The University of New Mexico lost twenty-seven players
last year due to graduation and the end of their eligibility. Of those twenty-seven, fourteen of them
were starters (info taken out of the Lobo Media Guide.) leaving the Lobos with a
few holes. There were openings up
and down the roster. The Lobos did
have young men coming up that were ready to step in and fill those gaps, but
they also went out and recruited some pretty good Junior College guys to fill in
some spots as well, and boy have they.
Watching practices last spring and this training camp it is evident that
the coaching staff has done excellent work on the recruiting front when it comes
to the young men they have picked up as many of the JUCO’s are now competing or
have won starting jobs or significant playing time for the upcoming
season.
#64 Bo Greer
The big man from
Garden City Community College wasn’t with UNM during spring ball this year so he
had to come out of training camp and learn what is expected of him early if he
was going to make an impact this year, and lo and behold, he has done just
that. Bo can be seen dominating on
the offensive line during practice everyday. He is a very large and athletic man 6-3
318lbs that can move or stop an oncoming rusher in his tracks. The great news is
he didn’t come in with a JUCO gut, or so out of shape he couldn’t participate.
Physically he was ready, Bo did have to spend time learning the X’s and O’s of
the Lobo system, checks, and calls and he has succeeded to the point that he
more then likely will be starting Sept. 3rd when Washington State
comes to town.
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#87 Anthony Carter
AC is yet another
impact JUCO player that has made an impact this training camp. UNM is blessed with large wide-outs this
year that average around 6-3 215 lb range. They are big and can put a safety or
corner on the ground quickly. Then
rolls in the small receiver at 6-0 180, that is fast and has a knack at catching
the ball. AC showed up this
training camp and also missed spring camp, but he is quickly learning what is
expected of him as a starting wide receiver and is battling hard with Chris Brawley and Marcus Smith for the second or third receiver starting spot. (UNM
uses both 2 and 3 WR sets to start.) My first thoughts of AC when I saw him
practicing is this guy can stretch out a defense, now before you think of him as
some frail little wide receiver that can only run, AC can also lay down a block
or open the way for a running back to get around the corner. UNM has a star in the making with this
young man.
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#91 Quincy Black
Who would have thought that another linebacker could come
into the fold and get into a position where could play on a regular basis. After spring the Lobos seemed pretty set
and deep in the linebacker position so it was kind of a surprise when Quincy
transferred in from William Rainey Harper JC after spring practice. Quincy signed late for UNM and since
being here has done nothing but make himself a nuisance to the offense. Quincy is buff and has nice speed and
strength, what makes “Q” even better is he seems to be always in the play. He may not make them all, but he is in
there. “Q” more then likely won’t
start this year but look for the 6’3” 235 pound man to be in the linebacker
rotation and making plays.
It’s kind of funny, but since these young men were here
during spring football I don’t really think of them as JUCO newcomers to the
University of New Mexico. We’ve
already covered what these young men could do. Still, they are newcomers never playing
an official down for UNM and these young men will garner significant playing
time this year if not start.
The Snow College TE came in last spring and was a house
on fire, having coaches and fans anticipating a huge year from the 6-5 257 pound
tight end. He came in with a little of a JUCO gut and was semi out of
shape. Luckily for the Lobos he
came during the spring so a summer of Coach Paulson’s work out regimes really
got him in shape. Unfortunately for
Logan fall hasn’t been as easy as spring was as he is suffering through a
nagging knuckle injury on his pinky finger that forces him to wear a cast. Logan
has been working hard all training camp trying different casts to protect his
finger and can be seen trying to work through it everyday. Through all the
adversity with the injury Logan still be seen making catches, blocking well, and
is one of UNM’s starting tight ends who will be a dependable weapon for Kole Mc
Kamey.
#6 Chris
Brawley
At 6-3 220 lbs Chris is another of UNM’s big wide
receivers that can block well.
During spring while getting acclimated to the D-I game it seemed that
Chris wasn’t a sure handed type receiver as he would drop a lot of passes thrown
his way. At the time I questioned
if it was just his getting used to D-I or just not being used to being throw to
by our quarterbacks. Well I’m happy
to say that work Chris put in during the summer is paying off. During training
camp Chris has been making the tough catches he had been dropping during the
spring, and with his size the majority of balls thrown to Chris are underneath
patterns which usually bring a pop from the opposing safeties, so they are all
tough catches. Brawley along with
Anthony Carter and Marcus Smith are the candidates for the 2nd and
3rd WR spots.
Adam steps into a pressure situation immediately on the
defensive line. UNM was the hardest
hit on the defensive line when it comes to players ending their college
eligibility. So the first unit position was wide open during the spring. In comes the 6-2 253 pound DE from
Scottsdale CC to fill the void.
Adam is a quick DE that is finding the way to the quarterback and forcing
the running backs into his defensive mates. The work he has put in during the
spring and this fall has more then likely earned him the starting spot and I’m
sure that Adam is up to the task.
The safety position is also one that is loaded with new
talent. Charles Brown is one of
those talented safeties that will start the season behind Sr. Josh Bazinet. The
coaches will be counting on Charles this season.
Other JUCO players that came in this fall
include
Yimin could be a solid contributor as he grows more
comfortable in Rocky Long’s system. The physical talent is definitely there as
he had a strong spring based solely on talent. As he gets more acclimated to what is
expected of him, he will also earn more playing
time
Ken is a quick safety that has looked very good rushing
the passer and taking on an offensive lineman. He is still learning the Lobos’ defense,
but is a very talented football player.
I do know he has a red shirt available. Will be interesting to see if he
uses it.
“Sifa” started out this fall as an offensive lineman who
then switched to defensive line.
Unfortunately, he didn’t come into camp in the best of shape and has had
to work most of training camp into getting into shape. I’m not sure what the plans are for Vave
right now, he could definitely be used as a NT freeing up Marcus Parker back to
end or backing him up, or they could choose to red shirt him and let him have a
year with Coach Paulson…
Rocky
Long has built a nice program where 4 and 5 year guys fill most starting and
back up positions, but as we can see a good JUCO player can step in immediately
and with enough hard work that player can work himself into a starting
position.