ENMU to restart men's soccer

SANTA FE - After two years on the sidelines, Eastern New Mexico University is back in the men's soccer world.

The school's board of regents on Wednesday heard about optimistic plans to get a coach in place and do recruiting in order to compete in the upcoming fall Lone Star Conference season.

The Greyhounds have not fielded a men's soccer team since 2019, with the COVID-19 pandemic axing the 2020 season and administration shelving the program in 2021 with former Athletic Director Matt Billings citing budgetary issues. The regents had no vote on the matter, but Chancellor Patrice Caldwell said she wanted to provide the regents budget estimates and the vision for restarting the program.

"We are taking a bit of a chance here," Caldwell said, "but we are thinking in terms of enrollment, it's a good move."

A rough overview presented by Caldwell said the program costs would be $297,201.45, and the revenues would be $315,865 assuming tuition and fees for 30 students and on-campus housing for 10 of those students.

Regent President Lance Pyle expressed optimism, and felt the $18,000 estimate in the black was conservative since those students might end up bringing others to ENMU as well.

"This is a business model, and this is great," Student Regent Chandlar Head told Caldwell. "As far as recruitment, I think we should look at everything like this."

Athletic Director Paul Weir told regents the popularity of New Mexico United shows a market for men's soccer, and ENMU can capitalize by being the only college in the state to offer the sport.

"I think it's exciting, the opportunity it's going to open," said Weir, who thanked regents for always pushing toward a program restart. "It's going to help us in a lot of different ways and open a lot of doors for us."

The athletic department on Thursday announced the restart efforts and provided a landing page for program updates at bit.ly/enmumenssoccer .

Regents met for approximately three hours at Hotel Santa Fe, with the meeting timed around the legislative session. The News covered the meeting virtually.

In other business:

• Regents approved an expansion of the university's alcohol license. The license allowed service at the Campus Union Ballroom and the Campus Union's Zia Room, and the regents' unanimous vote added Lewis A. Cooper Arena (rodeo), Greyhound Stadium and Greyhound Arena to the fold.

Regent Dan Patterson said the college needs to make sure there is proper security at any event involving liquor, while Pyle said the university should create some opportunity to sell its branded wine. Vice President of Business Affairs Scott Smart said he would look into Pyle's suggestion, and said the university needed to be careful not to become a de facto package store.

• Smart told regents the university is looking at a renovation of the Roosevelt Science Center instead of a new building due to rising construction costs. When pressed on why the college didn't have plans ready to go as soon as bonds were available, Smart said budgeting was more difficult because it covered the 2018 and 2020 general obligation bond cycles.

Pyle and Head said it may be worth borrowing money with interest rates so low to get a new building. "This is a business model, and we really need to think about increasing value," Head said.

"We need to be very smart about the investments we make. This is recruitment-building. We need STEM students, and this is an opportunity. Patterson said it wasn't a decision regents would like, but they had to be realistic about budget and time constraints.

• Roswell Branch President Shawn Powell said the college's spring enrollment was up 5%, and that the Department of Workforce Solutions will hopefully have office presence at the college by March.

• Ruidoso Branch President Ryan Trosper told regents enrollment was up 10%, and about 100 of its 620 students were taking at least one online course. While he believed it was a subject best presented by Caldwell, Trosper praised the way the colleges have a "one ENMU" concept and said the state's new 2+2 initiative that will funnel two-year students to ENMU-Portales should pay dividends.

• The next meeting is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Feb. 18, tentatively at the ENMU-Ruidoso campus.