UDA soccer at NMSU looks toward the future amid COVID-19 concerns
LAS CRUCES — For years, New Mexico State University has been without a Men’s Soccer program to compete with other NCAA Division I schools, but that isn’t stopping one program from keeping the collegiate love of soccer within the city of Las Cruces.
University Degrees Abroad — or UDA, is a program based out of the United Kingdom that strives to provide students with a soccer program that is accompanied by international education. UDA selected New Mexico State University as its first college located within the United States of America.
Jeff Thompson, the director of University Degrees Abroad, had the idea of starting a soccer academy with a European twist in Las Cruces. Before becoming the UDA director, Thompson served as an assistant women’s basketball coach at UNM and NMSU.
Thompson wanted to start the program at NMSU because of the familiar environment that he has called home for years; it just felt right.
For students looking to play Men’s Soccer at NMSU, this program is a huge opportunity given that no sanctioned program within Aggie Athletics competes in the NCAA. Students who look to participate in UDA must be a full-time student of NMSU or Dona Ana Community College and in a degree program.
As the program is in its developing years, it hasn’t amassed an ideal amount of funds to be able to offer scholarships to its student-athletes the way NCAA athletes do. However, the players can still take advantage of institutional and merit-based scholarships that are offered to them.
The program comes with a fee, but Thompson believes that it is beneficial to his players in the end.
“That’s part of what we bring to the table [when they pay the fee] is that we watch to see to make sure from an academic standpoint that they are succeeding,” he said.
“We will do as much we can to hopefully make them successful in this environment.”
Jeff Thompson says there are currently 30 students who are enrolled and participating in the program and hopes to make it a larger program as they get through the inaugural season.
COVID-19 has affected UDA as a whole just like every other athletic program at NMSU. It relies on travel from both in-state, out of state and international competition throughout their schedule, and now that there is a global pandemic, most of that travel has been halted for the foreseeable future.
Thompson has mentioned that competition is as close as El Paso, TX, however, he is reluctant about travel even happening there not only because of the hassle, but also the drastic differences that New Mexico and Texas have when it comes to COVID-19 regulations that are set in each respective state.
“That is really what has kept us out of it, you know going out to play now”
“If we do leave the state as non-essential type travel, then we would have to quarantine when we come back, even if it was to El Paso for a match,” Thompson said.
Most of the NMSU soccer team’s competition will come from the United Premier Soccer League (UPSL), an American professional development soccer league with over 300 teams across the country. Las Cruces is home to one of those teams, FC Grande.
Thompson aims to replicate the impact of FC Grande’s operation on its players and the City of Las Cruces in his program.
“They’ve [FC Grande] done a very great job of bringing this playing opportunity to the local community,” he said.
Other matches will up against some teams based in the United Kingdom. NCAA play will also be possible, held as “friendly-exhibition” matches. Thompson says in the works is a possible Eastern New Mexico University match in the near future, whose soccer team competes at the NCAA Division II level.
The team is already able to see action as they have been holding practices, with the bulk of interest surrounding Fridays, where they hold their scrimmages at 8 a.m.
Robert Ramirez is one of the student-athletes in the inaugural season of UDA. He is a native of San Antonio, TX, and majors in welding technology. He describes his daily routine, balancing soccer, school, and daily life, as a search for motivation from task to task.
“you always have to find some type of motivation for anything you do,” Ramirez said.
“every time I’m on the field I just like to think that it is my last time playing, you never know when you’re going to get injured.”
However, that mindset isn’t limited to just soccer but encompasses everything he does. Ramirez, who is currently engaged and hails from San Antonio, TX, is working towards a degree in welding technology while planning his career and future family life.
“I do everything full because it may be my last time, 100% in whatever I do on or off the field,” he said.
Ramirez says that this year is most likely his last year playing soccer before he moves on in life, and he looks to make the most out of it.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s cancellation of youth fall sports for the rest of the year shows how COVID-19 continues to impact athletics not only at NMSU but across the state and country.
UDA hopes to continue its season and journey as envisioned before the global pandemic and will carry on its operations until further notice.
This story was originally written on October 25, 2021
