Oct. 26, 2009
Lobos Online Auction
By Richard Stevens — Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
How many Lobo fans have ever seen an autographed picture of New Mexico coach Steve Alford from his playing days on the 1984 U.S. Olympic team?
Not many, is surely the answer.
Here’s another question: How many lucky University of New Mexico Lobo fans will soon own an autographed picture of Alford, the boyish Olympian off that Gold Medal team?
The answer: just one. And the clock is ticking for some lucky fan to snatch up that piece of photographed history complete with Alford’s signature.
The University of New Mexico is holding its second online auction through the athletic department’s online site: GoLobos.com. The first auction had a football theme and basketball is the main topic for the current auction as UNM nears opening The Pit door for the 2009-10 seasons.
“This is the first season the athletic department has gone online with an auction,” said Brad Hutchins, a UNM assistant athletics director for marketing and sales.
“We’re doing this as a way of reaching out to our loyal fans and providing them an opportunity to get memorabilia relating to Lobo athletics.”
The items on the current hoops-theme auction include a No. 33 Lobo men’s basketball jersey. The most recent Lobos to run that number up and down the Bob King Floor were Chad Toppert and Danny Granger.
Granger, one of the fastest rising stars in the NBA, also has added a personal touch to the auction by adding his signature to two other online items up for bid: a Lobo men’s practice jersey and a mini basketball.
Not to be left out, Don Flanagan’s Lobo women have tossed a “Pink Zone” jersey into the mix. The jerseys are the ones the UNM women wear during games designated as cancer awareness games.
Basketball might be the main theme for this auction, but the popularity of Jeremy Fishbein’s soccer Lobos should light up more than few computer screens. Lobo fans also have the opportunity to own a men’s Nike soccer jersey from the Lobo program that played in the 2005 NCAA championship game.
“The response has been good,” said Hutchins. “Often these type of auctions are not available to everyone. This online bidding gives every Lobo fan a chance to own a Lobo item.
“And some of these items you just can’t find anywhere, especially with the autographs. We are hoping to hold one auction per month, but that depends a little bit on securing items we want on the site.
“We also want to make sure all of our programs are represented throughout the year. We try to make these items special, and special to Lobo fans.”
If you are interested in checking out the inventory of Lobo stuff up for bid, click on the link attached to this story.
And remember – the clock is ticking.