Four-Star Recruit Calvin Smith Transfers from New Mexico

When the 2010 college football recruiting season came to a close, one shocker had everyone buzzing. Calvin Smith, a four-star defensive tackle out of Hileah High School in Hileah, Florida, surprised everyone by signing a letter of intent to the University of New Mexico.

But, according to Rick Wright of the Albuquerque Journal, Smith has decided to transfer from the school he committed to in order to play closer to home.


Courtesy of KOB.com

“I’ve had a positive experience during my time at New Mexico,” Smith said in a statement.  “I look forward to getting back closer to home and continuing my college career. I’d like to thank coach Locksley and coach Carter for their support and guidance during my time at UNM.”  

While it may look like a "close to home" move for the defensive tackle, Yahoo Sports' Graham Watson might have another theory. She mentions in her piece this morning that Smith was recruiting by not only New Mexico but Tennessee, Alabama, and Arkansas as well. Maybe this has more to do with playing in a bigger conference and a better team than it does being closer to where he lived.

Another university who also recruiting Smith out of high school was Florida State which is just about 480 miles to the north of Hileah. Coincidence? Maybe.

We don't know exactly where Smith is going to land or even if he is going to enroll at an SEC school to finish out the final three college years. The 6-foot-3 273 pound lineman had 14 tackles in 12 games last season for a team who finished with a horrendous 1-11 record last season.

If the young defensive tackle wants to be a star and wants to be noticed by NFL scouts, maybe this was a move which will do him some good down the road.


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Should the New Mexico State Aggies and New Mexico Lobos Ditch Their Football Programs?



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When you happen to be in a big football state, recruiting and winning seem to come easy. But in New Mexico, football is not the top sport in town and recruiting definitely does not come easy. So is there an argument to be made to ditch the sport altogether?

For New Mexico State University and the University of New Mexico, two football programs in two different conferences try to recruit against the top dogs in each of those conferences.

For the New Mexico Lobos, they have to compete against TCU, BYU and BYU while the New Mexico State Aggies have to deal with Boise State, Fresno State, Nevada and Hawaii. Both schools aren't going to get the top recruits even in their own state. They are not big football schools and high school players know it.

In 2010, the Lobos became the running joke in college football. It seemed no matter who they were up against, they were getting blown out and embarrassed.

Through the first four weeks of the season, New Mexico had been outscored 225-41 including a 72-0 throttling at the hands of the Oregon Ducks in the very first game of the season.

Their offensive would score more than 20 points just four times all season and their defense gave up 40 or more points six times including two lopsided blowouts at the hands of Oregon, 72-0, and TCU, 66-17.

“We didn’t play well today,” New Mexico coach Mike Locksley said after their loss to TCU. “We didn’t execute on offense, defense, and special plays, and that all starts with me as a head coach.” Locksley could have put that quote on a recorder and played it after each loss during the 2010 season. It would have saved him from answering the same questions week in and week out.

They were outmatched from the first game to the last and it showed as the Lobos were staring at a 1-11 record when the season mercifully came to an end.

For the Aggies, 2010 did not have any better of an experience as their in-state rivals. They finished the season with a 2-10 record and gave up 40 or more points seven times including each of their first four games.

The top teams in the Western Athletic Conference were dominating them from start to finish. They lost games to Boise State, Fresno State, Nevada and Hawaii by an average of 51-10 including lopsided losses to Boise State, 59-0, and Nevada, 52-6.

Both the Lobos and the Aggies had the worst offenses in their respective conferences. New Mexico averaged 15.8 points per game while the Aggies averaging 15.7 points per game. On defense, neither were much better, giving up 44.3 and 39.5 points per game respectively.

The fan bases on both sides have to be wondering if or when they will ever see a winning season from one or both of these programs.

With Boise State joining the Mountain West Conference for the 2011 season and the resurgence of San Diego State, the New Mexico Lobos may see more of the same especially with Fresno State, Nevada, and Hawaii due to join the conference for the 2012 season.

As for New Mexico State, as I wrote about San Jose State possibly ditching their football program, the Aggies may in fact benefit from the four top teams in the conference heading for greener pastures after the conclusion of the 2011 season.

Maybe, just maybe, New Mexico State could see some improvement but is it enough for them to keep football around?

If things do not change and both the Aggies and Lobos continue to struggle in their respective conferences, maybe they need to re-think even having a football team.


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