I'm doing a three-week rotation working as the morning sports editor, so I'm a little behind on my blog updates. My temporary responsibility means I have to be at work at 4 a.m., which means I get up at 3 a.m. It's not natural. At all.

So here are some women's basketball notes I have been meaning to post but hadn't gotten around to yet:

A few people asked me which player at the scrimmage was Deeva Vaughn. Just to clarify, she was not at the scrimmage. She is taking summer school, so she only attended the camp's night sessions.

No one got to see Duncanville standout Veronica Mergersen because she couldn't play in the scrimmage due to her ankle injury, but I got to see her do some drills. She is a good shooter and has the athleticism you need to play at this level.

Everyone who saw the scrimmage loves Talisha Joe. And I think she's great. She has tremendous ball-handling and passing skills. But she must improve her shot. She shoots, literally, from the hip. She also has pretty slow delivery. If she doesn't adjust that shot, it will get blocked an awful lot in college and will be a turnoff for coaches. I think she will make the changes needed to land a Division I scholarship, but I don't think she's a good fit for the Lobos, who already have three solid young point guards -- Amy Beggin, Georonika Jackson and Nikki Nelson. Yes, Jackson could play the two, but she also looks really good at the point. To be fair to Joe, she deserves to go somewhere where she will get more attention and playing time.

You have to keep in mind who the Lobos are looking to replace with this class -- Dionne Marsh, Brandi Kimble and Morgan Saso. That means you need size, scoring ability and athleticism.

Feel free to post any other questions about players attending the position camp in the comments section of the blog.

Posted by ilimon at 11:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (17)

The University of New Mexico's position camp began tonight, with about 40 athletes participating.

I'll have more details about the campers in Monday's Tribune, but I just wanted to post a quick note about new times for the big end-of-camp scrimmages Tuesday morning. The first scrimmage will be at 8 a.m. and the second one, with the top-shelf talent, will be at 9:30 a.m. Both games will be played in The Pit. They are free and open to the public.

Based on the workouts I watched Sunday night, I think the games should be pretty entertaining.

Posted by ilimon at 10:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I know the rabid UNM women's basketball fans already have the date marked on their calendars, but here's a quick reminder for everyone else about the Lobos' position camp. The camp draws top high school students, including UNM recruits. It runs Sunday through Tuesday, with a big scrimmage featuring the top talent at 10 a.m. Tuesday in The Pit. As always, it's free and open to the public.

Posted by ilimon at 11:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Former Lobo and Chicago Bears star Brian Urlacher is nothing if not loyal.

During the off-season, Urlacher has shown his support for two controversial teammates. First, he was among several Bears to visit Tank Johnson in jail. Johnson had to serve time for a probation violation and faced charges in connection with a slew of weapons found at his home. Now he's backing up embattled teammate Lance Briggs.

Urlacher wore the No. 55 to the final Chicago Bears' pre-training camp workouts Wednesday instead of his usual No. 54. Briggs normally wears No. 55, but he sat out the practices and has threatened to skip the entire season following a protracted contract dispute with the Bears management. Urlacher has vocally supported Briggs throughout the off-season, although he did not shed any light on his jersey choice following practice this week.

Posted by ilimon at 11:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tennessee women's basketball coach Pat Summitt was hospitalized after having a dizzy spell and passing out at her home Thursday. School officials said they just think it is a bad case of dehydration. Thompson-Bowling Arena is under renovation, so Summitt was running a busy slate of summer camps at other gyms on campus that do not have air conditioning. So Tennessee has a lot on the University of New Mexico, but at least the Lobos can count on air conditioning.

Posted by ilimon at 07:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

This doesn't really fall in the UNM football or women's basketball categories I normally write about, but it's still interesting news. Reggie Theus' stay in Las Cruces was even briefer than most figured, with the Aggies coach hired to take over the Sacramento Kings. The Maloofs have been rewarded in the past for gambling a bit on their coaches, but this is quite a leap. Theus doesn't have much coaching experience, and he isn't the first guy I'd hire to rebuild an NBA program. But perhaps the guy called "Hollywood" by his players can shine in Sacramento. It will be very, very interesting to see who the Aggies hire to replace him. With the recent flashy hires by both the Aggies and Lobos, we've got quite an arms race going.

Posted by ilimon at 10:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

For some reason, UNM women's basketball coach Don Flanagan is keeping the complete nonconference schedule for the 2007-08 season to himself. We do know the Lobos will be playing Stanford and the Women's Sports Foundation Challenge. We also know Oklahoma, Texas, Arizona State and Texas Tech aren't on the schedule.

It's hard to talk much about next season, but was it good to trade the relatively strong teams likely on the Women's Sports Foundation Challenge slate for the powerhouses Arizona State and Oklahoma? Does adding Stanford offset losing the Sun Devils and Sooners? If UNM upsets the Cardinal in The Pit, will people dismiss the victory because it came before rabid Lobo fans?

Posted by ilimon at 08:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

St. Michael's standout Kevin Chavez signed a contract with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, passing up a chance to play for the Lobos. Chavez signed a letter of intent to play baseball at UNM and was supposed to play football as well as a redshirt walk-on next season. When he signed with UNM, I talked with coach Rocky Long and he said the coaches were well aware this was a possibility and were planning for it.

Joey Fernandez, Chavez's coach at St. Michael's High, said the departure of UNM baseball coach Rich Alday played a role in Chavez's decision. Fernandez said Chavez wasn't sure whether he could play baseball and football at UNM with the coaching change, so it seemed better to pursue his Major League Baseball dreams.

I had heard that Chavez was a much stronger pitcher than quarterback and he was sticking with football because he loved the game. He had a much more lucrative future in baseball, so it's hard to knock his departure. It's better for both baseball and football Academic Progress Rates that he chose to go pro now rather than after his junior year, his next window of eligibility.

Current Lobo baseball star Jordan Pacheco, who was drafted in the ninth round by the Colorado Rockies, is going to sign a contract Thursday. He won't be returning for his senior season, a move that will hurt the already poor APR rates for the baseball program.

Here's a story from today's Tribune about all the New Mexico athletes who signed MLB contracts.

Posted by ilimon at 05:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's like being a diehard Red Sox fan (which I am) and finding out the Red Sox-Yankees series is over. Baseball has decided these two teams shall never meet again. It's ridiculous. Both teams can say if we win the series this season and don't win the championship, then it's OK.

Alas, it appears college women's basketball's best rivalry is toast. The Tennessee-UConn series is over, with the Lady Vols refusing to sign on for two more years. This hurts the entire sport because it was the one time you were guaranteed to see stories on women's basketball in major papers throughout the country before the Final Four. It was a big, sexy rivalry that was easy to love. It had all the dirty jabs you could ask for and tons of competitive play.

When I heard the news yesterday, I assumed Tennessee coach Pat Summitt got fed up with UConn's brash coach Geno Auriemma. I guess she doesn't like her team being referred to as the Evil Empire. A lot of other people felt the same way and have roasted Summitt for taking her toys and going home.

But ESPN.com columnist Mechelle Voepel offers a different and rather interesting take, highlighting how much Summitt has done for women's basketball. She notes Summitt's Vols always play the toughest schedule of any team in the country and are always willing play anyone, anywhere. That's usually a tactic reserved for up-and-coming programs desperate to make a name for themselves, not the best women's basketball program in the country. She hated how Auriemma's quips made the rivalry game more about the coaches than the teams.

Still, can't they find some way to make amends? Women's college basketball just isn't the same without this rivalry.

Posted by ilimon at 10:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)

UNM offered Cibola quarterback Jonathan Mader a scholarship following the Lobos' football camp during the weekend. He told me Monday night that he likes the idea of an Albuquerque kid taking over the reigns of UNM's offense. He doesn't blame the UNM coaches for the lack of Duke City quarterbacks, he just thinks there haven't been many athletes in the area strong enough to the lead the offense. Despite his love for the Lobos, Mader isn't jumping at the Lobos offer and is keeping his options open.

Mader said he could make a decision before his senior year if he feels like he's got the best possible options before him, or he could wait until after his senior season and make a commitment in December. I reached Mader while he was at the Texas Tech camp. He'll be headed to BYU and a Nike camp hosted by UNLV soon. And he might head to LSU in July. The Lobos were the first team to offer Mader a scholarship. UNM coach Rocky Long met with Mader and his parents after the camp to make the big offer.

I think it's better for guys like Mader to make the rounds of summer camps, see what is offered and make a decision heading into their senior year. It takes the pressure off and, at least with some schools, you get to keep your scholarship if you are injured. Then again, I'm not in their shoes and don't have to make a decision that will dictate my life for the next five years.

Posted by ilimon at 08:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I stopped by Lobo football camp today, and got to see a lot of high school guys really excited about working out in from the UNM coaches. There are quite a few guys UNM is recruiting at the camp, with a lot of them coming from in-state schools.

The camp drew about 380 players. I would guess about 100 of them are staying overnight in tents set up along the side the fence of the practice field. The tents allow out-of-town guys to stay at the camp for less money.

This is the time when a lot of guys who aren't on UNM's radar get to distinguish themselves as viable prospects or walk-on candidates, while others who are recruits they are watching can prove they deserve scholarship offers.

If you want a breakdown of the guys I met and some of the hotter prospects attending the camp, check out Friday's Tribune.

Posted by ilimon at 07:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Dionne Marsh had surgery to repair an undisclosed injury at the end the spring semester, according to UNM coach Don Flanagan. Here is the story I wrote about Marsh's injury from today's Tribune.

It is supposed to take about three months for her recover, putting her back at full strength in August. Flanagan said Marsh is at home with her family this month, but will be on campus in July.

Flanagan said it is Marsh's choice whether she wants to disclose the nature of the injury, and I have not been able to reach her for comment.

Posted by ilimon at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

While I was working on a story about UNM sprinter Jarrin Solomon, I stumbled on to some good football news for Lobo fans.

Senior kicker John Sullivan was jogging pretty steadily around the UNM track, and all signs of a limp seem to be gone. Sullivan also did sprints up the steep hill between the football stadium and the track.

Sullivan was the kicker who tore his ACL during spring football but chose not to have surgery because there was no way he could obtain a medical redshirt. His plan was to simply treat the injury by bringing down the swelling, go through rehab and try to play on the injured leg with a brace. The injury is on his plant leg, not his kicking leg. He seems to be making very good progress, considering the last time I saw him he was walking with a significant limp.

Posted by ilimon at 06:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Alright UNM women's basketball fans, summer school is under way today and your favorite players are back in town.

I ran into Angela Hartill working out at the Tow Diehm complex last week, and she seems to be logging the extra hours she did last summer with the hopes of making major improvements before next season. And I saw Amy Beggin at mass Sunday at the Newman Center, the Catholic church on campus.

The first day camp began today and we're not too far away from the big position camp designed to showcase the best talent. So stay tuned for updates and feel free to send your story ideas my way.

Posted by ilimon at 06:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

NCAA president Myles Brand told reporters during the Women's College World Series he isn't necessarily opposed to a fifth year of eligibility for football players as long as a redshirt year is eliminated. Brand said it takes most the average student 4.7 years to graduate and most football players redshirt, so it makes sense to give them five years to complete their degree and eligibility.

Brand also said the APR, the academic progress plan that already has seen programs lose scholarships this season for poor performance, "is not going anywhere."

Finally, he is the latest to stomp all over the idea of a playoff system in college football. I'm not real clear on what the NCAA gets out of endorsing the BCS so much. You would think the NCAA would like to be back in control of the bowl games and crowning a national champion, a system now controlled by the BCS membership.

Posted by ilimon at 10:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I wondered how well Florida president Bernie Machen would fare pushing for a playoff system in lieu of the current BCS mess during the annual SEC football meetings. It turns out, not well at all if you were hoping for major change.

Machen backed off his campaign for playoff system, instead pushing for changes within the current BCS format. Not the kind of changes that would likely help the little guys from non-BCS schools.

"What we learned today from my colleagues is that we see the world pretty much the same way," Machen said Friday on the final day of the annual meeting. "We see the problems in the current system. They are persuaded, and I am now persuaded, that the best way to proceed is to try to work within the BCS structure, to make some changes to make it better. That seems to me to be a very good way to go."

I didn't actually expect major change, but it stinks to lose a person on the inside actually complaining about the system.

Posted by ilimon at 09:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

The rumor mill has been churning lately about Albuquerque landing a WNBA team. So I did some hunting and here's what I found out:

Albuquerque's chances of luring a WNBA team hinge on the completion of the long-delayed Downtown arena. WNBA officials and local investors both have expressed interest in bringing a women's pro hoops team to the Duke City, where the University of New Mexico women's basketball team ranked in the top five nationally in attendance with crowds hovering around 10,000 per game.

Dennis Latta, executive director of the New Mexico Sports Authority, said he has met with a WNBA official, who visited the state and also met with Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez to discuss Albuquerque as a potential future women's pro hoops market.

"All around, it looks pretty promising but you can't put a WNBA in Tingley and the Rio Rancho arena isn't quite big enough," Latta said.

Ed Adams, the city's chief operations officer, said Albuquerque officials are still negotiating with the top arena bidder before bringing the final version of the project to the City Council. He has no timeline for completion of the venue.

Latta said with no arena available, Albuquerque and the Sports Authority have not applied for a WNBA team. "Right now, it's all on hold," Latta said.

Posted by ilimon at 10:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)