UNM – Where Academic All-Americas Reside
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Lobo fans have had plenty of prideful moments of late, whether it’s two national championships (women’s cross country) in the last four years, 43 conference championships over the last eight years, or a native son gaining entry into the College Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Brian Urlacher.
Yet, it’s UNM’s propensity for CoSIDA/Google Cloud Academic All-America selections that might be the biggest source of pride for fans, the athletic department, the University, and the entire state of New Mexico. UNM has had 115 named since 1966, and at least two for each of the last 16 academic years. UNM has had at least one CoSIDA/Google Cloud Academic All-America in every academic year since 1993-94.
But thanks to some in-depth research by the Drake University Communications Office which broke down the Academic All-America program over the last five years, the numbers show UNM as one of the nation’s best in terms of the Academic All-America program.
The numbers are almost as staggering as the company that UNM is keeping in terms of the raw data. Researchers went back five academic years, to the 2014-15 year to tally every Google Cloud Academic All-America for every one of the 351 Division I institutions. New Mexico sits in the top 10 among the 353 in terms of total Academic All-America selections with 28 (five in 2018-19, six in 2017-18, eight in 2016-17, six in 2015-16 and three in 2014-15).
The 28 honorees are good for seventh in the nation, and UNM trails just Stanford, Alabama, Minnesota, West Virginia, Navy and Kentucky. The closest Mountain West team over that time frame was tied for 37th with 11, a figure that is less than half of UNM’s total. In fact, UNM’s 28 represents 36.8% of all Mountain West honorees over that five-year period.
“The way that our student-athletes succeed in the classroom and on the field is something that isn’t just a source of pride for our department, but for our entire university, our fans, and our state,” said Director of Athletics Eddie Nuñez. “These honors are voted on by the member schools, so to have other institutions recognize the work our student-athletes do is a great honor.”
Of UNM’s 28 honorees, 18 of those have been First Team Google Cloud Academic All-America. That is tied for the second-most First Team honorees over the past five years, tied with North Dakota State and trailing only Alabama, which has had 26.
UNM’s nine honorees in the track & field/cross country program is tied for the fifth-most in the nation over that time frame, behind Stanford, Arkansas, Minnesota and Oklahoma State. The Lobo men have picked up 16 of the 28 Academic All-America honors, and that total ranks seventh among all schools as far as male student-athletes, and UNM’s women have grabbed 12 of the 28, which is tied for ninth-most. Only Stanford, Alabama, Minnesota, Navy and New Mexico have both the men and women in the top 10 nationally.
“We champion our student-athletes to be leaders and role models, to accomplish everything they can as students and as athletes. To be in the top 10 in so many categories in Division I showcases what we have at The University of New Mexico.”