by Steven Fernandez
Daily Lobo
Anthony Fairbanks' decision to attend UNM after being a high school All-American meant that he would not receive a full scholarship.
It meant turning down full-ride offers and opportunities to go to big-name schools such as Duke and Georgia Tech.
It also meant competing in his hometown in front of the people he is close with and for a coach he respects. For the freshman javelin thrower, the positives outweighed the negatives.
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"I had some different looks," Fairbanks said. "I talked to a bunch of different schools. Coach Henry, he's a really good coach. And it's close to my family and friends. It was really good to stay home and be around them."
Head track and field coach Matt Henry said he was pleased Fairbanks decided to join the Lobos. Henry said Fairbanks is on a partial scholarship.
"We were really excited to get him," Henry said. "Because of our situation, we give him a couple pennies, and that's all he has. That tells me a lot. He has some love for New Mexico. He wants to stay home and improve the program at New Mexico, and I appreciate that."
Fairbanks graduated from Highland High School in 2004, where he established himself as one of the elite athletes in the state. He was a three-time New Mexico 5A champion in the javelin throw. He also set the state record with a throw of 212-04, which ranked eighth best in the country his senior season.
Fairbanks was a competitor in other sports as well. He played on the Highland football team and was selected to play in the North-South All-Star game. Fairbanks was also named honorable mention all-state in basketball.
Fairbanks said he is proud to be from New Mexico. He said he's happy to help show that local athletes can excel at the college level.
"It's good to bring some recognition to New Mexico," he said. "There's a lot of good athletes from New Mexico, and it's good to be a part of that."
In his first season at UNM, Fairbanks has established himself as one of the best throwers in the Mountain West Conference. He has won three meets this season, and he has finished in the top three in every meet he has competed in. At Saturday's Don Kirby Memorial Invitational in Albuquerque, Fairbanks threw a career-best 213-9 to top the field of collegiate athletes at the UNM home meet.
Fairbanks said he was happy to get the win at home and especially pleased with recording a career-best throw.
"I felt really good today," he said. "My throws just came through for me. It was good to perform in front of my family and at home."
Fairbanks notched the first victory of his collegiate career earlier this season at the Cardinal and Gold Invitational in Los Angeles. He said that victory gave him confidence that he could compete against other college throwers.
"It was a big confidence booster," Fairbanks said. "Coming out as a freshman, you think, 'Wow, there's a lot of big throwers out here.' Being able to compete with those guys feels good."
Fairbanks said he hopes his performance at Saturday's home meet will give him momentum going into the MWC Championships, which begin March 10 in Provo, Utah.
"This meet helped me out a lot," Fairbanks said. "It's going to help me compete for that conference title."
