GORDON: The new ‘Commander’ of UNM's NFL Cheering Section
The UNM football team hasn't exactly produced high-profile players on cheat sheets at Fantasy Football draft parties.
But there was definitely a big exception in the mid-1990s, there is a big exception currently and there will likely be a big exception in the future -- including this year's drafts.
Atlanta Falcons legend Terrance Mathis is arguably the best professional offensive player New Mexico has ever produced.
Mathis played for UNM from 1985-87 and again in 1989.
His 1989 season was off the charts. Mathis played in all 12 games for the Lobos and nabbed 88 receptions (third in the country) for 1,315 yards. He hauled in 13 touchdowns.
He averaged just under 15 receptions and 110 yards per game.
Mathis became the first Lobo to be named All-America.
Former UNM quarterback and Lobo Radio Network football analyst Ned James threw the ball to Mathis for two seasons.
James said Mathis was a multi-talented athlete.
“He could’ve played quarterback and running back for us,” James said. “He was also an exceptional basketball player, and he got an offer from the UNM men’s basketball team.”
Mathis was drafted by the New York Jets in 1990 and, for four seasons, had mediocre numbers. But in the 1994 offseason, he signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Falcons and went home to Georgia.
Mathis played in Atlanta for eight seasons and became a reliable every-down receiver. In his years in Atlanta, Mathis caught 573 passes for 7,3349 yards and 57 touchdowns.
His best statistical season came in his first year in Atlanta, when he was targeted 151 times with 111 receptions, which was third in the league. He had 1,342 yards and 11 touchdowns.
In 1998, Mathis helped the Falcons reach the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history. That season, he caught 54 passes for 1,136 yards and 11 touchdowns from quarterback Chris Chandler.
Mathis and the Falcons were a surprise team, earning the NFC’s second seed and upsetting the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship.
In that game, Mathis was targeted 14 times, had six receptions for 73 yards and scored two touchdowns.
His second touchdown tied the game 27-27 and the Falcons would win in overtime.
Mathis and Atlanta lost 34-19 to the Denver Broncos two weeks later in Super Bowl XXXIII in Miami. Mathis did catch a late touchdown in what would be the final game of John Elway’s Hall of Fame career. The win gave Elway back-to-back Super Bowl titles.
In 1999, Mathis and the Falcons didn’t have the same on-field success, but he had a solid season with 81 catches for 1,016 yards and six scores.
While Mathis is the best ex-Lobo receiver in NFL fantasy history, there is another guy in the modern-day landscape of apps and DFS who consistently gets drafted -- albeit late at each draft party.
Every team needs a kicker, right?
And ex-Lobo and Miami Dolphin Jason Sanders is one of the league's best.
Kickers consistently score fantasy points, especially ones on a high-powered offense like the Dolphins (when Tua is healthy).
But Sanders won't be the only former Lobo drafted at fantasy parties this year
Enter Jacory Croskey-Merritt.
Croskey-Merritt could be the next great former Lobo in Fantasy Football. If you remember, Croskey-Merritt was 2nd-Team All-Mountain West for UNM in 2023.
The dude rushed for 1,190 yards and 17 touchdowns. He rushed for 209 yards in an upset of Fresno State on the road. The Lobos shocked the Bulldogs 25-17.
He transferred to the University of Arizona the next season and he only played one game for the Wildcats.
Running back Brian Robinson Jr. was just traded from the Falcons to the 49ers, clearing the way for Corskey-Merritt to take the starting role.
Robinson averaged nearly 13 carries a game and was the prominent goal-line back for Washington in 2024.
Austin Ekeler is almost as old as me (old), so he will operate as the receiving back out of the backfield for Dan Quinn's team.
We've seen preseason darlings turn to pumpkins before, but Kliff Kingsbury's offense should give Croskey-Merritt enough opportunities to succeed.
