My gut tells me no. Was the program in the WAC before Mumme? No. That makes a big difference. The Sun Belt is not the same.
Now has the program improved at all? That's hard to say. But I think the overall body of talent has. Let's face it, without Holbrook, this team will struggle no matter what. Injuries are injuries, but when you lose the key cog in your offense, you're not going to rebound. I do think Mumme should take blame for not having a credible backup QB. That is a serious problem. And his excuses are tiresome. He said the reason the team couldn't defend play action the other night was because Chris Nwoko was playing hurt. Common man. Chris was not the reason you couldn't defend play action. You just couldn't do it.
But I think the team has legitimate pieces at certain areas. And I have to say, this message board was littered with jubilant fans following the UTEP game. The thing that is bothersome is that it's very hard to judge them without Chase. They just aren't going to win without him. I don't think he's the best player on the team - that honor goes to Chris Williams. But there is no denying that he great, and that he is the most important. And Mumme will play that card as long as his QB's on the pine.
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In coaching football on any level, what could be more basic than having a credible backup at QB? Mumme has fallen asleep at the wheel. NMSU needs a D1-A WAC Conference caliber coach--not a Hal Mumme D1-AA "has been."
NMSU has given way more to Mumme than Tony Samuels.
All the additions to Aggie Memorial (practice turf, walkway, auditorium, re-furbished locker room, and Jumbotron) have come during the Mumme era.
Samuels had the Fulton Center but, only enjoyed it a semester.
These upgrades are more from Bill Richardson and NMSU than the results of a winning FB team.
Thru 30 games, Samuels was 8-22 but, that includes a big win over #17 ASU in 1999.
Thru 30 games, Mumme is 7-23. His biggest win is against Utep who, is rebuilding.
I love the new facilities and I know the athletes are better. However, the Wins are still not there.
Is the program better? Not quite yet.
I also think we should not fire Mumme (this year) and let him play out his final year (next year) of his contract.
Let his four year record speak for itself, right?
This team was better with Samuel. Forget the conferences for one second, look at the way Samuel's teams carried themselves. I did not like Tony Samuel, kind of thought he was a creep, but he brought through some amazing players: Denvis Manns, Donald Malloy, Sadeeq Shabbazz, Paul Dombrowski, Buck Pierce. These guys were hard-nosed football players, and those teams played hard-nosed football.
I seldom went to games, or watched them on TV (save K St and Texas), where I thought, oh man, this team is an utter disappointment. Did Samuel need to go? Yes. He had his chances here and he was never able to crack into a bowl game. But Mumme has not made this program better. Forget the first year, he really had no players to work with and was stuck with a bad team. Look at this year and last year. This is not a well-coached team. Petersen was all over Mumme's play-calling and was laughing on the sideline. That is one of many examples of Mumme being outcoached.
Samuel's teams played so conservatively on offense that it was hard to be embarassed. They pounded the ball, ran the option, and tried to control the clock. That is what you do when you have inferior talent. You don't go out there gun-slinging, go three and out because Cleaver drops a pass, Holbrook overthrows a receiver or JJ gets knocked senseless, and give the ball to the other team before your defense makes it to the water jug!
One blogger said that we were all praising Mumme after the UTEP win. I was not at all. In fact, I thought Price outcoached Mumme, but CW and UTEP's awful decision making bailed us out of a loss. We don't need to fire Mumme today, next week, or even at the end of the season. NMSU is used to mediocracy, there is no doubt about that. We just want don't want to be the worst in football.
Sadly, realists like me are not even asking for the New Mexico Bowl. We just don't want to see our alma mater get embarassed on national TV and we want to see them dominate inferior teams. We don't set the bar high at NMSU, but we set it a notch above complete embarassment. Samuel's teams played above that notch...they were not good, but they played above the notch of completely embarassing.
With all that said: go Aggies!
I say yes, if you go back to 1960... anyone trying to compare Mumme to Knoll is being silly. It truly is apples and oranges. Losing year in and year out to the likes of Pacific and all the other Big West programs that dropped their football programs is not the same as competing in the WAC. The only Bowl teams that NMSU saw in those days were the body bag games that we were forced to play in order to keep the program afloat.
These days NMSU plays against around 6 bowl teams every year. Tony Samuels had one marquee win in 8 years, Arizona State. But don't forget that his "winning season" also included a 70+ point drubbing of division II new mexico highlands.
Teddy, I couldn't agree with you more. If he's going to use Chase's injury as his excuse is then he needs to coach up his backup qb. If JJ is his 2nd best guy, what happens if JJ goes down. Now granted there is a reason these guys are where they are on the depth chart, but if you put all your hopes on one guy, then we're in trouble. Plus it puts the weight of the season on Chase's shoulders, we could have done this or that had he been healthy.
Like that doesn't add pressure to get back on the field.
The reason injuries hurt so bad is we have so little depth. Our first teamers are good enough to play with everyone. Once the injuries started piling up the team just tanked. The reason is the APR restrictions based on the last couple of years of Tony Samuel. Mumme has only been able to give out 12 and 16 scholarships his first year compared to other programs that are allowed the full 25.
Next year will be the true year to judge Mumme. His first recruiting class will be seniors. He would have a full recruiting class after this year.
I read in the Bleed Crimson Mumme interview that we have only two Quarterbacks? Chase and J.J. and no one else. In a D-1A school if the two Quarterbacks get hurt they will have to put in a wide receiver (Williams),to take snaps? What is going on here?. I checked out the roster online and we have 10-DBs, 18-LBs, 19-OLs, 5-kickers, 17-WRs. I would think that recruiting a least a couple more QBs would of been prudent instead of all the overages in the other positions don't you think? This is football, and players do get hurt!The head coach should take total blame for this. Another "building" year at NMSU, and more excuses. I'm a new fan and has it really been this bad before Mumme? I can't tell you, but I can't see how it could of been much worse than this!
A little early to say.
The university has given him more than any other coach in history and I doubt he will be run out of town this year.
Let's give him the full four years on his contract.
The loss of 15 schorlarships (APR) and going from an option to a spread offense has been really tough.
If after four years he has failed, NMSU should not extend his contract, and we need to turn the page.
I do think some of his assistants will be let go at the end of the year if, things don't get better quickly!
SM said "Forget the first year, he really had no players to work with and was stuck with a bad team."
Referring to the 0-12 season that Mumme had, I remember there being talent on that team, it's just Mumme's arrogance thought he could turn an option team into an "air raid" and refused to play to the strengths he had. By doing so, he expose the weakness of not having his deep threats and a qb who could deliver the deep ball, so they were constantly going 3 and out.
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