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The preparations for a highly-anticipated 2003 football season get underway next week as the University of New Mexico begins spring practice on Tuesday, March 25, at 3 p.m. (MST), at the practice fields south of University Stadium. Unless otherwise noted, all practices are open to the media and the public. Tuesdays workout is the first of 15 practices UNM will conduct over the next four weeks. More than 90 players are expected to participate.
The Lobos will practice Tuesday, Thursday and Friday next week, then all Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Fridays between March 31 and April 17. The annual Cherry-Silver intrasquad scrimmage is Saturday, April 19, at 2 p.m. at University Stadium. Practices begin at 3 p.m. each day and will normally last approximately two hours. The complete spring schedule:
|Practice|Day|Date|Start Time|Equipment|| 1|Tuesday|March 25|3 p.m.|shorts/helmets| 2|Thursday|March 27|3 p.m.|shorts/helmets|| 3|Friday|March 28|3 p.m.|shorts/helmets||4|Monday|March 31|3 p.m.|shorts/helmets||5|Tuesday|April 1|3 p.m.|pads|| 6|Thursday|April 3|3 p.m.|shorts/helmets|| 7|Friday|April 4|3 p.m.|pads||8|Monday|April 7|3 p.m.|shorts/helmets|| 9|Tuesday|April 8|3 p.m.|pads||10|Thursday|April 10|3 p.m.|shorts/helmets|| 11|Friday|April 11|3 p.m.|pads|| 12|Monday|April 14|3 p.m.|shorts/helmets||13|Tuesday|April 15|3 p.m.|pads|| 14|Thursday|April 17|3 p.m.|shorts/helmets||15|Saturday|April 19|2 p.m.|Cherry-Silver Game|
all dates and times subject to change
THE COACH — Rocky Long (New Mexico 74) begins his sixth year at the helm of his alma maters football program. After UNM won just three games in Longs inaugural season of 1998, the team has increased its victory total each of the last four years, bringing Longs career record to 25-35 (five years) as head coach. Last season, New Mexico won five of its last six league games to finish second in the Mountain West Conference, earning a berth in the 2002 SEGA Sports Las Vegas Bowl. The accomplishment earned Long MWC Coach of the Year honors by his peers in the conference and members of the media. He is the fourth Lobo coach to ever earn the award, joining Dudley DeGroot (1952 – Skyline), Marv Levy (1957 – Skyline) and Dennis Franchione (1993, 1997 – Western Athletic).
CHANGE ON THE STAFF — On Jan. 3, 2003, Osia (pronounced oh-SAY) Lewis was named the Lobos new defensive coordinator. Lewis comes to UNM after six seasons (1997-2002) as a defensive assistant at the University of Illinois. He replaced Bronco Mendenhall, who accepted the defensive coordinator position at BYU. Lewis is hooking up with Rocky Long for the second time as the two coaches spent five seasons together (1991-95) at Oregon State. Long was the Beavers defensive coordinator under head coach Jerry Pettibone while Lewis coached the outside linebackers and special teams.
FEEL THE POWER — Under the guidance of strength and conditioning coordinator Mark Paulsen and his staff, the UNM football team enjoyed another tremendous offseason in the weight room. The work and achievement that occurs under Paulsens watch have helped change the identity of the New Mexico football program.
Despite having two fewer weeks to train because of the length of the 2002 season, the Lobos continued their assault on the weight room record books. Nine position records fell in front of a large crowd at the L.F. Tow Diehm facility during the annual Night of Champions weight lifting exhibition. The crowd also witnessed as a program-best 36 players lifted over 300 pounds in the power clean.
LAST YEAR — The 104th season of Lobo football will always be regarded as one of the more rewarding in school history. UNM was one of just four teams in NCAA Div. 1-A football to start 2-4 or worse and still rally to qualify for a bowl game. New Mexico finished 7-7 overall after falling to UCLA 27-13 in the Sega sports Las Vegas Bowl, the teams second bowl game since 1961.
The Lobos overcame a mountain of adversity, including a humiliating 49-0 shutout at the hands of Texas Tech in front of a national ESPN audience on Friday, Sept. 27. Following that loss, which also saw starting quarterback Casey Kelly go down with a broken left arm, New Mexico won five of its last seven regular-season games to claim second place outright in the MWC. Kelly returned three weeks later to help UNM take five of its final six conference games, including four-straight for the first time since 1982. After being picked to finish sixth in the preseason poll, New Mexico claimed sole possession of second place (5-2) in the MWC with a 49-20 throttling of Wyoming in the regular-season finale.
THIS AND THAT — New Mexico guns for its third straight non-losing season in 2003. That hasnt happened in the Lobo program since a seven-season run between 1958-64. As for consecutive bowl appearances, that has only occurred one time in Lobo history: the 1946 Sun Bowl and the 1947 Harbor Bowl in San Diego.
The Lobos have the distinction of being the only school in the nation to increase its win total every year since 1999: New Mexico was 3-9 in 1998, 4-7 in 1999, 5-7 in 2000, 6-5 in 2001 and 7-7 in 2002.
Thanks to an odd twist in the calender – there were 14 Saturdays from Labor Day weekend until Nov. 30 as required by the NCAA – teams were able to play 12 regular-season games in 2002. Thats also allowed in 2003, 2008, 2013 and 2014.
The Lobos are 6-2 in November the past two years. Both losses have come against nationally-ranked Colorado State. New Mexico was 1-9 in November from 1998-2000.
COMING BACK STRONG — UNM returns 54 letterwinners, including 20 starters. Ten starters return on offense, plus seven on defense and three on special teams. Nine of the Lobos 11 2002 all-MWC honorees also return this season.
OFFENSIVE NOTES — New Mexicos multifaceted offense returns virtually intact with part time starting wide receiver Joe Manning the only member of the 2002 starting lineup missing this spring. UNM also has as much depth as its ever had during Longs tenure, getting a tremendous lift at quarterback and running back with the addition of a pair of junior transfers in QB Tali Ena (Washington State) and RB D.D. Cox (Oklahoma State).
The starting offensive line unit of senior tackle Jason Lenzmeier, junior guard Claude Terrell, sophomore center Ryan Cook, senior guard Calvin McDonald and senior tackle Justin Colburn all return bigger, stronger and more experienced. The Lobos will also regain the services of six-game starting tackle Nate Hembree (Sr.) when fall practice begins. UNM boasted one of the most physically intimidating groups in the country last year with the front five averaging 64 1/2 and 319 pounds across the line.
Big things are expected from 2002 MWC Freshman of the Year and first team all-conference running back DonTrell Moore. The 5-11, 211-pound sophomore has the luxury of running behind one of the premier offensive lines in the Mountain West and will look to build on last years stellar performance. Moore was the nations third-leading freshman rusher in 2002, setting a UNM rookie record with 1,134 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns. Ball control and pass blocking will be among the focal points for Moore this spring.
Senior quarterback Casey Kelly and senior wide receiver Dwight Counter will also look to establish themselves as one of the top pass-and-catch combos in the MWC this season. The efficient Kelly completed 57.6 percent of his passes and had 14 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. Counter hauled in 35 balls for 404 yards, climbing to ninth (91) on the UNM all-time receptions list. Kelly and Counter also hooked up on their second career touchdown play of 80 yards or more. Counter is the only Lobo with two scoring plays of 80 yards or more in a career.
DEFENSIVE NOTES — An aggressive, chaotic, blitzing defense has been the calling card of the University of New Mexico football team since Rocky Long took over the program in 1998. Despite the loss of longtime defensive coordinator Bronco Mendenhall, the Lobo defense shouldnt miss a beat with seven starters, including five all-MWC honorees back in 2003. Position battles at cornerback and middle linebacker will be critical this spring as New Mexico will need to replace the loss of three senior starters at those areas.
New Mexico is one of eight teams that has finished in the top-30 in total defense each of the past three seasons…the others are Kansas State, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, TCU, Tennessee, Texas and Utah…the Lobos were 17th in 2000 (309.4), 18th in 2001 (310.8) and 30th in 2002 (332.8)…UNM moved from 79th to 30th in the nation in total defense in its last five games and capped the season by holding UCLA to 167 yards in the Las Vegas Bowl.
UNM returns one of the top defensive line units in the MWC with a pair of all-MWC defensive ends in seniors D.J. Renteria and Daniel Kegler leading the way. Fellow senior Guillermo Morrison will step into the starting nose guard position vacated by Hebrews Josue, while senior Zach Rupp, junior Kyle Coulter and sophomore Marcus Parker will continue to see plenty of action in the rotation.
Senior stalwarts Brandon Ratcliff (wolf/SS), Terrell Golden (wolf/SS) and Sidney Wiley (lobo/FS) anchor a secondary that will be breaking in two new starters at cornerback, which perhaps the most demanding position in the UNM defensive scheme. At least six players will vie for the two open starting spots vacated by Desmar Black and Brandon Gregory during the spring and fall practices.
The Lobos boast a pair of standout outside linebackers in senior Billy Strother and junior Nick Speegle. Honorable mention all-MWC selections in 2002, both have yet to fully tap into their immense potential. A handful of talented, experienced linebackers will battle for former team captain Charles Moss vacated starting middle linebacker spot.
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES — Freshman All-America (The Sporting News) punter Tyler Gaus returns looking to build on his solid debut season…incumbent sophomore starter Kenny Byrd and junior Wes Zunker will engage in an interesting battle for the top place kicking spot during the spring and fall practice seasons…senior letterwinner Katie Hnida has also promised to push Byrd and Zunker this spring.
GIRLS CAN PLAY, TOO — Lobo kicker Katie Hnida (pronounced NY-duh) became the first woman to make an appearance in an NCAA Div. I-A football game when she attempted an extra point against UCLA in the 2002 Las Vegas Bowl. A kicker for three years in high school, Hnidas extra point was blocked.
HOME COOKING — In front of some of the top crowds in program history, New Mexico has enjoyed the past two years playing in recently renovated University Stadium. The Lobos are 8-2 in their last 10 home games and, in 2003, will play seven games in Albuquerque (including three in November) for just the fourth time in program history. Last season, UNM had four straight crowds in excess of 30,000, a first for the Lobo program, before 27,300 gathered for Utah on Oct. 26…prior to the current string, the best was two in a row in 1997…the crowd of 35,765 for Weber State ranks third-best all-time while 35,111 for Texas Tech is No. 4 at University Stadium.
INTERVIEWS — All interviews with Lobo players must be coordinated through the UNM media relations office. Contacts are Greg Remington (505.925.5520) or Alfredo Moreno (505.925.5524). Players and coaches are usually available before or after practice. The coaches can be reached by calling the football office at (505) 925-5700.
2003 NEW MEXICO FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
|Date|Opponent|Location|Time||Aug. 30|Southwest Texas State|University Stadium|6 p.m.||Sept. 6|Texas Tech|Lubbock, Texas|TBA||Sept. 13|BYU*|University Stadium|TBA||Sept. 20|Washington State|Pullman, Wash.| 3 p.m.||Sept. 27|New Mexico State|University Stadium|6 p.m.||Oct. 4|Utah State|University Stadium|6 p.m.||Oct. 11|OPEN||Oct. 18|San Diego State*|San Diego, Calif.|TBA||Oct. 25|Utah*|Salt Lake City, Utah|TBA||Nov. 1|UNLV*|University Stadium|TBA||Nov. 7|Colorado State*|University Stadium|TBA||Nov. 15|Air Force*|University Stadium|TBA||Nov. 22|Wyoming|Laramie, Wyo.|TBA|
*indicates Mountain West Conference game BOLD indicates home game all times Mountain all games and dates subject to change
2003 NEW MEXICO FOOTBALL COACHING STAFF
|Rocky Long|Head Coach (6th year – New Mexico 74)||Dan Dodd|Offensive Coordinator (4th year – Drake 78)||Osia Lewis|Defensive Coordinator (1st year – Oregon State 86)||Jeff Conway|Special Teams Coordinator/Wide Receivers (6th year – NW Missouri State 81)||Bob Bostad|Offensive Line (5th year – Wisconsin-Stevens Point 90)||Curtis Luper|Running Backs (2nd year – Stephen F. Austin 96)||Lenny Rodriguez|Linebackers (6th year – San Diego 78)||Grady Stretz|Defensive Line (6th year – UCLA 96)||Everett Todd|Cornerbacks (2nd year – Rice 83)|TA/