Nelson has succeeded at volleyball
During his nine years, UNM has increased wins and attendance
The nine-year trend has been upward. Under Jeff Nelson’s watch, the University of New Mexico volleyball program has been a consistent winner, and its players have excelled on the court and in the classroom over those nine years. Facilities have been upgraded at Johnson Center and, at Nelson’s urging, UNM added beach volleyball in 2015.
With all that said, New Mexico tips off what has to be considered a pivotal season today. The Lobos open Nelson’s 10th season by playing host to the five-team UNM Invitational at Johnson Center. They will face Abilene Christian (9-20 last season) at 12:30 p.m. and take on Arizona State (19-13) at 8 p.m. UNM will play Idaho (14-16) and Fairfield (21-10, NCAA berth) on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. and 6 p.m., respectively.
The tournament and the season are important because Nelson is entering the final year of his contract and wants
to trend upward after a 17-14 finish last season.
“We need to improve, and I’m confident we will,” Nelson said. “We built momentum with a pretty awesome beach season (last spring), and this group has talent and experience at key positions. There’s a very positive vibe around here now.”
The Lobos finished 17-9 and were nationally ranked for most of their second season of beach competition, and most of the same players will be in uniform today. Seniors Cassie House, Devanne Sours, Julia Warren and Marisa Doran posted strong beach dual records and anchor a powerful hitting attack for the indoor team.
“No question beach got us in great shape,” Warren said, “and it helped our chemistry a lot. I feel better going into this season than I ever have. I think most of us feel that way.”
Overall, Nelson feels good about the state of his program.
“I think we’ve created an expectation that we’ll be good every year and battle every night,” he said. “We’ve had great community support and created a sense of program, which is probably our best accomplishment.”
Nelson also believes his program is in position to take a step forward. UNM was picked to finish fourth in the Mountain West this season but Nelson has said the Lobos have “the best shot we’ve ever had” at winning the conference in 2016. With Nelson’s contract due to expire, the timing for a strong MWC run could be ideal.
Though he’s had inquiries from other schools in recent years and visited Texas Tech prior to last season, Nelson said he wants to remain at UNM. He lured former Lobo All-American Pauline Manser from Australia to serve as an assistant coach for both indoor and beach volleyball last season and likes the direction of both programs.
“My boys were in grade school when we came here,” Nelson said, “and now they’re in their senior and freshman years at UNM. This place is a big part of our lives. I definitely want to stay here.”
UNM athletic director Paul Krebs typically evaluates coaches at the end of each season. He has often said a key part of such evaluations is how a particular program is “trending.”
Taken as a whole, UNM has trended upward in Nelson’s nine years. The Lobos have posted eight winning seasons (they were 14-15 in 2011) and have averaged more than 19 victories per season. In the 10 years prior to Nelson’s arrival, UNM had no winning seasons (it went 14-14 in 2005) and averaged 9.6 wins per campaign.
Attendance has been up, as well, with the Lobos posting six of the program’s Top 10 season averages during Nelson’s tenure. The Lobos finished 41st nationally in attendance at 1,100 per match last season. It did not rank as one of the better attendance seasons of Nelson’s coaching era but was far better than the 300-plus fans UNM often averaged during the 10 years prior to his arrival.
Though UNM earned two NCAA Tournament berths (2009, ’10) under Nelson, there is one notable hole in his UNM résumé: no conference championships. Colorado State has dominated the Mountain West and has secured the vast majority of its NCAA bids in the past decade.
“True,” Nelson conceded. “CSU has the largest volleyball budget in the league and it shows, but they’re the team we have to aspire to.”
Nelson, whose annual salary is $129,406, did not seek or receive an increase for adding beach volleyball to his coaching duties. He believes the relatively inexpensive program (its budget was $13,000 last season) will continue to benefit indoor volleyball moving forward.
While he understands the importance of a good “contract” season, Nelson believes his first nine years have established a positive foundation. Warren, who committed to play at UNM as a 15-year-old, agrees.
“When I was growing up I didn’t know UNM had a volleyball program,” Warren said. “It’s a program we’re all proud of now, especially the players who grew up here. Jeff’s changed the culture.”