Some posters on my last entry commented on how Hal Mumme doesn't recruit locally enough. There were defenders of Mumme too.
It's an interesting scenario, particularly when you see two Mayfield players, Nathan Enriquez and Freddy Young, go north to play for UNM. Mumme said that he offered scholarships to local kids and they chose the Lobos - we're going to assume it's these two. He said he wanted one in-state quarterback who got away. His one in-stater to come on board was Los Alamos running back Ruben Martinez.
Lets just say right now, Mumme's obligation is on the football field. It's to win games, not appease the local population. The question is, can these kids help make a difference. And are they being overlooked for no apparent good reason?
At the end of the day, if the team wins, nobody will care who is playing for them. Sure, I guess some will, but the complaining would simmer down a good deal. That's what matters in the end. NMSU needs to recruit in order to perform well on the field. The real issue is then, are they recruiting well? When looking at ESPN.com's rankings, the Aggies are in the bottom-15 in the country in recruiting class this year. Here's the link...
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recruiting/tracker/scorecard?season=
2008
Again, if these projections are wrong and there are good players who make a difference in this year's Aggie class, then it shouldn't matter. But if the team continues to struggle and the local products help the Lobos continue to improve, look out. The complaining won't go away, it will only get louder.
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16 comments:
The problem w/ Mumme is that he wants the local kids to use their lottery scholarships and walk on.
It's a shame about Freddy Young. His dad is a legend at NMSU and he is off to Albuturkey.
Yes, Mumme recruited but, it was pretty late in the recruiting process.
The kids mind was pretty much made up by the time Mumme tried to move in at the 11th hour.
Not sure if the local kids will play much but, they will bring in fans.
The fan base is dwindling. Friends and family will always show up to see their loved ones play.
Vic
If Coach Mumme DID offer these two players scholarships that they turned down for UNM,then that was their choice.Besides,I don't think that they would want to have an understudy role to Chase Holbrook/Hal Mumme State's pass-pass-and more pass offense.They're smart enough to see that this one-dimensional offense hasn't turned State into a winner.IMHO,i think that it just irritates him that LC has strong HS football programs that draw more local attention than does NMSU football.Fans & athletes will flock to a winner-but NOT a WHINER!
I guess that I don't get it. For this Aggie Fan it does matter whether or not the Aggies recruit locally actively and not as an afterthought. All about wins and losses..don't quite get that mentality..guess I am old school and am loyal to a team whether they win or lose, it is about integrity. Too bad we do not know the reason(s) why these two local players chose UNM it would be interesting to find out.
Azaggie's anti-Mumme act has gotten very old, stale and petty. In fact, his entire "against virtually everything" stance re NMSU, Las Cruces, any authority figure, etc. has gotten very old, stale, and petty. Ironic that he talks about anyone being a WHINER and fails to include himself?
Recruit more locally?
No. This is a small state population wise, there just aren't that many good athletes here per capita.
Recruit from elsewhere, who cares if they grew up here if they can't play Division I football.
Only an idiot, or their parents.
The thing people in LC need to realize is that D1 football and HS football are two totally different animals, just like the NFL and college ball. There is not an abundance of D1 talent in Las Cruces and the few that are talented enought choose UNM because they've had more success. The world is bigger than Mayfield and Cruces, just because Mayfield in dominant in our little corner of the US doesn't mean that every single player on their roster is going to do well competing against the rest of the nation's best.
I don't buy the argument that if we have local kids the fans will flock to AMS. Fans haven't showed up to support local talent at NMSU ever, why would it change now? Think I'm lying ask Alex Bernard and Tim Tolbert how many fans were there for their senior night. And AZ Aggie's post is exactly what's wrong with this communities view point on NMSU. People seem to think there is some sort of rift between NMSU and the HS scene. As if NMSU athletics and HS athletics have some sort of animosity between them. I think we would have alot more local athlets at NMSU if the people of LC would support the team and program better and stop being so negative about NMSU. Kids read this stuff in the paper and it's yet another selling point for UNM.
Anti-Mumme,yes- 3 seasons,and he has yet to deliver on his promises.Anti-NMSU,no way!While it took me a while to warm up to this new basketball coach,(and I saw the discipline problems coming) I would just like to see this season's basketball team play as a team consistently,get a good seed,and take care of business at the WAC tournament in March and return to the NCAA's.
A three-time state champion with one loss in 3 years versus 8-29 in the same 3 years.I just wish that SOMETHING would light a fire under this football team and get them to do something about it-this makes great propaganda for U of Nothing Much-or will it just be "well,that's just the way it is when you're poor lil' NMSU" For Pistol Pete's sake-get riled up about all this losing and do something about it-especially when someone takes your best players and beats you with them year in and year out!
My goodness... I think AZ needs to eat more fiber in his diet, he seems stopped up with all that discontent toward Mumme and all things football at NMSU.
Don't take this as complete truth but I heard on the Crimson Storm site a while back that Fredd Young himself told his son to go to UNM instead of NMSU because he didn't want his son to play in front of smaller crowds than he played in front of in high school.
The whole excuse about people not going to the games because the Aggies don't recruit enough local talent is just an excuse. Like a previous poster said how many people saw Tim Tolbert's and Alex Bernard's last game?
There is plenty to complain about regarding NMSU football and b-ball these days. Recruiting locals is NOT one of them. Totally irrelevant. When was the last time any D-1 school had a nice, attention-grabbing run in football or basketball with a Las Crucen playing a meaningful role?
-Aggie Glare
One other thing - those two Cruces kids helped UNM's recruiting class rank somewhere between 89 - 100, depending which publication you follow. I certainly wish the kids well, but out of the block, I'd say Mumme did not miss out on much by losing them to UNM.
-Aggie Glare
I'd like to start off by saying that I love to cheer on the aggies in every sport. I was born and raised in LC and I will always support them no matter what or where the players are from but Teddy raises a good question. Someone said that there isn't enough D1 talent in Las Cruces and I agree but that doesn't mean Mumme cannot aggresively recruit those from LC who can play at the D1 level. I understand both sides. How aggressively is Mumme actually recruiting not only local but in state players and how aggressively is Rocky Long recruiting in state players? If those players are being recruited heavily by both schools and they choose the Lobos we can't blame Mumme. If those players are courted more heavily by UNM, then we can blame Mumme. How do we really know? I recently looked at the 2007/08 roster for the Lobos and they had 36 players from New Mexico on the roster. I do not know the playing time that these players got other than running back Rodney Ferguson, the leading rusher in the MWC. Three of those are from LC. They were 9-4 with a bowl win. Their recruiting class includes 3 New Mexicans with two of them being from LC. NMSU's 2007 roster had 13 New Mexicans with 3 of them from LC and 1 from Hatch. Spencer Diaz went to LCHS and was not very good there so how he is on a D1 field boggles my mind. NMSU's recruiting class for next year includes 1 from New Mexico. The Aggies were 4-9 last year. All in all it comes down to how heavily the coaches recruit and what school the player chooses. Go Aggies, no matter where you are from.
This is the last time I post on this blog. I tried to give this blog a chance, but it continues to be sub par. The Aggie basketball teams have big games on Saturday, but the topic is NMSU Football(off season). This blog is as bad as our economy. Anyhow, to all you hardcore Aggie fans, go to www.crimsonstorm.org for good discussions on Aggie basketball.
I think the hardcore fans understand this was a big week in the college football universe. And I'm pretty sure the hardcore fans post both here, and at CS. I can actually pinpoint of a few of them just by what they post here.
AZ Aggie, or whoever. Before you start bashing Mumme and the Aggies you need to understand what recruiting and DI football is all about. For one Cruces has great high school football for the state of New Mexico, but their is not that much DI talent, and the DI talent that is here leaves. People in this community do not support their DI programs. If they did maybe some of this talent would stick around. I have been an Aggie for awhile and will always be an Aggie win or lose. If those two men want to be a Lobo let them go up north it is their loss. I guarantee being an Aggie and in the WAC is better than being a Lobo and in the Mountain West. Two years in a row a WAC team has been in a BCS bowl. Tell me how many mid-major progams have done this more times. All the Lobos will do is go to a mediocre bowl and lose. If you think of a coach who is better than Mumme and will work DI for the scraps Mumme works for name him.
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