'He's a winner': Lobo football Players react to Bronco Mendenhall's hiring

Dec. 8—Bronco Mendenhall considers it his favorite part of the process. Walking into a new room, in a new building and introducing himself to a group of new faces.

Eager ones.

Optimistic ones.

Hopeful ones.

Engaged ones.

"(That's) how I would describe what I saw last night," New Mexico's new head football coach said during his introductory press conference. "A lot of players on the front of their seats, the edge of their seat, with complete and intense eye contact, nodding. I think (they're) eager to get this process going to move New Mexico football forward."

For their part, the players didn't disagree with his assessment. After Mendenhall was introduced to the public on Thursday morning — with a handful of those players in attendance — they spoke of the former BYU and Virginia coach's strong first impression after meeting him on Wednesday night.

To a man, his track record — 135-81 career record with 16 bowl appearances in 17 seasons as a head coach — was what stood out the most.

"16 of 17 (teams) bowl-eligible, that's a pretty high percentage," senior running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt told the Journal. "That's a crazy-high percentage. The first thing I saw, he's a winning coach. And that's all you can ask for nowadays."

"He wants to win games," freshman quarterback Devon Dampier said. "And he's gonna (instill) a certain work ethic and put us at a certain standard that he wants us to be at where, that's gonna let us win games. And not only win games, but also create that relationship that he was talking about."

"He's a winner," senior linebacker Syaire Riley said. "I guess, some people, it depends on the type of person that you are. Some people only care about the hard work and how hard and exhausting it might be.

"For me, I look at the end result — if I were to come back and play this next year, this would be my last year. And I'd rather go up on top, no matter how hard or strenuous it's been."

Riley admitted there was a certain degree of anxiety about meeting Mendenhall. After former head coach Danny Gonzales was dismissed on Nov. 25, he was notified like the rest on Wednesday that the team would meet their coach for the first time.

And he knew who Mendenhall was, citing a family friend who was a classmate at Palisades High School in Inglewood, Calif., before attending Virginia Tech.

"Very familiar with his time there at Virginia and even at BYU," he said. "He's a stud. And whether that's getting to a conference championship game — winning or losing — he's been in those situations. I want the bowl rings. He has them."

But the anxiety remained. How could it not?

"You went from having a coach for four years, to no coach, to them figuring out the process," Riley added. "And you come in and now it's some brand new dude that you don't know. You don't know his family, he doesn't know you and the type of character, the person you might be."

Mendenhall's message in the team meeting, as the players recalled, was one of building trust. In particular, Croskey-Merritt said he even admitted they won't trust him right now — the same thing Riley alluded to.

But eventually, Mendenhall said, they can get to the point. Riley feels his new coach helped sow the seeds of said trust by waiting at the door and shaking hands with each and every player.

"When I shook his hand, he was like, 'good to meet you, Sy,'" Riley said. "It feels good when you know somebody's paying attention to who you are, and you can start building on that trust and that foundation."

With 17 players already in the transfer portal, Mendenhall said he'd meet with them before giving them the option to return. Riley, a regular starter for the Lobos, did not specifically say whether he was staying or leaving but indicated Mendenhall wouldn't be a reason for him to go.

"Never have I once thought New Mexico isn't a great place," he said. "And quite frankly, this is the place my family trusts me to develop, grow my character and mature in. And I've had so many great opportunities.

"That's kinda how you want to weigh your transfer options. Some of these guys that are transferring in or transferring out, that's okay. But when you're a guy that came here and has been here for four years, it's kinda hard to leave it all behind."

Croskey-Merritt gave a slightly firmer answer. "I'm pretty close to staying here," he told the Journal.

And Dampier?

"I've been wanting to stay here since the beginning," Dampier said. "That's why I haven't entered the portal. I'm pretty happy with what's happening here, so definitely feel like staying here."