UNM football: Eck's comments on the shirtless fans and other thoughts from the Lobos' win over the Rams

Five final thoughts from UNM’s 20-17 win over Colorado State:

1. At some point in the second half of UNM’s closer-than-expected win over the Rams, one fan high up in the west stands took his shirt off. Another fan followed his lead. A few more joined them. Then a few more jumped in after that.

You can see where this is going.

Eventually there was an ever-growing group of fans waving their shirts non-stop, a small crowd that moved down in the fourth quarter and took over a vacated student section. Other fans (with their torsos covered) took notice. As did some players on the sideline.

As for the coaches?

“I kinda said, ‘Jeez, we’re not playing very good,’” head coach Jason Eck said in a news conference Saturday. “Because that’s usually what (fans) do to stay in the (game) – like, Oklahoma State started that, didn’t they? When they were so crappy and losing to bad (teams)?

“I said, ‘Jeez, we need to play better,’ if they’re going to that to entertain themselves.”

Was a group of fans popping their tarps anything more than giddy, goofy fun, at least as Eck suggested? Probably not. Other fans around the country (particularly those of struggling teams) have been doing it throughout the season. It only seemed like a matter of time that it’d get to University Stadium.

But was there at least a little bit of truth to Eck’s idea? Sure. UNM’s uneven effort between the offense and defense brought the Lobos to a point where an awfully disappointing loss was in play. Now, the Lobos aren’t a struggling program right now — but they have been recently.

And for all the recent winning, that’s a tough quality to shake, particularly among fans. That UNM closed out Saturday with a win was another nice step towards fixing that.

It also helped ensure that a good chunk of fans will be back for more — whether they’re shirtless or not.

2. The way Eck put it, there was no big plan to attack Colorado State’s offense. UNM was going to work out of its base defense, stop the run, bring pressure and limit big plays — the same things it emphasizes every week, but without any marked schematic adjustments.

“It wasn’t really a specialized plan,” Eck added.

But if the plan wasn’t special, the execution absolutely was: UNM received an overall defensive grade of 77 from Pro Football Focus (PFF), its highest since a 38-20 win over New Mexico State (78.9). The ability to make something like that happen without getting way outside a base scheme is something recent Lobo defenses haven’t been able to do much of, especially not on a consistent basis.

And while there were plenty of strong defensive stats Saturday, the most important might’ve been the three turnovers generated. That UNM seems to be improving in that regard at this point in the season shouldn’t be taken for granted.

3. Not that it’s much of a surprise, but this is a better defense with Austin Brawley on the field.

After missing eight games with a broken foot, the 5-foot-10, 180-pound Ohio transfer safety came up with three total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and two interceptions Saturday, every bit the player that flashed against Michigan over a 71-snap sample size.

“Just think how many turnovers he would have created if he hadn’t gotten hurt,” Eck said. “We gotta put him in a bubble to keep him healthy.”

While Brawley was sidelined, Eck said a few times in Brawley’s absence that UNM needed to find ways to work him back in while keeping other players (C.J. McBean in particular) in the mix. To be clear, the Lobos would be wise to work towards that; McBean has made huge strides this season, and can still play a nice role on this defense.

But Brawley showed Saturday why he’s deserving of as many snaps as he can take. That UNM is getting a player like that back at this point in the year shouldn’t be taken for granted either.

4. It’s hard (if not impossible) to get around the four lost fumbles when talking about what UNM’s offense did Saturday. If you take away two of them — much less all of them — the score probably would’ve looked plenty different, a more comfortable winning margin for the home team.

But there’s a reason that probably is in there — we just don’t know. UNM was able to move the ball pretty well at points, but there were enough execution issues Saturday that it doesn’t feel right to just chalk up a bad day to some fumbles and move on.

“I don’t think we played up to our standard today,” Eck said. Given what we’ve seen this season, I’m inclined to agree.

5. At 7-3, Eck is tied with Marv Levy for the second-best record of any first-year head coach in program history; the Pro Football Hall of Famer and former Bills coach debuted with the Lobos in 1958, leading UNM to a second-place finish in the Skyline Conference.

“That’s good company with Marv Levy,” Eck said. “I don’t know what’s more impressive, that he went to four Super Bowls or that he’s still living when he’s 100. I don’t know if I’m gonna be living when I’m 100.”

Now, the best debut season in program history, at least in terms of record? That belongs to Gwinn Henry, a Missouri Sports Hall of Famer who led the Lobos to an 8-1 record in 1934.

Eck won’t catch Henry (88.89%) in winning percentage, but he could notch an eighth win as soon as next week at Air Force. Take care of that and UNM will host San Diego State with a possible bid to the Mountain West Championship on the line, as big as it gets for a program that’s rarely come close to that point.

Are we watching the best debut season of any coach in program history? Not quite — but it’s getting awfully close.