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It looks like Lobos men's hoops coach Steve Alford is stocking up a football team.

In five months with the University of New Mexico men's basketball program, Alford has offered dozens of scholarships to round out this year's team and lay the foundation for the next two recruiting classes.

Alford insists there is a method to his madness.

"I've never offered 25 scholarships for one class," he said, chuckling. "But I have offered a lot. You have to do it that way and cast a broad net to get the best players possible."

He worked quickly to snag six players to fill this year's roster, although forward Darrington Hobson and center Kem Nweke are still waiting to learn whether they will be cleared by the NCAA to play the 2007-08 season.

Hobson has not enrolled at UNM and is awaiting word from the NCAA Clearinghouse, which is carefully reviewing his records after he attended four high schools. Nweke is attending classes at UNM, but he is waiting to see whether the NCAA will force him to sit out as a transfer student because he briefly enrolled for the fall semester at South Alabama before getting out of his letter of intent.

While Alford and his staff were filling out this year's roster, they also toured the country in search of recruits for the 2008 class.

He has four scholarships available for the group, and possibly another one if Hobson never gets clearance to attend UNM. The Tribune has confirmed Alford has offered at least 12 players scholarships for the 2008 class and is heavily recruiting several other athletes.

"We have offered a lot of guys, and it all depends on who decides they want to come here first," Alford said. "We would never offer a guy a scholarship and back off if a player accepted it before someone else we wanted to get first. If we offer a scholarship, we're going to honor it as long as we have spots available on our team."

Alford could end up losing one or two scholarships because of the Lobos' poor Academic Progress Rate, but the coach said he couldn't recruit worrying about potential sanctions. The school does have two years to absorb the penalty, but most programs try to take the hit as soon as possible to appease the NCAA.

"I think we'll hear about it in April and decide what to do at that time," he said. "I've never been in this situation before with this kind of grade trouble, so I'm not sure how we'll handle it."

The Lobos have been on a roll with their 2008 class, snapping up commitments from 6-foot-9 forward Isaiah Rusher, 6-foot-9 forward Will Brown and 6-foot-4 guard Dennis Curtis.

All three players said they would like to play with 6-foot-5 guard Phillip McDonald, a legitimate blue-chipper who would be Alford's highest-profile recruit.

"Right now, it's looking like a real good team," Brown said. "A lot of people are real excited about what's happening at New Mexico. They've got some great coaches who have sold a lot people on their school."

The Lobos have loaded up on players quickly before.

The bigger question facing Alford may be whether he can hang on to his flashiest players.

"All you can do is recruit them and be honest about your expectations and how you run your program," Alford said. "You really have no idea how they will respond once they get here, but I think the guys we've talked to have been great. One of the best parts about this process has been the way all of them who committed here really fell in love with New Mexico."

Curtis counts himself among those excited about being a Lobo.

He hails from New York and graduated high school in May 2006, but had trouble with SAT scores. Curtis played one year at Inner City Academy in Dallas, but he didn't get much test preparation help. He said UNM coaches helped him land a spot at Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nev. The prep school boasts better funding, SAT preparation and college courses.

"I would move overseas if it meant I could keep playing basketball," Curtis said. "I don't think New Mexico being smaller than the places a lot of guys have played at in Texas will be a problem.

"The coaching staff there is really strong, and they all have set some high standards. I'm going there because I wanted to go to a place where the coaches would really push me to be my best."

Inner City Academy was previously known as Gulf Shores Academy, the school that produced former Lobo Justin Benson. He left UNM under former coach Ritchie McKay, transferring to Oklahoma Baptist University.

Kevin "Juice" Williams coached both Curtis and Benson. He said the Lobos shouldn't have any trouble hanging on to Curtis.

"I think the coaching change will make a big difference there," Williams said. "I think the coaches are getting a great deal with Curtis and will be really happy with him.

"I give all my players nicknames, and I named him Captain Curtis because he's such a great leader. He's a gym rat who is always focused on making himself a better player. And he's a great leader in the community. He set up all these free basketball camps for kids because he wanted to share his gift with others."

Alford has been so focused on mining the country for talent and spending what little free time he has with his family, he hasn't bothered to unpack all the boxes in his office.

Right now, those details don't matter.

All that matters is the foundation he has laid for the future of Lobos basketball.

"I can't talk specifically about the 2008 class, but I will say that I'm very happy with the type of players who have said they're interested in joining our program," he said. "Right now we're hot, and we're just trying to stay hot."