by Riley Bauling
Daily Lobo
Brandon Moss found out Friday how much stats mean to Major League Soccer coaches and general managers - absolutely nothing.
And for him that's a good thing. But for his former teammate on the UNM men's soccer team, Jeff Rowland, it's not.
Moss was one of three Lobos taken in the 48-pick, four-round MLS SuperDraft on Friday. He was picked 27th overall by the Columbus Crew, while his ex-teammate Lance Watson went 16th to the Kansas City Wizards. Josh Brown was the last Lobo taken at 45th by the Colorado Rapids.
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The only other Lobo eligible for the draft, Rowland, wasn't drafted despite scoring 45 goals and finishing his four years at UNM third in points scored and second in goals scored. Rowland couldn't be reached for comment Sunday.
"I think it's hard to say," Moss said when explaining why Rowland wasn't picked. "He scored close to 40 goals in two years and I had almost no stats whatsoever. So who knows?"
Moss's stats were far from blowing anyone away, as the center midfielder recorded only two goals and five assists at UNM.
Moss even said he was expecting Rowland to be the first one picked out of the four Lobos.
"I thought that Rowland would go first with all his stats and the hype he got," Moss said.
Stats or not, after last week's MLS Combine in Carson, Calif., it was Moss who was ranked fifth in overall performance based on general consensus, according to MLSnet.com.
That's not bad, considering he wasn't even on the original invite list to the combine. He was invited only after the Lobos' run through the NCAA tournament and into the championship.
The news isn't all bad for Rowland, who was also the runner-up for the Hermann Trophy this year. The award is given to the nation's top male soccer player. Moss said Real Salt Lake told Rowland he would be taken in next week's supplemental draft.
A roster spot is far from guaranteed for Watson, Moss and Brown, and most players who get drafted. Training camp starts Feb. 2, and contracts aren't negotiated until the end of March - right before the first games of the season are played, Moss said.
All three were the first in UNM history to be taken in the draft. Rowland, Moss and Watson were all there for it in Philadelphia.
Moss said he was more nervous squirming in his seat during the draft than he was for any of the Lobos' games in the NCAA tournament.
"First off, nothing can prepare you for the feeling you have inside when they call you," he said. "When it happened, it was the coolest thing that's happened in my life. It was just the most incredible experience ever."
