OT : New Mexico fires Mike Locksley

NT03 · September 26, 2011

CBSS

Green2012 · September 26, 2011

Wow

Edited September 26, 2011 by Green2012

Mean Green 93-98 · September 26, 2011

I can't believe he lasted as long as he did. Not only did Locksley make UNM the worst team in college football, he punched out one of his assistant coaches a few years ago (no, it wasn't Dickey). If I remember right, I think he broke his jaw.

Great recruiter at Illinois, terrible head coach.

Green Mean · September 26, 2011

Mike Leach to New Mexico? Or if Mike Stoops gets the axe after the season how about him?

UNTLifer · September 26, 2011

New Mexico doesn't have the cash for either one of them.

The Fake Lonnie Finch · September 26, 2011

UNM was never going to have as good and loyal a coach as they had in Rocky Long. Locksley caught lightning in a bottle because Illinois had a rare excellent season.

You really have to be careful who you hire. A guy who has one good season or, as in Locksley's case, was part of a coaching staff that had one good season, shouldn't make them a candidate for head coach.

To me, you've got to only consider guys who have done it for several years.

Now, the other part of the equation is that we're talking about New Mexico. It's tough sell even to the best players in New Mexico. Albuquerque? Been there. Okay to visit. To spend four or five year of a college life there? Tough sell no matter who the coach is.

I think the quirkiness of Leach would work in Albuquerque. Plus, they are very lucky to be in the MWC, which is always mentioned as a potential future BCS AQ conference. Leach and others might take the leap with that possibility alone.

UNT90 · September 26, 2011

UNM was never going to have as good and loyal a coach as they had in Rocky Long. Locksley caught lightning in a bottle because Illinois had a rare excellent season.

You really have to be careful who you hire. A guy who has one good season or, as in Locksley's case, was part of a coaching staff that had one good season, shouldn't make them a candidate for head coach.

To me, you've got to only consider guys who have done it for several years.

Now, the other part of the equation is that we're talking about New Mexico. It's tough sell even to the best players in New Mexico. Albuquerque? Been there. Okay to visit. To spend four or five year of a college life there? Tough sell no matter who the coach is.

I think the quirkiness of Leach would work in Albuquerque. Plus, they are very lucky to be in the MWC, which is always mentioned as a potential future BCS AQ conference. Leach and others might take the leap with that possibility alone.

Albuquerque is an armpit. How you could ever convince young men to attend college in that god-forsaken city is beyond me. Ugliest women in America.

greenminer · September 26, 2011

Now, the other part of the equation is that we're talking about New Mexico. It's tough sell even to the best players in New Mexico. Albuquerque? Been there. Okay to visit. To spend four or five year of a college life there? Tough sell no matter who the coach is.

Didn't you decide to do one of your degrees in Tulsa?

ADLER · September 26, 2011

Albuquerque is an armpit. How you could ever convince young men to attend college in that god-forsaken city is beyond me. Ugliest women in America.

University of New Mexico sports are typically abysmal unless cheating is involved, but the university has a history of turning a blind eye towards violations.

Dave Bliss was discovered to have been paying players from a slush fund at SMU prior to being hired at New Mexico. He stayed at New Mexico for 11 years and is the school's all-time winningest coach. Under Bliss, the Lobos went to seven NCAA tournaments, and notched the only four NCAA tournament wins in school history.

Baylor subsequently hired Dave Bliss, and after Baylor's unofficial policies resulted in a player's death, it was revealed that Bliss had been paying players from a slush fund at Baylor.

NCMeanGreen · September 26, 2011

Still wondering why we kept TD as long as we did...

untjim1995 · September 27, 2011

New Mexico doesn't have the cash for either one of them.

Yes they do. Plus, this is the kind of job that Leach would love. He would get to recruit Texas, play against Tech to put the screws to them, and he would be at a place that is under the radar, so he can be as crazy as he wants to be without a lot of media scrutiny. It wouldn't shock me at all if this is his next head coaching gig.

Green Mean · September 27, 2011

Don't underestimate UNM as far as cash. They are THE State university and they have plenty of cash and resources. Even NMSU is a land grant institution and they don't lack as far as resources is concerned. I guess the leadership when it comes to athletics just isn't good so far. Another thing I am thinking is that a guy like Leach would be great because he'd be able to recruit the areas he recruited for TT plus he'd have that access to California in recruiting. If you ask me Leach would hit it huge up there.

As for Albequerque...I've only been there once but I thought it was a pretty pleasant place. In fact on the whole I think New Mexico is a really nice state and pleasant. And just think that could it be worse than trying to recruit in Lubbock of all places?

If UNM is serious they should nut up and give Leach a call...the MWC would instantly become a better football conference.

The Fake Lonnie Finch · September 27, 2011

Didn't you decide to do one of your degrees in Tulsa?

Tulsa is nice. Hilly and green. The west side by the refineries ain't pretty; but that's across the river. TU is on the other side of Tulsa.

My biggest problem in Tulsa was the hilly roads after snow and ice. Plus, it took their city council a looooooong time to expand roads.

Up by where I lived, Jenks and the Union areas were really growing, yet roads were still two lanes, one each way. So, if someone had to take a left, it stopped up traffic behind it. There were few turn lanes.

Since I graduated in 2003, they've done some road widening. Old Tulsa Money folk wanted to keep Tulsa small. In that regard, surprisingly, Oklahoma City, thought to be more blue collar, was more progressive infrastructure-wise through the 1990s and early 2000s.

That's why OKC got the NBA team. They had the facilities already to house it. And, the business leaders and city council wanted it.

Tulsa also got a new arena, but it was a little late. What Tulsa needs is the kind of mayors and business leaders OKC had in the 1990s and 2000s. Tulsa really is the prettier city.

wardly · September 28, 2011

Don't underestimate UNM as far as cash. They are THE State university and they have plenty of cash and resources. Even NMSU is a land grant institution and they don't lack as far as resources is concerned. I guess the leadership when it comes to athletics just isn't good so far. Another thing I am thinking is that a guy like Leach would be great because he'd be able to recruit the areas he recruited for TT plus he'd have that access to California in recruiting. If you ask me Leach would hit it huge up there.

As for Albequerque...I've only been there once but I thought it was a pretty pleasant place. In fact on the whole I think New Mexico is a really nice state and pleasant. And just think that could it be worse than trying to recruit in Lubbock of all places?

If UNM is serious they should nut up and give Leach a call...the MWC would instantly become a better football conference.

i have a summer home in ruidoso, and keep up with nmsu and to some extent nm. they really don't have the financial resourses one might think. both universities had to make major budget cuts in athletics, and reason n.m.didn't fire head coach last year is they couldn't afford to buy him out. they negoiated his buy out down, and fired him as soon as they could. new mexico is a poor state, and the 2nd largest recipient of federal funds, only behind alaska.having said this, i love the state, and really enjoy albuquerque, so take what i said in stride.

Coffee and TV · September 28, 2011

Albuquerque is an armpit. How you could ever convince young men to attend college in that god-forsaken city is beyond me. Ugliest women in America.

Lubbock? Waco? Houston?

I can't speak though, the only parts of Albuquerque I've seen are from Breaking Bad...looks ok to me, but I'm a big fan of desert cities.

UNT90 · September 28, 2011

Lubbock? Waco? Houston?

I can't speak though, the only parts of Albuquerque I've seen are from Breaking Bad...looks ok to me, but I'm a big fan of desert cities.

Terrible city. It claimed a week of my life that I will never get back. I have a friend that used to live and work out there (from here). I told him I'd come out and see him for a week. He immediately told me how terrible it was compared to DFW (attrations, activities, etc...) and how there were hardly any attrative females. I didn't really believe him. I went. I saw 3...THREE.. attrative women there the whole week (and I took in a UNM basketball game while there, so yes, I was on campus). Not to mention terrible neighborhoods and and a horrible gang problem.

My friend would tell people he was going back to civilization when he would leave and come visit DFW. Not far from the truth.

Got5onIt · September 29, 2011

Don't know much about UNM other than a friend of mine played basketball there for 1 semester, then transferred to OU for the very reasons stated above.

I guess it's a tough place to be if you're used to an area like DFW...