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UNM football: Lobos on quest to lure more fans for scrimmages

By Iliana Limón
Wednesday, May 2, 2007

Spring game

What: Cherry-Silver intrasquad scrimmage

When: Wednesday

Site: University Stadium

Game time: Warmups at 6 p.m., scrimmage kicks off at 6:30 p.m.

Admission: Free

On the air: Audio and video streamed live online at GoLobos.com, with the call provided by Mike Roberts and D.J. Renteria.

Format: The game will be played in four 15-minute quarters, with regular stops of the clock during first and fourth quarters and running clock second and third quarters. The offense will be pitted against the defense.

Scoring system: The offense will receive one point apiece for first downs and extra points, two points for a play gaining more than 30 yards, three points for a field goal and six points for a touchdown. The defense will score one point for any defensive stop, two points apiece for three-and-out stops on first possessions of a drive and fourth down stops, three points for a forced turnover and nine points for a turnover returned for a touchdown.

Fan extras: Concession stands will be open and the team will be available for autographs after the scrimmage, which should end around 7:45 p.m.

The Alabama and New Mexico football programs may have the numbers 9, 2 and 0 in common today.

The difference is the Crimson Tide drew a jaw-dropping 92,000 fans for their spring football scrimmage, while the Lobos would be happy with 920 fans during today's Cherry-Silver scrimmage capping the end of spring practice.

It's a comparison of rich and poor football programs, but University of New Mexico officials do have plans to spice up the Lobos' spring and fall scrimmages as they court fans.

While these remain practices designed to help the football team develop, UNM coach Rocky Long and Athletics Director Paul Krebs said they will do what they can to use the scrimmages to stoke fan interest in attending games.

The Lobos averaged 28,633 fans per game last season, down from a school-record 38,341 fans per game the previous year.

"I don't think the fans have any idea how much it means to this program that they show up for our home games and support the team," Long said. "We feel the difference when our attendance was down like it was last year. If the fans are there, they give you a real home-field advantage. Large crowds give you confidence, change momentum of a game and can help you win close games that put you in a position to win a conference championship."

Long said his chief responsibility is to field a competitive football team to entertain fans.

But he also is coming around to the idea that his final spring and fall practices have to be about more than just X's and O's.

"The marketing guys are real important for us because we have to make this a positive experience for our fans," he said. "They want to be entertained by more than just the game. We have to make this a great experience for them."

This year's spring game isn't a strong indication of what school officials are planning to do to lure football fans to University Stadium.

Spring practice began late because of assistant coaching changes. The scrimmage could not be delayed until Saturday because it is the beginning of finals week.

The scrimmage will begin around 6:30 p.m., concession stands will be open and the event will feature an autograph session afterward.

"We don't always get great turnout on the weekends because people have a lot to do, so I'm hoping they might enjoy a Wednesday night scrimmage," Long said. "The only thing we have to worry about is the weather. It's supposed to rain in the morning but be clear by the time the scrimmage starts."

Long has thrown in a new scoring system this year, with the offense playing against the defense and each side scoring points for things like stops, turnovers and first downs. It is similar to a scoring system used by Oklahoma and an array of other schools, but it's the first time Long has tried it during his coaching career.

"The other schools who use it say it's a lot more fan-friendly because it makes the game more competitive than trying to divide your team into two teams," he said.

Krebs said the Athletics Department just approved an extensive game plan to boost season ticket sales and group sales for football games.

"We're not going to draw what Alabama does, and the spring game really is for the die-hard fans and the people who already are season-ticket holders," Krebs said. "We want to make it the best experience possible, but we have some great things planned for summer and fall that we're hoping will attract more fans to football games.

"We are making a big push to increase fans at our games."

Both Long and Krebs said the fans who do catch today's scrimmage will be happy with what they see.

"I think we have a very favorable schedule and competitive football team that will be fun to watch," Krebs said.

Long added, "When the fans see this team, I think they'll know right away that we're going to be real competitive next year. I think our team is pretty exciting and has a lot of potential."