Who says inexperienced players can’t win? Head coach Jeremy Fishbein hopes to take the wealth of fresh talent he brought in this season past the first round of the NCAA tournament, where the team has fallen for the past two years. “We are really excited about this season,” Fishbein said.
Wake up, Lobo fans — the next couple months aren’t only about football. With fall just around the corner, sports radio and local news stations are talking about the UNM football’s shortcomings, how the arrest of Deshon Marman will affect him on the field, and by what margin Boise State will beat the Lobos.
Take it nationally. That’s what Joe Franklin’s cross country team intends to do. After back-to-back sweeps in 2009-10 at the MWC Championships and the NCAA regionals, the Lobos are galloping toward a three-peat, but are more preoccupied with winning a national title. Franklin, the 2010 NCAA Mountain Region Coach of the Year, said how quickly the team adjusts to losing 10 seniors will determine how successful it will be.
It looks like it’s one and done for Stump Godfrey. The UNM sophomore left the Lobos following just one season, after head coach Mike Locksley announced that he approved a conditional release request July 19.
The disappointment is still there. I’m talking about how the U.S. women’s team blew its chance in the choke of the year against Japan on July 17 in the Women’s World Cup final. It’s not just that the women lost, but the way they lost. They played the entire game with the arrogance and poise that should be indicative of a team ranked No.
Lucas Reed has followed in his brother’s footsteps for his entire life. Thanks to Brooks, Lucas is two years away from potentially joining his brother in the NFL. Born and raised in Tucson, Ariz., Lucas did it all as a kid: soccer, baseball, wrestling, swimming, and football.
The Athletics Director, a brusque, somewhat likeable Ohio State alum, had a vision when he accepted the UNM position. In not so many words, he spelled it out.
Way back in October, head football coach Mike Locksley decided he had enough. Lack of on-field production was something he could deal with. Lack of production in the classroom, however, was not. So against his better sense of compassion, he jettisoned tailback Demond Dennis, citing Dennis’ failure to fulfill the academic standards the coaching staff had deemed necessary.
It has been a freefall from grace for former UNM running back Demond Dennis. Once a three-star recruit and the Lobos’ featured tailback, Dennis, 21, faces multiple felony charges stemming from his alleged role in an armed robbery in Lawrenceville, Ga.
Aside from learning how to put bat to ball more consistently, Trey Porras needs to learn one more thing: When it comes to baseball, Ray Birmingham knows best. “If he does what I ask him to, he’ll have a major opportunity to play a lot,” said Birmingham, the Lobos’ head baseball coach.
As they did twelve years ago to the day, the U.S. women’s soccer team delivered. It was July 10 when Brandi Chastain scored the game-winning penalty kick against China in the 1999 women’s World Cup final — the goal that prompted Chastain to take her shirt off and fall on her knees with her fists clenched.
Imagine the prospect of a pigskinless Sabbath. A report circulated last week that the NFL owners and players are close to reaching a Collective Bargaining Agreement that would end the 2011 lockout.
For the last three years, UNM fans have known — scratch that — been informally introduced to Scott Galetti on the radio. Galetti, UNM’s play-by-play announcer for men’s basketball, football and baseball, recently signed a multi-year deal to remain the voice of the Lobos.
The Pit is getting ready to rumble. University Arena has seen its share of concerts, men’s and women’s NCAA tournament basketball games and boxing bouts. Now, mixed martial arts will debut Aug.
Whether by accident or with intent, almost all of UNM head women’s basketball coach Yvonne Sanchez’s assistant coaches have some connection to the Mountain West Conference or The Pit.
It’s not easy being a New York Mets fan. Even in New Mexico. Seriously. I’ve come to find out that I am the butt of baseball jokes.
Twenty years ago in soccer, Mexico vs. USA meant another win for our southern neighbors. In fact, it was so lopsided from 1934 to 1991 that Mexico dominated the U.S., going 23-2-3. Since then, however, it has become one of the best sports rivalries in North America. It doesn’t have the history of Yankees vs. Red Sox, or the popularity of Lakers vs. Celtics, but it does have two countries whose fans and players genuinely dislike one another. Since 1991, the U.S. is a remarkable 13-10-7 against Mexico. This is extraordinary given America’s disinterest in soccer.
The New Mexico Bowl has been given a fashionable new look. ESPN and Gildan Activewear Inc. announced a multi-year deal on June 20 to sponsor the bowl beginning with the 2011 Gildan New Mexico Bowl at University Stadium.
There’s never a dull moment in UNM Athletics, even on the field, which is why this column is about a month overdue. With the unexpected four-game winning streak of the UNM baseball team at the Mountain West Conference tournament at the end of May, I stalled on a “2010-11 in review” of Lobo sports. But the time to look back on Athletics this past year has finally presented itself. UNM Women’s Soccer First, I’d like to give a round of applause to the UNM women’s soccer team. The team advanced to its first NCAA tournament appearance in its history in 2010. They won the MWC regular-season championship for the first time in school history.
UNM football player Deshon Marman has yet to play a single down for the Lobo football team, but he’s already made a name for himself. San Francisco Police said Marman — a junior college transfer defensive back — was arrested at the San Francisco International Airport for sagging his pajama pants while boarding a US Airways flight back to Albuquerque on Wednesday. San Francisco Police Sgt.
Solutions by The State News
