Early in August, C-USA announced UNM as the preseason favorite to take the conference championship. Last year the Lobos won the regular season title finishing 7-1-1. Head coach Jeremy Fishbein said the Lobos are working to defend that title this season.
This won’t be an easy task, but Fishbein said he thinks the Lobos can manage.
“It’s really the same old deal, you know, one (game) at a time,” he said.
The Lobos (5-1-1) are coming off a 2-0 win against VCU. The 49ers (5-1-0) are coming off a 6-1 win against Campbell.
Fishbein said both teams are evenly matched, but Charlotte will have a home field advantage tonight.
“It’s a big one on the road. If we are at our best, it’s going to be a very good game in a difficult and challenging atmosphere. But we are up for it,” he said.
Last year’s home match against Charlotte did not go well for the Lobos. Although the game resulted in a 0-0 draw, Fishbein was less than thrilled with his team’s performance.
“We were lucky to tie them. We were awful,” he said. “It was one of those games where you are like ‘hey man this is great.’ We came out with a tie, and we probably didn’t deserve a tie ... They outplayed us last year.”
Fishbein describes Charlotte as a “hungry” and “physical” team and admits the game could be a bit of a challenge. He added that UNM will attempt to match Charlotte’s intensity and physicality.
“It’s going to be a fun one,” he said.
Another team the Lobos will be on the lookout for is the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The UAB Blazers trail behind Charlotte and UNM with a 5-2-1 record.
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The last time UNM faced the Blazers, the Lobos pulled a 4-3 victory. The Lobos won’t face the Blazers until Oct. 29.
UAB, UNM and Charlotte are the only teams in the conference with five wins. South Carolina and Kentucky are right behind with four wins apiece.
For now, Fishbein said his team is in a good spot and just needs to stay focused.
“We have the ability to be as good as, or better than anyone there ... I’m very optimistic, but at the same time we are not going to get ahead of ourselves,” he said. “It’s a big game Friday, and then we’ll take it from there.”
Isabel Gonzalez is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @cisabelg.
