fans cheering them on. I expect to see some good things Monday night."
Last year, three records fell during the Night of Champions exhibition. Former Lobo fullback Jarrod Baxter, a fifth-round draft pick of the Houston Texans in last month's NFL Draft, broke current Chicago Bear Brian Urlacher's school record in the power clean with a lift of 391. Two position records also fell by two seniors. Defensive end Brian Johnson set a defensive line record by bench pressing 425 pounds, while Antonio Manning broke the defensive line record with an incline press of 465 pounds.
The Night of Champions marks the end of the offseason training and conditioning program for the Lobos. At the end, players are recognized with improvement in all four lifts, Beefmaster Award winners and record breakers.
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"This is a culmination of all their hard work in the spring," Paulsen said. "The team had a good training session and they are spent, but this is a way to let the kids compete a little bit and have some fun."
The exhibition begins at 7 p.m. and will take place in the south endzone of University Stadium. Opening introduction video highlights and close-up action of the competition will be shown on the videoboard. Bleachers will be pulled out for fans. Admission is free.
UNM begins its 2002 football season Aug. 1, when freshman and newcomers report for duty. Two-a-days for all players begin Aug. 5, and the first game is Aug. 24, on the road against North Carolina State University in the Black Coaches Association Bowl.
