Aggies Trying to Change Reputation : Football: New Mexico State, once called the nation’s worst team, is 4-5 going into today’s game against the Titans.

The New Mexico State football team spent a week in the national spotlight in September, but instead of shielding their eyes from it, as they have in the past, the Aggies basked in it.

After being called “The Worst Team in America” in a Sports Illustrated college football preview article, New Mexico State opened the season with victories over Weber State, New Mexico and Texas El Paso, the Aggies’ best start since 1975.

The New Mexico State sports information office was bombarded with media requests. ESPN, the ABC national radio network and radio stations and newspapers from around the country wanted to talk to Aggie Coach Jim Hess and his players.

Hess, whose first New Mexico State team earned national notoriety by extending the country’s longest losing streak to 27 games in 1990, probably did more interviews the week after the UTEP game than he ly did in his first two seasons at the school.

Sports Information Director Steve Shutt spent mornings shuttling players between phone lines in his office, trying to accommodate as many requests as he could.

“It reminded me of last March when our basketball team was getting ready to go to Albuquerque for the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16,” Shutt said. “The attention was unbelievable. It was something we hadn’t experienced in quite awhile.”

It didn’t last long, though. The Aggies lost their next two games, to Utah State and Kansas State. And after an impressive 40-10 victory over Nevada Las Vegas, New Mexico State has lost three consecutive games entering today’s Big West Conference game against Cal State Fullerton.

The phones are no longer ringing off the hook in the sports information office, but at least they’re still ringing, which means someone cares about Aggie football this time of year.

New Mexico State (4-5) has as many victories as it had in the last three seasons combined and still has a chance for its first winning season since 1978.

“Things are definitely more quiet now, but requests are still far above what they’ve been in the past,” Shutt said.

Around New Mexico State, that’s only one sign of progress. Increased football funding has allowed Hess to allocate some 75 scholarships this season, and the team’s new weight room is one of the nation’s largest.

The Aggies put a quality product on the field--their quarterback, Charles Puleri, has passed for 2,002 yards this season, they have a solid running game and an excellent receiving corps--and that has resulted in a significant boost in attendance. The team is averaging 21,500 fans per home game, up from 13,993 last season.

“This program was the worst in the country at one time, but we’ve inched forward,” Hess said. “We haven’t jumped forward in leaps and bounds. When you take over a program with no budget, no players, no academic system in place, anything forward is an accomplishment.”

A four-victory season would seem to be a major accomplishment, but after New Mexico State’s fast start, Hess would consider it a disappointment. The Aggies close with Fullerton and San Jose State, and a split would satisfy the coach.

“It’s been a joyful and sorrowful season all at the same time,” Hess said. “We still have a chance for a winning season and four wins is more than we’ve had in a long time. But if we can’t win one of the last two, I’d consider it a failure.”