Story by
The Santa Fe New Mexican
All sorts of little changes since Lobos football entered Top 25
- Story byThe Santa Fe New Mexican
- All sorts of little changes since Lobos football entered Top 25
ALBUQUERQUE — Aside from lights turning green as he approaches intersections and a sudden uptick in cats getting along with dogs, life hasn't changed all that much for Jason Eck and the Lobos in the short time since they cracked the Top 25 for the first time ever.
"Frank emails me more with more stuff to do," Eck said after Monday's practice inside University Stadium, referring to the extracurricular duties the head coach has on his hands thanks to UNM's football media relations contact, Frank Mercogliano. "I have more people I gotta talk to, but I like the fact that people want to talk about Lobo football and that we're getting more exposure."
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The No. 22 Lobos — let that sink in for just a minute — play their first game as a nationally ranked team Friday when they visit Mountain West rival Nevada. They are also ranked No. 25 in the USA Today/AFCA Coaches Poll.
Eck has a vote in that poll and was asked if he penciled his own team onto his ballot this week.
"You know, I don't have to admit that until the last game," he said with a wry smile. "I'll say this: I try to represent the Group of 6 with my ballot. I think I had three Group of 6 teams in my Top 25 last week."
Unlike last week's 21-16 win at San Jose State that was limited to a small audience on the MW+ streaming service, the Nevada game will be a national telecast to a vastly larger audience. That alone, Eck said, will put more eyes on his program as it tries to push its national profile even higher.
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"This is definitely an opportunity to, you know, expand our reach and show the kind of football team we are," he said.
New Mexico (7-1, 4-0) has even more at stake Tuesday when the first College Football Playoff tabulation comes out at about 5 p.m. It will give the Lobos a chance to see where they stack up in the race for the G6 automatic berth. The initial rankings will have Boise State the likely top team in that group, with UNM and UTSA not far behind.
With all the attention comes a myriad of distractions the Lobos coaches are trying hard to avoid. Monday's practice was solid as the players were intense and engaged throughout.
"After the last game is played, it'll be time to kind of take a step back and admire and look at it and maybe toast ourselves," Eck said. "You know, we certainly can't be toasting ourselves right now. We got work to do."
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The fact UNM was able to build a Top 25 roster with a decidedly smaller NIL and revenue share compared to nearly every other ranked team speaks, Eck said, to the ability to get the greatest value out of the available talent on the recruiting trail.
With home attendance growing and the New Mexico athletic department on the uptick because of the popularity of men's basketball and football, the opportunity to boost the bottom line is certainly there.
UNM has not disclosed what its budget is for NIL and revenue sharing, but it's nowhere near the monster payrolls used for the country's richest teams like Texas, Ohio State, Oregon and Indiana, to name a few. The Lobos have had to make due with a mere fraction of what those schools spend, all of which is now a source of pride for Eck and his staff.
"We're hoping to keep growing our revenue and bring money in to expand our pot," Eck said. "I'm hoping that, you know, our budget for this year's team is not the same as our budget for next year's team. It's a little tricky to project."
