Albuquerque Journal

Alford's 2008-09 Class Is Standing Room Only
By Rick Wright Of the Journal

In hindsight, maybe it's just as well Jeff Taylor didn't decide to fly Air Lobo.
   
That airline, after all, is already overbooked.
   
On Monday, Hobbs' Taylor— by far the best senior boys basketball player in the state— announced he will attend Vanderbilt next fall.
   
The reaction of the cherry-and-silver brigade was surprisingly muted. Why?
   
First, it had been known for a while that UNM hadn't made Taylor's final cut. The kid grew up in Sweden, not Hobbs, and never dreamed of being a Lobo.
   
Actually, they don't dream of that much in Hobbs, either.
   
Second, as good as Taylor is and as good as he might become, UNM appears to be OK without him. Lobo coach Steve Alford and his assistants have fashioned a 2008-09 recruiting class almost unanimously hailed as the best in the Mountain West Conference and among the top 25 in the nation.
   
Third, the Lobos had no scholarship for Taylor, anyway.
   
UNM is, in fact, one over the limit already.
   
Last October, senior-to-be Tony Danridge broke his leg. Alford had already received oral commitments for all of his available 2008-09 scholarships. Danridge didn't play in '07-08, meaning he has one year left.
   
Now, as a result, Alford has 13 scholarships and 14 scholarship players.
   
This isn't baseball or track and field, where you can split a scholarship. Someone's got to go, or something's got to give.
   
But what? Or who?
   
UNM has petitioned for a medical hardship year on Danridge's behalf, but it's really on UNM's behalf. Danridge, who played as a true freshman, had a redshirt year coming.
   
What the Lobos want is a ruling that allows Danridge's scholarship not to count against their limit of 13. In this matter, neither NCAA bylaws nor the great land of Google offer much hope.
   
Never heard of such a thing? Neither have I. Neither has Google.
   
Other possible solutions include:
   
One of the incoming freshmen doesn't show up or isn't eligible.
   
One of the 14 pays his own way or finds alternative financial support.
   
One of the returning eight, not including Danridge, leaves.
   
Alford has said he doesn't believe in running off players— but does believe in giving a kid an honest assessment of where he stands and how much playing time he can expect.
   
If freshman big men Isaiah Rusher and Will Brown are both eligible and as good as advertised, one returning big man— either Johnnie Harris or Monquel Pegues— shouldn't expect much playing time. Hint, hint.
   
Under former coach Ritchie McKay, Lobos guard Jeff Hart didn't have a scholarship, had one, didn't and then did— all depending on UNM's situation at the time.
   
Current Lobo Chad Toppert is an excellent student and a local kid, who, if not on scholarship, would at least be eligible for reduced in-state tuition. And he knows what it's like to be a walk-on, having been one as a true freshman.
   
Since then, however, Toppert has become an honorable-mention all-conference guard and one of the best 3-point shooters in the nation. He's as scholarship-worthy as any player on UNM's roster. To pull his grant-in-aid would constitute a mortal insult.
   
Still, these things have a way of working themselves out— which is why coaches never stop recruiting.
   
It's possible that one of the incoming freshmen won't make grades or will have other initial-eligibility issues. Or two, even.
   
Or, a returning player could decide not to return. Or two, even.
   
Or, a current player could be persuaded to give up his scholarship. Or two, even.
   
Hey, Jeff Taylor: Are you absolutely sure about that Vanderbilt thing?
   
Catch Rick Wright's column at www.abqjournal.com. E-mail him at rwright@abqjournal.com