NCAA rules allow for 15 football practices in spring, and head coach Mike Locksley and Co. need all the time they can get.
For the first time in 11 years, the UNM football team started spring training with a new coach.
After a disappointing 4-8 season in 2008, former head coach Rocky Long stepped down. Locksley signed on to coach the team in December. And Locksley is implementing a new system for the Lobos to learn. He unveiled a no-huddle spread offense and a 4-3 defense, new schemes for the Lobos.
Locksley is also starting his first year with a team predominantly recruited by Long. He is inheriting 44 lettermen from last year and 14 starters - eight from offense, three from defense and three specialists.
"Whether they were recruited by me or were here when I got here, they are all our guys now," Locksley said.
For that reason, Locksley said he needs to evaluate what he has.
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"You pattern your offense to fit your personnel," he said. "So this spring, what we are trying to find out is what our personnel is, what we have, what guys can do. Then, we will go back to the drawing board and start putting together an offensive plan."
The first week of practice has been dedicated to introducing the team to the new calls and plays and the tempo the Lobos will play at in the fall.
The no-huddle offense that is being installed is the sharpest contrast from last year's run-oriented offense, said quarterbacks Donovan Porterie and Brad Gruner.
"Last year, after a play got done, we had a chance to take a breath," Porterie said. "But now, this year, everybody has to know the signals because we are moving so rapid-fire."
Gruner said he likes the pace of things this year.
"It seems fast now, but it's still not fast enough," he said.
That's one of the many challenges Porterie and Gruner face. They're also in a battle for the starting position, as is everyone else.
Porterie is returning to the Lobo roster after tearing his ACL and MCL in his right knee last season.
He played in less than four games in '08 before suffering the injury. But in the past, he has been a leader of the Lobo offense, throwing for 4,345 yards and 21 touchdowns in his career. He completed 58.3 percent of his passes.
In three years as a Lobo, Porterie has gone through three playbooks. Learning a new system is nothing new for him. Under offensive coordinator Dave Baldwin in '08, he even ran a spread offense.
Porterie said his knee is at around 80 percent but that it is feeling better every day.
"It feels really good at practice," he said. "I am still rehabbing on it about two times a day and I am just looking forward to June or the beginning of July when I'll be 100 percent."
After Porterie's injury last season, Gruner took the quarterback reins. He had a completion percentage of 53.8, passing for 1,037 yards and three touchdowns. But he was probably better known for his ability to scramble than throw.
This year, Gruner said he is excited about the coaching change.
"It was surprising," he said. "But I also knew that it was a good thing for me, because that gave me a fair opportunity to compete for the starting job."
The position will be filled by whoever can lead the spread no-huddle offense the best, a system that Locksley said hopes will pump up the fan base.
"From what I have seen just from following our basketball program, men's and women's, our fans are very loyal fans," he said. "I think that will continue if we put out a product that they are excited about."
