ALBUQUERQUE – University of New Mexico head football coach Rocky Long announced today that Curtis Luper has been added to the Lobo football coaching staff as an assistant coach, replacing Ned James, who recently took a position with the Tennessee Titans. Luper (pronounced Lou-per) will coach the running backs, while current UNM assistant Jeff Conway will coach the wide receivers and continue his role as special teams coordinator.
Luper, 36, comes to UNM from Texas A&M Commerce, where he spent three years as the secondary coach for the Division II Lions. Prior to his stint at Commerce, Luper was an assistant coach for three years at Stephen F. Austin State University, where he coached the secondary for two years (1995-96) and coached the running backs for one year (1997). The 1995 SFA squad went to the Division 1-AA seminfinals in 1995. Luper also was the running backs coach for McKinney (Texas) High School in 1998 before taking the position at Commerce.
We are lucky to get a young, quality coach like Curtis, head coach Rocky Long said. He has had really good success at the Division 1-AA and Division II levels, and with his strong ties to the state of Texas, should be a valuable recruiter in that area.
Lupers playing experience included three years at Oklahoma State University, where he played in all 36 games over that span at running back, receiver and defensive back. Luper served as an air traffic controller in the United States Army from 1988 -1992, before finishing his collegiate playing career at Stephen F. Austin, where he was a second team, All-Southland Conference running back for the Lumberjacks. His 6.8 yards per carry that year ranked third in Division 1-AA . Luper also was invited to the Houston Oilers training camp, but an injury in a preseason game against the Dallas Cowboys ended his NFL career.
Luper earned a degree in communications from Stephen F. Austin in 1996, and he earned his masters degree in secondary education from SFA in 1998. He was working toward his doctorate in secondary and higher education at Commerce.
Luper is married to the former Nikki Echols, and the couple has two sons, Cameron (7) and Chancellor (9 months).