April 11, 2007
The 16th annual New Mexico Football Night of Champions will be held tonight at 7 p.m. in the weight room of the L.F. “Tow” Diehm Athletics Facility. The annual weightlifting exhibition, put on by UNM strength and conditioning coordinator Mark Paulsen and his staff, marks the formal end of the Lobos’ spring strength training program. New Mexico begins spring practice on Monday, April 16 (3-5 p.m.).
The Night of Champions will feature two teams, Cherry versus Silver, battling for bragging rights as the most powerful players on campus. Admission is free and bleachers will be set up to give fans a great view of one of the most intense events of the UNM football year.
The winning team tonight will be determined by which group combines to put up the most total weight in two lifts – the power clean and squat. Individual performances will also help determine this year’s winners of the coveted Beefmaster trophies, which are awarded to the strongest players, pound-for-pound, in each weight class.
Wednesday’s event will provide a springboard into what will be an important spring practice and summer strength and conditioning season for the Lobos.
“This has been the longest offseason training program we’ve had in my 20 years here,” Paulsen said. “The players have maintained their focus and energy extremely well for 12 straight weeks and their excited to get on the field next week.”
Paulsen decided to remove the bench press from tonight’s event in order to focus on what he calls the two most important lifts for a football player.
“Tonight we’re going to focus on the squat and power clean,” he said. “While upper body strength is certainly important, you can be a good football player and not have great bench press numbers. Almost every great football player though has great strength in their legs and back, which is displayed in the squat and power clean.”
Two UNM position records were set earlier in the week with sophomore punter Adam Miller putting up 318 pounds in the power clean and sophomore quarterback Victor James bench pressing 385 pounds. Paulsen said senior offensive tackle Devin Clark has a chance to be the first Lobo ever to power clean 400 pounds tonight.
Clark has experience in national Olympic-style weightlifting competitions, placing fourth last year at the National Junior Weightlifting Championships. Former UNM running back Jarrod Baxter has the program record in the power clean with a lift of 391 pounds in 2001.