by Frank Mercogliano

New Mexico Finishes at Top G6 Conference School Again in Final Learfield Standings

New Mexico Finishes at Top G6 Conference School Again in Final Learfield StandingsNew Mexico Finishes at Top G6 Conference School Again in Final Learfield Standings
Jonathan Tibbetts III Graphic Illustration

WESTLAKE, Ohio — Once again, the New Mexico Lobos have finished atop the final Learfield Directors’ Cup rankings, finishing 58th to end as the top program among the Group of 6 conferences, and lead the Mountain West for the seventh time in the last 14 years.

Only Power-4 programs, three Ivy League schools (which offer more sports than UNM), and a Big East school finished ahead of the Lobos. Coming off a year in which UNM finished in the top 50, New Mexico nearly did it again. The Lobos picked up back-to-back top-60 finishes for the first time since six straight times from the 2009-10 season through the 2014-15 season.  In 2025-26, the Lobos won four titles, winning in men’s cross country, women’s cross country, women’s indoor track & field, and women’s outdoor track & field.

Among the name programs in the Power-4 that UNM finished ahead of: SEC members Mississippi State and Missouri, Big 10 members Purdue, Maryland, and Rutgers, ACC members Syracuse, SMU, Boston College, Pittsburgh, and Georgia Tech, and Big 12 members UCF, Utah, Kansas State, Houston, and Cincinnati. All told, UNM finished ahead of 15 Power-4 conference institutions, and over the past two years, UNM has topped 48 Power-4 programs in the standings.

The closest Group of 6 school to New Mexico was Washington State, which finished 74th. The closest Mountain West school was Air Force, which was 77th overall.

“Back-to-back finishes as the top Group of 6 conference school, and back-to-back finishes in the top 60 just speak to the excellence of our student-athletes and coaching staffs,” said Vice President/Director of Athletics Ryan Berryman. “We have a championship culture at New Mexico, one that has seen record performances in the classrooms and national success on the field. All of Lobo Nation can take pride in these accomplishments, because it doesn’t happen without Lobo Nation behind us.”

The 58th-place finish and the 449.5 points are the second-most since UNM adopted its current 18-sport configuration in 2019, only behind last year’s 49th-place finish and 494.5 points. 

UNM’s finish marked the seventh time in the last 14 years (not counting 2019-20 when there were no standings due to the COVID year) that UNM led the Mountain West, and it marked the 11th time being either first or second among Mountain West members.