As criticism continues to mount against Craig Neal and the New Mexico Lobos, especially on the team's current four-game losing streak, the negativity seems to be taking its toll on player performance.
Neal said Thursday afternoon that he sensed some of the external noise about the team, and references to the coach being “on the hot seat,” has affected his players. Several players are active on Twitter, so it’s often difficult to avoid the comments, he said.
Being a young team, Neal said, players never experienced that before since most found success in the high school ranks. Even some on last year’s team that went 15-16 and lost every game in February avoided the criticism since they did not play either to injury or to transfer rules, he said.
“I don't think they've ever experienced like they have this year and I don't think any of them experienced it because they didn't play last year,” Neal said. “Cullen didn't play. Tim Williams didn't play. Elijah Brown didn't play.”
The players don’t exhibit signs they are shutting it down or that they are ready for the season to come to an end, Neal said, but he sees the impact.
How, exactly?
“Well, they're kids. How is it going to affect any kid?” Neal said. “I think there is a positive effect, I think there is a negative effect, any time you have 24-7 radio, 24-7 newspaper, 24-7 whatever, Internet, Facebook, Twitter.”
Neal said that when Mountain West play began back in January, the team had been convinced it could win the regular-season title, despite a 7-6 nonconference schedule. The team responded by opening conference play with a 7-2 record.
Then the San Diego State game happened, where the Lobos appeared to be ensured a victory but had it taken away. Following the Utah State setback the following game, Neal said the team began to question what exactly they were playing for since the Aztecs controlled its own destiny to a league title.
“They don't understand seeding. They don't understand ‘Hey, there's another season,’” Neal said. “And so now I've had to regroup in my approaches because when I start talking about seeding you could see there was more pressure on them as a group. And they've never been through any adversity.”
That means Neal will begin to use small goals, like making sure the team stays on the same page and ensuring it does what it needs to do in increments rather than focusing on a big picture, he said. It could help ease the growing pains for the squad, he said.
UNM Vice President for Athletics Paul Krebs told the Albuquerque Journal that he plans to wait until the season’s end to evaluate Neal’s position. It is a common practice for athletic directors to evaluate a coach’s performance at the conclusion of each season.
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Neal’s contract goes through 2020, and the coach said he expects to remain in that position until then.
When Neal first implied that his son, Cullen, had been receiving threats, the coach mentioned it could impact his recruiting efforts. On Thursday, he said it hasn’t affected the incoming class.
He said he had been receiving calls from the signees, but those calls were to make sure he and the team were OK rather than addressing concerns about playing for the Lobos.
“They just wanted to know if we're alright,” he said. “It's out there, stuff that's said on the Internet and stuff that's written in the paper. It's not like people live in a cave. I try to live in a cave, but not everybody does.”
J.R. Oppenheim is the assistant sports editor for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers men’s basketball and women’s soccer. Contact him at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @JROppenheim.
