New Mexico
New Mexico

New Mexico Team Report

Updated: April 25, 2012 08:27 EST

The Lobos have a long road ahead, but they aren't exactly pacing themselves.

First-year coach Bob Davie has turned up the tempo in practice and has the team running all over the field so much that it hasn't had time to remember it has won just three of its last 41 games, dating to the 2008 season.

Then again, Davie, who was last on the sidelines at Notre Dame from 1997-2001, has had some time to think about how he wants to mold a program.

"So much of what we do is tempo-oriented," said Davie, who is conducting his first spring practice in 11 years. "Half of our practice is teaching; half of our practice is tempo. The biggest thing is showing the guys what we expect and how we expect them to do it --no one getting his feelings hurt, no one taking it personally. This is how it's going to be."

Davie understands, however, that he can't apply a quick-fix solution to a program that clearly lost any kind of identity during former coach Mike Locksley's harrowing three years at the helm. Davie says he must be smart about the way the Lobos conduct their practices, due to their lack of numbers, but they can't back off from being physical.

Davie is installing the 3-4 defense he made famous at Texas A&M in the 1980s-90s with the famed "Wrecking Crew." That's good news at UNM, which almost always has had better defenses using a three-man front, rather than the four-man front Locksley preferred. The Lobos lost a key piece of the puzzle with the graduation of middle linebacker Carmen Messina. Messina led the Mountain West in tackles in each of his three seasons, and he led the nation his sophomore year.

But with the return of the notion of "running to the football through the whistle" on defense should help the unit compensate.

Offensively, the unit is caught in no-man's land -- it was in the middle of a transition to a power-based running attack to the spread option when Locksley was fired. Now, it is trying to find its way back to a run-oriented attack with some elements of option included.

Senior quarterback B.R. Holbrook has ample experience but still has injury concerns after missing most of 2010 with a knee injury. The Lobos have zero experience behind him.

Fortunately, UNM returns most of its offensive line, has running back junior Kasey Carrier back after an early injury forced him to redshirt in 2010 and a wide receiver corps that remains formidable even without leading WR Deon Long, who transferred out of the program.

Even if sunny days are still down the road, at least the attitude, discipline and optimism have returned to the program after a long absence.

--The Lobos had to call an audible when new defensive coordinator Ron West abruptly left for Arizona State two weeks after he was hired at UNM. Coach Bob Davie promoted safeties coach Jeff Mills to the position and then hired former Wisconsin and Nebraska defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove as an assistant to fill out his defensive staff.

--Davie unintentionally made some news when he had a pole in the team's locker room painted. The Lobos had started a tradition in the mid-2000s of seniors signing their names to the pole after playing their last game; a few were annoyed when Davie had those names covered. A defiant Davie argued that some of the signatures included some vulgarities, that he couldn't bring recruits or their families to the locker room because of it and that he was considering a second coat to make sure the bad words were completely covered. He said he would invite alumni to come back to UNM to re-sign the pole in the summer.

SPRING QUESTIONS: The Lobos need to find out if senior QB B.R. Holbrook is healthy enough -- and athletic enough -- to run the offense new coordinator Bob DeBesse's multiple scheme. The Lobos have a couple of athletic QBs on their roster in true freshmen Cole Gautsche, who enrolled early, and transfer David Vega. But Holbrook gives the Lobos their best chance early to compete in games.

--UNM also needs to rediscover a pass rush. Davie's 3-4 will allow a faster OLB to get to the QB, which he hopes will allow the defense to create more pressure. The secondary doesn't have a lot of speed, and won't be able to cover for extended periods of time. That's been UNM's big problem on defense the last two years. Its secondary has been outmatched, but the unit has been unable to compensate because it has not been able to touch the opposing QB.

--Can OL coach Jason Lenzmeier find five players he trusts? The Lobos tried to become a finesse offense, and the running game has suffered considerably. New Mexico has not had a 100-yard rusher since the 2009 season, when it had two go past the century mark in single games. It's Lenzmeier's duty to get the line back into a physical, cohesive unit, and it's likely that the five guys he uses will play the entire game.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "Anytime you go into spring football, there's an emphasis on fundamentals, techniques, just developing players. It's complicated the first spring because you do have to install schemes. But you don't want to over-install. Let's be honest. We're just trying to find out what we can do and who we can do it with."-- New Mexico coach Bob Davie.

2012 OUTLOOK: The Lobos, who just came off a three-year probation in the offseason, are low on scholarship numbers. Coach Bob Davie and his staff have made sure to keep expectations low to non-existent. He knows fixing the program isn't going to happen overnight, but he does have some talented players who are capable of winning a few games if he can get them to mesh and believe quickly enough.

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE: This unit does return eight starters, not including RB Kasey Carrier, who was a starter in 2010 but missed 2011 because of a lingering knee injury that turned his year into a redshirt year. Even without leading WR Deon Long, who transferred out, UNM has some talent at the skill positions in WRs Ty Kirk (10th all-time on UNM's receiving yards list) and Ohio State transfer Lamaar Thomas, who was hampered by injuries last season as well. If they can step up, that should free up TE Lucas Reed, a first-team All-Mountain West selection in 2010 whom opposing defenses schemed to stop last season. If the line can become physical, this unit is capable of scoring.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: Davie has to identify the playmakers. This unit will be in more of an attack mode, and that means becoming more physical at the point of attack and getting more defenders to the football. The unit doesn't have a lot of talent, but DLs Reggie Ellis and Ugo Uzodinma have shown glimpse of strong play, and LBs Dallas Bollema, Joe Harris and Javarie Johnson make the second line as strong. Defensive coordinator Jeff Mills must figure out how to get the most out of a limited secondary.

SCOUTING THE SPECIAL TEAMS: The Lobos lost four-year starting kicker James Aho, the second leading FG scorer in school history. Junior Justus Adams has first shot to replace Aho. Junior P Ben Skaer is back for his third season. Assistant coach Coleman Hutlzer has to try to fix a coverage unit that has been worst in the MWC the past two seasons on kickoff and punts.

TOP NEWCOMERS:

OLB Javarie Johnson -- Tore an ACL on the first play of the 2011 season, but now will have the opportunity to use his athleticism to get after the QB. He's a transfer from Maryland who has a quick burst, which will be an asset if he's completely recovered from the injury.

OL J.V. Mason -- Played in four games in mop-up duty last season but has become involved in the battle to start at one of the guard positions. Mason has a physical nature but now has to learn the schemes to make the best use of his skills and contribute to the team.

OLB Tevin Newman -- Another player who looks to see his playing time rise significantly in 2012. He was strictly a special teams player in 2011 but has shown the ability to play fast off the edge. The coaching staff would like him to add more bulk to his 6-foot, 190-pound frame, but if he can keep his quickness, he should be in the rotation in the fall.

ROSTER REPORT:

--TE Andrew Aho will miss all of spring as he recovers from a knee injury.

--FB Chris Biren is limited with a pelvis injury.

--LB Joe Stoner suffered appendicitis just before spring practice started and will miss the first half of the sessions.

--LB Javarie Johnson will wear a yellow jersey as he continues his recovery from a torn ACL that he suffered on the first play of the 2011 season.

--Junior DB Emmanuel Fatokun has switched to RB in the spring. Jamal Merritt, who started out at DB last season but moved to WR at midseason, has stayed at WR in the spring. Senior S A.J. Butler is playing an ILB spot in the spring, and Mat McBain, who made the switch from DL to TE late in 2011, is staying at TE.