There's a reason why UNM men's soccer fans won't recognize any of the five recruits head coach Jeremy Fishbein brought in for the 2005-2006 season.
None of the five players are from New Mexico. Actually, none of them are even remotely close to home.
According to MapQuest, Sacramento-product Chris Wright and St. Louis-native Brandon Barklage have the shortest trips back to their hometowns, with distances of 1,081 and 1,043 miles, respectively.
"There was one player we wanted a lot (from New Mexico)," Fishbein said. "We are going to take players that will help this team out. So if there are New Mexico kids that can help our team, then we'll take them."
He said next year's class will likely have more New Mexico products.
That one player - Sandia Preparatory School star Tyrone Petrakis - opted to attend and play soccer at Pennsylvania State.
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Despite the lack of local representation, Fishbein said he's impressed with the eventual payoff the five recruits will have, and expects the team won't want to have to rely on the recruits to make an immediate impact.
"Now, will any of them turn out to be huge impact players?" he said. "That's what we're hoping for."
He said next year's team should be better with the recruits and the combined experience of the returning players.
That might be a scary thought for the rest of the teams in the country, especially because the Lobos finished last year's regular season ranked No. 1 in the country in the Soccer America poll.
They made it to the NCAA tournament for the third time in four years, and they eventually lost to Virginia in the third round on penalty kicks.
"These guys are very good," Fishbein said. "They've played in a lot of big games between all of them. Every one of them fills a need for us."
Fishbein racked up the frequent-flier miles during this year's recruiting process, because the five recruits come from all over the country.
Defender Jason Aul, a native of Dallas, plays on one of the best high school teams in the country. His Plano West High School team is ranked sixth.
Barklage, a forward-midfielder, played on a Christian Brothers high school team that finished last season ranked No. 5 in the country. His club soccer team won last year's national championship.
Two players from Illinois will make the trek to the Southwest come next season. Mike Griffin, a defender-midfielder, hails from St. Charles and played on the Illinois Olympic Development Program team for four years.
His future teammate, Jack Smithson, a midfielder-forward, comes from Hinsdale and was a seven-time ODP player.
Wright was also a member of his high school track team.
Even though Fishbein said he doesn't need the recruits to come in and have instant success, he recruited these five players for a reason.
"They're all going to challenge the players already here," he said. "They're coming in here to play."
