NM State Aggies vs Prairie View A&M Panthers Men’s Basketball 12-3-17

I was still buzzing about yesterday’s Women’s Basketball and the football game.  Today’s Men’s Basketball game would be a nice way to indulge in some extra Aggie Love.  I’d listened to the guys’ last game, which was in El Paso versus UTEP.  The Miners’ coach had very suddenly quit earlier in the week from health concerns, so the team was a bit down and in transition.  The Aggies won 80-60.  Johnny McCants had another highlight reel jam in the game.  They had a great crowd of over 7,000 there for a Thursday night and up against a Cowboys’ game.  This was also the back end of a double header at the Don Haskins Center, where the Women played the UNM Lobos.  I wish NMSU had scheduled their basketball this weekend like that, instead of pairing the Aggie Women up with the football game.

                                         

I’d planned on trying to go to a couple Men’s games this season, since they’d scheduled some weekend afternoon games.  Embarrassingly, I also wanted an excuse to wear my new shirt that I’d picked up on sale at the University bookstore.  I’d gotten free tickets for this game from work.  Along with those tickets were passes to the Hub, the hospitality suite.  (That’s my nickname for it anyway.)  Since I had two tickets, I asked my co-worker, Jacob, to come with me.  I know he’s a big basketball fan.  We met at the Pan-Am Center an hour early.  I got there first.  Jacob arrived a bit after and hitched a ride across the parking lot on golf cart with a staff member he just met.  That should give you an idea of his charming personality.

The Barbara Hubbard Hospitality Suite

I didn’t even know this place was here.  It was added to the building well after it was built.  The suite is upstairs and overlooks the court.  Its window shades are usually drawn, so I’d never noticed it.  The walls of the room are covered in memorabilia from all the acts that had been there since the Pan-Am Center’s opening in 1968.  I should have wandered around and looked at them more.  I noticed a large plaque from a Reba McEntire concert and a poster from a production of Grease.  Jacob, who’d been there before, pointed out a mounted article, maybe from the 70’s, with Bill Cosby and “Mother Hubbard,” the lady who books the Pan-Am shows.  Jacob thought they should take it down because of his scandals.  I said, “I wonder how far he got with her.”

It was an intimate dining room and maybe about 20 people were inside.  I don’t know what you have to buy into to get in here.  There was a buffet serving fajitas.  Jacob said they were hot, but I must have missed the chili peppers, since I thought they were pretty good and I have little tolerance for spicy food.  They served beer and some other alcohol and water and some bad tea (which was what I had).  Some soft drinks would have been a good option.

Shortly after we got there, Athletic Director Mario Moccia and Football Coach Doug Martin came in.  I was sort of expecting Mario to come in and make a bowl game announcement at some point.  Seeing the coach was a bonus.  Certainly today, these guys are the heroes of Aggieland.  They immediately received a standing ovation. 

Mario addressed the group first.  He was wearing a t-shirt under his business jacket, promoting the Aggies’ bowl game.  “I’m going with a Don Johnson/Miami Vice look today.”  I knew he was scheduled to make a press announcement earlier in the afternoon, and indeed Mario confirmed that the Aggies had been invited to the Arizona Bowl at the end of the month.  By a strange twist, they’d be playing Utah State, the same team they’d played at their last bowl game in 1960. 

Mario also talked about the Aggies’ win last night was the lead story on ESPN college football and other national outlets.  It occurred to me just then that I should have watched the news and Stadium’s Rally show last night.  I did find Scott Van Pelt’s ESPN clip talking about the game later on Youtube.  He said that they were watching the end of the game intently to see if the Aggies could pull it off.  “Unless you were rooting for South Alabama or have no heart, how could you not be cheering for the Aggies?”  Scott’s congratulatory commentary was very heartfelt, especially given that they’d admittedly been ragging on the program for so long.  As little as I think of ESPN, Van Pelt said exactly the right things here and, I have to admit, this praise from this source really does validate the win for me. 

Assistant Basketball Coach David Anwar was introduced and gave a scouting report on today’s opponent, the Prairie View A&M Panthers.  Wow, talk about insider information for a game.  He emphasized that while they weren’t a well-known team, they were a good one.  They’d played a hard schedule to this point.  He pointed out a couple players that were their stars, who did play well during the game.  Coach Anwar even opened up the floor to questions.  I wasn’t sure I heard this right at the time, but someone asked for a comment on UNM losing to UTEP last night in Men’s Basketball.  (And they did shockingly lose.  More mocking laughter directed at traitorous ex-Aggie Coach Paul Weir.)

Coach Martin was asked twice to speak and finally relented.  He mentioned he got a lot of play call second-guessing from his assistant coach after the game, and then pointed at his wife, who was with him.  It’s good to see a couple share the same interests.  The Coach finished up his talk, just like you’d expect a good coach to, with an inspirational message.  “This university has been haunted by Old Man Can’t for too long.  We can’t win the games.  We can’t win the big games.  We can’t go to a bowl game.  Well let me tell you, we buried Old Man Can’t out on that field Saturday night.  And we did it with that shovel we won when we beat UTEP this year!”  Needless to say, another round of applause followed.

I had a chance to talk to Mario and could have asked if he’d noticed that the crowd for the Women’s game yesterday was half Lobo fans.  (I cannot get over that.)  But, he was on a high and had had a really busy two days.  It felt like an inappropriate moment.  Maybe I’ll run into him again in the near future.  Jacob and I left and ran into Chuck and his wife in the concourse.  Chuck’s the one who got me the tickets, so I got a chance to thank him again.       

 

I took a solo trip up front.  I was looking for cinnamon roasted almonds, which are my favorite Aggie concession item, but not sold at every sporting event.  I wanted to look for them at the football game, but was carrying too much to travel around.  The nut people had their table set up, but only had pecans.  They were good, but not what I wanted, and I ended up giving them to Jacob.  The grill was open, but I was full.  I do intend on trying their burger sometime.  Aggie sponsor, Sports Accessories had a table set up selling a pile of commemorative football shirts, probably just made after a long night’s work.  I said I was done buying Aggie shirts, except if the Aggies went to a bowl game, so I picked up one. 

I made it back to my seat just before the Anthem.  A local guy did a great version out on court with a color guard.  The Aggie team intro video was also really well done.  The regular PA was off today after a long day yesterday doing basketball and football.  The younger PA that I like too was in.  I think I can identify him as DJ Downs, a marketing guy at the University.  He did a good job here.  The crowd was okay for a Sunday afternoon at about 3,000.  The Cheerleaders and Sundancers were back out performing after a long day yesterday.  The Sundancers seemed to do most of the on-court performing for the game.    

                                         

First Half

Owing to my late arrival, I was unprepared for any note taking for this half and didn’t recover for 20 minutes.  I even forgot I had my radio with me.  I’d wanted to hear the pre-game show to hear Jack Nixon’s comments about the football win yesterday.  Our seats were at midcourt in the section overlooking the east tunnel.  They were good ones with a commanding view of the court.  Coach Martin and his assistant coach/wife were briefly sitting right below us.

 

A lot of my entertainment for the game was watching the two hyperactive coaches working on the sidelines.  You could hear Aggie Coach Chris Jans barking at the players and officials pretty easily anywhere in the arena.  Jans is so soft-spoken whenever I hear him interviewed on the radio, it’s quite a contrast.  There were other extra circular attractions.  The cheerleaders threw t-shirts into the crowd anytime the Aggies made a three.  There was also mass toss of football t-shirts that the crowd went crazy for.  Several pizzas were given away (and were handed to winning fans, not thrown.)  And there was a contest with two guys attached at the back by a cable trying to make shots at opposite ends of the court.  The biggest event for the game was the football team coming out onto court during a break.  The crowd loved seeing them and roared.  I think the guys there really enjoyed the adulation and they certainly earned it.

As for the actual game action in the first half, like I said, I was ill prepared and scrambling.  I ended up just jotting down a few random things.  My apologies.  The Aggies went up early.  The Panthers went to a full court press after going down 13-4 to start the game.  The officials had problems with the game clock which caused a couple of short delays.  It wasn’t an equipment issue this time at least.  The     Panther’s bench got a technical called on them.  Unfortunately, I don’t know what it was about.  (Should have turned on the radio.)  The Aggies picked up a bunch of fouls in the half.  The Panthers fouls didn’t really hurt them as the Aggies weren’t very good at shooting free throws.  Jacob, who’s a basketball coach, kept cringing at every miss.  The Panthers had the most embarrassing play of the half when they fired a cross-court pass that went straight into the crowd.

Local player, Joe Garza came in.  The crowd went into an uproar when Garza took a charge and ended up getting called for a foul.  From listening to other radio broadcasts, Jack Nixon, doesn’t seem to approve of the two local recruits, or at least doesn’t approve of the Las Cruces fans wanting locals on the team.  In Johnny McCants' case, I think he may be a future star in the making, so there shouldn’t be any bias against him.  The program probably could have recruited someone better than Garza, but his story of going from high school star to being on the Women’s practice squad to walking on to the Men’s team, earned him a profile in Sports Illustrated’s March Madness coverage last year.  That kind of good publicity for the University is priceless.   

The Aggies continued to lead, but their shooting went cold late, allowing the Panthers to catch up.  It was 32-28 Aggies at the half.  Seems like the scouting was correct, Prairie View was tough.

Halftime

Our halftime contest featured a guy playing for a car.  He had to make a layup, a free throw, a three-pointer, and a half court shot in 20 seconds, which didn’t happen.  A guy in the NBA might have trouble doing all that, especially having retrieve his own ball.  Next up was a troop of little girls from a local dance studio.  They did a good job and were cute.  The Sundancers came out to watch them from the sidelines.  The intermission finished with an extended fan Dance Cam.  The halftime stats had the Aggies shooting 52% from the field, with the Panthers shooting 40%.  The big difference for the Aggies was 9 assists to 0 for the Panthers.  The Aggies did a really good job dishing off to teammates to finish plays and finding the open man for a shot.

  

Second Half

I made a better attempt at noting the action for this half.  I think I like the Women’s format better with four quarters.  The action is a bit more intense and focused, though this format does make the game more of an endurance contest.  The Panthers certainly got a second wind from the rest and kept the score close.  Three minutes in, they’d closed the score to 35-33.  Still, it didn’t feel in doubt.  The Aggies started a run right after that.  With fifteen minutes left, Keyon Jones got a steal and a layup to make the score 42-33 Aggies. 

The Panthers took a timeout.  The contest on the court had a blindfolded guy crawling around on the court, trying to find a poster with the crowd directing him.  Something I took note of in this half was that the fans in the good seats are way more serious about the game than the rest of the crowd.  I was the only one there keeping a scorecard, but they were really paying attention and hanging on every play and calling out how they felt about those plays.  These fans have a real investment in the team, beyond just today’s ticket.

The Aggies started showing some good hustle.  Jermerrio Jones made a great out-of-bounds save with 14 minutes left.  Sidy N’Dir made a monster block on a shot, swatting the ball away.  Sidy has come back from an injury last season with a name pronunciation change.  Instead of “City Nadir,” it’s “City N-Dear.”  It doesn’t roll off the tongue as well, but is still fun to say.  12 minutes left and the Panthers went back to a full court press.  On their next possession, they missed an alley-oop jam.  Eli Chuha took off with the rebound for a layup. 

During a break, a Special Olympian volleyball player was honored on court.  A few members of the Aggie Volleyball team were with her.  I definitely saw Jordan George and Julianna Salanoa there.  I told Jacob about seeing Julianna palm a volleyball.  He was impressed.  In another break, a contestant had to putt from midcourt and try to hit a hole in a sign.   

10 minutes left in the game, and it was 49-40 Aggies.  The Panthers kept trying to take the ball inside during this half, but kept losing it when they drove the lane against the Aggies’ interior defense.  The Aggies busted out some of their best moves of the game.  Sidy got a steal and a slam to rev up the crowd.  Jemerrio took an inbound pass directly to the rim for a jam.  There was a great back door pass to a completely unguarded player right under the net for a layup.  (That one happened so fast, I didn’t the players’ names.)  Johnathon Wilkins had a great block on a fast break shot. 

With three minutes left and the Aggies comfortably up, some the crowd started deserting.  There was a promotion that if an opposing player missed two free throws in a row, everyone would get a free Chik-fil-a coupon.  In the last minute, a Panther missed his first free throw attempt and the crowd got all over him on the second shot, trying to get that free sandwich.  (He made it.)  I was surprised that Prairie View didn’t start fouling in the last couple of minutes, given that it was still close and the Aggies weren’t very good at free throws.  The last few minutes played out pretty quickly.  Our final: Aggies 69, Panthers 57.  Gary Blackson for PV A&M was the high scorer with 19 points.  Jermerrio Jones was our Aggie player of the game with 18 points.  AJ Harris also came up big with 17 points.  (Without the radio call, I don’t have any other stats to report.)

Right after the game, Jacob had to leave.  I think had night yard work to do.  (He’s a very hardworking man.)  I knew there was going to be a player autograph session after the game.  I kind of wanted to stay, but thought I should leave with Jacob.  Yes, I know.  By not getting their autographs, I’ve just ensured that one of these guys is going to be a future NBA star.  You’re welcome.  Though I was never there for a formal autograph session for baseball, I’m still regretting not getting a Daniel Johnson autograph a couple of years ago.  Maybe I’ll get another chance sometime to tell Joe Garza he’s my hero and call Johnny McCants, “Highlight Reel.” 

What-a-burger coupons were handed out at the door for the win.  I decided to go to Schlotzsky’s with a different coupon for takeout.  A couple of Aggie fans came in behind me, using a coupon on the back of their tickets.  These promotions are working out well for everyone.       

Well, that’s it.  It’s over.  I’ve been ruined.  This experience with the hospitality suite and these half court seats has spoiled any future experiences in the Pan-Am Center for me.  Actually, I lucked out in being at the Hub on such a momentous day.  I’m thinking that it’s not usually so noteworthy to be there for a pre-game meal.  Still, that was a very cool.   

NM State Aggies vs South Alabama Jaguars Football 12-2-17 Part 2

Continued from Part One.

Halftime

The team left the field and waved to the crowd as they went.  You could tell they were very pleased with the support.  Pistol Pete came by the section and was mobbed by a bunch of kids.  The Aggie Pride Band performed with the Sundancers, the Cheerleaders, and the flag corps.  At one point, the Band set down their instruments and line danced.  These groups also said goodbye to their seniors.  Meanwhile, the Jaguar Cheerleaders came back from the concessions with Frito pies.  Some little girls waved to them as they went down the stairs to the field.  Looking at the scoreboard stats, the Aggies had a bunch of penalty yards (I’ve seen conflicting amounts in a couple of sources, I don’t know what’s right), but they were great on third down conversions.  Even more interesting, after finishing off my large Dr. Pepper, I watched the halftime show and didn’t need to go to the bathroom until after the game.

Third Quarter

The Aggies got the ball to start the second half.  They worked a good drive downfield.  Most of the yards went through the air, including another great catch by Jaleel Scott (and he took a hard shot making it).  I think there was only one rush in the series.  But being pass-happy has its drawbacks, in this case, an interception in the endzone.  No problem.  DeMarcus Owens intercepted it right back a couple of plays later.

During a break, again at the endzone in front of me, a golfer was brought out for a contest.  He had to pitch tennis balls with an oversized wedge through the uprights from the 15 yard line.  He got three of four.  That was pretty good.  The team didn’t do as well, as there was a sack and a pair of dropped passes.  Then my radio went out with no power.  Ha, I had prepared for that and busted out my backup. 

During the change of the possession, the cheerleaders went by with a box of t-shirts to throw into the Student Section.  On their way back, the people in the cheap seats wanted a cut too, but one of the guys showed that the box was empty.  One kid at the rail still wanted the box and waved for it.  The guy almost gave it to him, but pulled it back.  Jaguar mascot Southpaw returned to the field after a break and the kids waved to him.  Pete would come back too in the quarter.  Also, there was this guy in a good suit and tie wandering around during the game.  He walked past me once, and I should have asked if he was looking for the Prom. 

Punter, Peyton Theisler, took a cheap shot after a kick, which backed up the Jaguars.  The Aggie defense held.  On the change of possession, Tyler Rogers found Jason Huntley on a deep ball down the sidelines to get into Jaguar territory.  Two pairs of rambunctious little boys started annoying the hell out of me at this point, as they played around me.  I would have moved if there’d been somewhere else to go.  And Tyler got sacked to end the quarter.

Fourth Quarter

Southpaw started dancing with some little Aggie fans.  This guy was a good mascot.  Hey, I just noticed that the Aggie Women’s Basketball team was sitting in the Visitor’s Section.  There was Tamera William again.  Unfortunately, she left early (big mistake on her part, along with anybody else who left early).  Down at the rail next to the field, I could see Gia Pack, high scorer from the game today.  I think another one of last season’s squad was with her, Moriah Mack.  I think it was her.  This girl was all smiles and standing and cheering the whole time.  Mo never did any of that when I saw her playing.  I almost feel cheated.  She has a great smile.                  

The fourth quarter started off with a 39 yard Dylan Brown field goal to give the Aggies a 16-7 lead.  After two blocked field goals last week, special teams really came together for this game.  The Jaguars came right back with a long drive that ended and a touchdown, 16-14 Aggies.  Moriah was upset.  She was really into the game.  The wave started in the crowd, but that died as everyone got angry over an uncalled pass interference penalty on the Aggies’ next possession.  The drive continued, though there was another uncalled pass interference.  The Aggies got into the Jaguars’ red zone anyway.  The crowd was really getting into it by this point.  Moriah was dancing.  (She was in front of me.  It was hard to miss seeing her.)  Southpaw was done for the night here.  He waved goodbye to the kids, who ran to the rail to see him off.

It was fourth and four on the Jaguars’ 17 yard line.  The Aggies went for it with a pass to the endzone to Jaleel.  The ball came out as he landed out-of-bounds.  Turnover on downs.  Yeah, this was a questionable play call.  Really questionable.  It became even more questionable as the Jaguars moved the ball right downfield.  A bomb to a wide open receiver, who then broke a couple of tackles, put them inside the Aggie 10.  The defense held here and Jaguars had to settle for a field goal.  17-16 Jaguars with five and a half minutes to play.  Athletic Director Mario Moccia probably started thumbing through his rolodex at this point, looking for available coaches.  

The kids that were bugging me left with their parents at this point.  Thank goodness.  However, pretty much everyone else committed to staying for the end.  The Aggies moved the ball downfield in clutch fashion.  They converted on three third downs, including a third and ten reception by Johnathan Boone and Rogers on a keeper on a third and one.  With a ball inside the Jaguars’ 20, the players started waving their arms to quiet the crowd, who were all standing by this point.  The fans and the players were now working as a unit.  We were all in this together. 

Larry Rose III took a rush to inside the 10.  During a timeout, the cheap seats started chanting, “Let’s go Aggies!”  Rose then converted on a third and one by half a ball length.  Sure, they were in easy field goal range, but a touchdown would force the Jaguars to go the length of the field, so going for it here was appropriate.  Tyler scrambled and rolled out.  He fired a shot into the endzone to a diving Connor Cramer.  Touchdown Aggies!  There it was!  The Winning Play right in front of me!  Let’s hear it for endzone seats! 

The two-point conversion failed.  After such a long drive, the Aggie defense only had to hold for 30 agonizing seconds, but hold they did.  Our final: Aggies 22, Jaguars 17.  The team charged the field.  The Student Section spilled out on to the field and met them in the middle.  Maybe it wasn’t a Chicago Cubs level victory, but this was the biggest football win for Las Cruces in nearly 60 years.  The crowd briefly tried to tear down the goal posts, but thankfully thought the better of it.  (The last time that happened, somebody lost a finger.)  Mario was probably out there screaming, “Don’t do it!  We can’t afford it!” 

I decided to stay up in the stands and watch.  It felt like the players’ and students’ moment, as well as the long-time fans.  Right in front of my section, one of the Jaguars’ players was on the field getting a talk from what I presumed was his parents.  I’m not sure if it was a lecture or they were consoling him.  Their coach was retiring after this game, so I’m sure there was some emotion on their side to send him off with a win.  At least, they didn’t lose to a team and fans that didn’t really care about the outcome.

Suddenly, Brooke Salas and Zaire Williams from the Women’s Basketball team walked past me, coming up from the field.  Apparently there were no hard feelings about Brooke nearly accidentally beaning Zaire during the game.  I would have liked to have congratulated them on having a good game, even in a loss, but never got eye contact, so I decided I shouldn’t bother them.  Then the guy behind me called out to them and congratulated them.  I give up.

The color commentator on the radio and former player, Cory Lucas, had to leave the air for a moment from tearing up.  The voice of Aggie sports, Jack Nixon, who’s never called an Aggie football team going to a bowl game in his very long career, said “It seemed like this day would never come.”  An official from the Arizona Bowl was on with Jack during the halftime show.  It’s not guaranteed, but they wanted us if we won. 

“Making History” was the motto for the day, as Tyler Rogers more-or-less told the team right before the winning drive.  I’m sure I speak for everybody in saying it was great to be there for this win.  I really hope this helps the program, especially next year when they’re unaffiliated with a conference.  They’ve suffered for so long, a little light at the end of tunnel seems in order.  I hope the city can finally feel a little pride in their football program.  It’s been so easy to get down on NMSU athletics, even programs that have done well, because the football team was bad.  Maybe everyone will finally start raising their expectations and cheering for the team wholeheartedly knowing that good things can happen.     

I’m keeping this ticket and not redeeming the coupon on the back.

NM State Aggies vs South Alabama Jaguars Football 12-2-17 Part 1

This was the main event for Aggie athletics this semester.  The Aggie Football team has been flirting with being bowl eligible all season.  It’s come down to the final game of the season.  They have to win or the dream is dead for another year.  This would not be a big deal for any other Division I College football team, unless you own the longest bowl drought in the nation at 57 YEARS!  That this program has won two Sun Bowls and had an undefeated season is barely in living memory.  If the Aggies won today, they’d be 6-6 and would actually qualify potentially for the Arizona Bowl in Tucson.  The last time they had a winning season (2002), nobody wanted them and there was nowhere to go.  For the first time, I’m actually glad about the ridiculous proliferation of bowl games.

For the moment, I can only chuckle that Aggie football is finally better off than our nearest rival, UTEP.  Their coach suddenly quit halfway into the season, and they finished their season 0-12.  UTEP was the only FBS team without a win this season.  And then their Men’s Basketball coach very suddenly quit earlier this week over health concerns.  Not to mention, their new Athletic Director also just started this week.  What a way to come into a job! 

Coach Chris Jans had scheduled his Men’s Basketball team practice for early in the morning so they could go to the game.  He’s been a pretty big supporter of the football team for a guy in his first season.  The original game time was moved back a half hour, perhaps to accommodate the Women’s Basketball game in the late morning and so they could go.   

For my part, I was finally going to a football game this season.  I’d had free tickets offered at work twice, but couldn’t find anyone to go with.  This time, since I was already at the university for Women’s Basketball and given the importance of the game (and $5 tickets), I had to go anyway.  Oops, maybe those cheap tickets weren’t such a great deal.  I ended up with an endzone “seat” (actually just a concrete step).  Maybe you had to buy before game day to get an actual seat for $5?  Judging from the crowd after the game started, maybe they sold out of every other seat.  You could redeem your football ticket for a $5 Men’s Basketball ticket on Sunday, which didn’t help me, since I had free tickets to that game.

Coming directly from the Pan-Am Center after a short hike, I ended up at the stadium about a half hour early.  The good news was that I was about fifth in line to get in, which would pay dividends.  The Aggie Softball team was working at the ticket gates, as I had seen them doing last year.  This group of girls didn’t seem too happy to be there though, perhaps anticipating a long, busy afternoon.  I recognized diminutive Brandy Hernandez, but I wasn’t sure about the rest.  The girls did their job and handed out pom-poms, souvenir shirts, and programs to those at the head of the line, including me.  Unfortunately, my second giveaway shirt of the day was an XL.  I gave mine away inside to a guy that I met inside that I thought it would fit.  I gave away the pom-pom at work the next day.

A few Aggie football players came by.  Some of them were very big.  Some of them were surprisingly small.  The Aggie Volleyball team was also standing nearby at the head of the Student line.  I was pleased to see Jordan Abalos and Hannah Combs were out of their casts and walking normally.  Brielle Sterns was getting around in a boot, instead of on a scooter.  I said, “Hi” to a couple of the girls, but didn’t want to intrude.  (Not true at all, but I restrained myself.)

Little Caesars’ has apparently taken over the pizza concession from Papa John’s.  I wouldn’t be happy about this, but the Papa John’s, while better pizza, was overpriced and cold when I had a slice there last year.  I meant to get a slice of pizza, but somehow ended up with a small deep dish, which was way more than I wanted (not that I didn’t eat all of it anyway).  So I was juggling a small pizza box, a large drink, my stadium seat, a cushion, a notebook, and a jacket and didn’t know where my seat was.  I finally stopped in the concourse and ate half of the pizza because I couldn’t take the hunger any longer and was afraid I was about to drop everything without getting a taste.  When I resumed my search, a guy from Chik-fil-a put a free sandwich card on top of my pile.  I tell you, they just throw free things at you at Aggie sporting events.  (Literally, the cheerleaders were throwing stuff into the stands here too.)

I finally broke down and asked for help.  I was directed to the north end zone, east side of the stadium.  I was next to the visiting team’s section.    There isn’t even an usher guarding the section.  I had to keep turning around to see the video board and scoreboard during the game.  At least I was real close to the field.  Maybe this would work out later.  I had my pick of concrete when I arrived, but the section filled in later.  The whole stadium filled during the first quarter.  Las Cruces really turned out for this game.  Beyond being a big game, it was a beautiful 70 degree day.  It became overcast later, but didn’t get cold at all until well after the sun went down.  The Student Section (next to the Visitor’s Section, of course) was stuffed, and they were standing for the whole game.

15 Seniors were honored on-field before the game.  Quarterback Tyler Rogers came out first.  Defense captain, Dalton Herrington, came out with girlfriend, volleyball captain Jordan Abalos.  Put a ring on her, Dalton.  I foresee some very athletic children in your future.  The biggest round of applause went to All-American running back Larry Rose III.  These were the guys that football coach Doug Martin had recruited when he was first hired. 

I couldn’t see the Aggie Cheerleaders or the Sundancers where I was, but I could see the five Jaguar Cheerleaders.  They were spirited at least.  There were two Pistol Pete’s at the team entrance: the mascot and the horse riding one, who leads the team on to the field.  The Jaguars’ mascot, Southpaw, walked out in front of them and had a staredown with the Pete’s, but they quickly all made friends and took pictures.  Some of the Aggie Pride Band actually lined up next to me in the endzone area before they marched on to the field.  That really brought the pre-game show up close.   

First Quarter

One of these days, I’m going to do a whole post where I never actually talk about the game.  The Aggies won the toss and deferred to the second half.  The South Alabama Jaguars didn’t do anything with their opening series.  I know the Aggies wanted a big crowd, but it seemed like the team was playing with some stage fright.  Their opening series featured a near fumble, a near safety, and a punt from their endzone.  Thankfully, it was a good punt. 

Something I might have missed if I had been sitting on the other side of the stadium, South Alabama had like a little meeting room set up on their sideline.  There was a partition and seats where the players sat to get coaching.  An assistant also held up a screen when their coach was sending the team signals, perhaps so the other team couldn’t see them, though the opposite sideline could. 

The Aggies’ second series was marred with several penalties.  Nerves, again.  They ended up turning the ball over on downs in Jaguar territory.  The Aggies were passing a lot as usual.  At least Tyler was getting good protection.  For the Jaguars’ third series, they rotated in another quarterback.  They apparently use two normally.  They began a steady march downfield.  A group of Aggie cheerleader girls came over to start a fight with the Jaguar cheerleaders.  Oh unfortunately, no.  That would have made Sportscenter.  They all just fake smiled and waved at each other as they passed by.  Southpaw did high-five the Aggie girls.  He’s smooth.

Second Quarter

Between quarters, there was a contest in the endzone in front of me.  Four guys were dressed as hamburger buns and had to build a burger with toppings.  It sounds kind of dumb when I write it, but it was reasonably amusing.  The Jaguars finished their first quarter drive with a touchdown to go up 7-0.  The Aggies got a good return.  A bomb to wide receiver, Jaleel Scott, would set up a Dylan Brown field goal, 7-3 Jaguars.  Next series, Shamad Lomax recovered a Jaguar fumble on their end of the field, which would set up another field goal, 7-6 Jaguars.      

On the Aggies’ next series, a third down pass to Jaleel was ruled incomplete.  A replay on the video board disagreed, as did the crowd.  A full house roaring brought a review, which overturned the call.  There was a close up on the video board of the Student Section cheering the call.  Hey, there’s Kayla Green from the Softball team.  With a first down, the series continued and ended in an Anthony Muse touchdown reception, 13-7 Aggies.  The Jaguars came back with a long drive deep into Aggie territory.  The defense stood up and held and ended the threat with a Terrill Hanks interception.  The half ended with Tyler taking a knee.

Continued in Part Two.

                                             

NM State Aggies vs UNM Lobos Women’s Basketball 12-2-17

Okay, this was the big day for Aggie sports.  The main event was going to be football this afternoon, but this was a great appetizer with the always highly contested UNM Lobos versus NM State Aggies rivalry.  I scouted the Lobos earlier in the week when they played the UTEP Miners in El Paso over the radio.  Both teams went into the game undefeated: Miners 4-0, Lobos 7-0.  There were 1,300 fans at the Don Haskins Center and a bunch of them were Lobo fans.  (It was also a double-header night with the Miner Men’s team playing right afterward.)  The Lobos won by 20, 59-39.  Miner coach, Kevin Baker, was amazingly ecstatic after the game in his post-game interview.  “Let’s see anybody else hold the Lobos to under 90 points this season,” he said.  (He also said the Miner girls need to be tougher.  “I’m going to tell our male practice squad to knock the girls around some more.”)

So with that preamble, I arrived at the Pan-Am Center about 45 minutes early for the game.  Tailgaters were already there for the football game all the way to the very end of the parking lot.  I bought tickets to both events at the ticket office.  Someone beside me questioned why the Women’s game tickets cost more than the football tickets.  They did boost the price of the Aggie/Lobo game and were selling cut-rate tickets to the football game.  They also asked me for my name when I bought the tickets.  We’ll see what comes of that.  Even coming early, I doubted I’d get the giveaway shirt.  (As if I need another Aggie shirt at this point.)  Surprisingly, there were plenty of them lying out.  There were two reasons for this, neither good.

Shocked, shocked I was looking at the seats when I came in to the arena.  It was mostly empty.  I just assumed there’d be a good crowd for a rivalry game, especially with so many people on campus for the football game.  I could see the girls practicing on court.  They kept glancing into in the stands in obvious disbelief and disapproval.  Again, I said, “mostly empty.”  While the Aggie booster section, which is usually full, was deserted, the visitor’s section was full.  The Old Man was there in his usual spot, literally surrounded by Lobo fans.  No wonder there were plenty of shirts available (though I did see one Lobo fan with one).

The Lobos came out on court to a rousing (and horrifying to Aggie fans) cheer.  I’m not sure what I was expecting, but they were a very diverse-looking bunch.  A couple were in leg braces.  A couple were big bodies.  There was one girl with a terrible hairstyle with little buns on the sides of her head.  I’d find out who she was soon enough.  In our Assistant Coach watch segment (I admit, they’re often the most interesting-looking group on the sidelines), the Lobos had a beautiful blonde woman that was very elegant-looking with a great smile.  Being on the other end of the court, she wasn’t able to distract me too much from the game.  Of course, the game itself would be very hard to look away from after it started.

The Roadrunner Review band broke out an “extended remix” version of the Aggie fight song.  They also spontaneously went wild when a promo played on the video board for The Last Jedi.  Taylor Swift’s Ready for It was one of the songs played by the DJ.  I bought her new album last week and picked that song as a good “sports” tune.  (Yes, I bought the Target version with the souvenir magazine.  It had a couple of great pictures of her cats.  The album itself wasn’t her best effort.  Ready for It and New Year’s Day, the first and last tracks, were the best on it.)            

About half the usual cheerleading squad was present for the game, along with the Sundancers and Pistol Pete.  The regular Aggie PA voice was there.  He had some low energy to start, but got into it quickly.  He needed to make sure not burn himself out early.  All these people would be working the football game later, and I pronounce them the hardest-working individuals of the day. 

I did see Tamera William from last season’s team (and from my encounter at the mall) in the stands.  (Wow, she’s still gorgeous.)  She gave a hug to the official photographer and a few boosters on her way to sitting courtside.  Tamera was smiles, but after the game started, she seemed a bit winsome (and looking at her phone, like everyone else in the world).  If she wished she were out there playing, me too.  She did perk up trying to get a souvenir shirt, of which the cheerleaders made two separate tosses into the crowd.  I think she got a Striking the Wonder Dog shirt (our tee-retrieving football dog).  I tried saying “Hi,” after the game, but didn’t get her attention.  (Hey, I wasn’t expecting a hug or anything.)

                                            

First Quarter

During the Anthem, a fat, old, hippy Lobo fan kept his seat, F-ing with his phone, but he did get up to cheer his team.  That was about the most of the notes I got in for this quarter.  It was incredibly fast-paced.  The Lobos took a quick 8-0 lead to start the game.  They dropped a pair of threes with about the same effort as an uncontested layup.  Wow, me hearing these girls on the radio was no preparation for seeing them in person.  Timeout Aggies.  The girl with the buns, Cherise Beynon, was unreal from behind the arc.  And it wasn’t just her.  A couple of the other Lobo girls were doing it too.  Thankfully, the Aggies got over that initial shock opening.  Brooke Salas came up with two steals and a block.  Gia Pack would start matching Cherise, shot-for-shot.  After 10 minutes, it was 32-29 Lobos.

Second Quarter

Events were still speeding along in the second.  I can barely read (or not read) what little notes I was able to take.  Brooke was still doing it on defense.  The Aggies were doing a good job rebounding, which kept them in the game.  Eventually, Tonishia Childress would knock down a three to give the Aggies their first lead of the game.  It didn’t last as the Lobos got a couple of strips and layups.  A cringe-y moment for the Aggies happened late when Brooke fired a fast break pass down court to Zaire Williams, who wasn’t looking back.  It nearly hit her in the head.  It was a bit awkward between them afterward.  52-48 Lobos at the half.

Halftime

The band started playing the Aggie fight song to end the half and then suddenly stopped part way into it.  They kind of left the cheerleaders hanging there out on the court.  They led the crowd to finish it anyway.  Nice recovery.  There was no halftime entertainment.  Okay.  Athletic Director Mario Moccia came by, working the sidelines.  He didn’t stay.  He was probably visiting the tailgaters in the parking lot and other stuff.  Well, here’s some stats from the video board (there wasn’t any radio call for this game for some reason):  Aggies 56% field goal shooting, Lobos 50%, Aggies 53% 3-point shooting, Lobos 67%.  These are NBA Jam video game numbers. 

Third Quarter

The shooting was stifled a bit as things got more physical.  Unsurprisingly, fouls were also getting called a lot more.  Lobo fans started off the third quarter standing, apparently until the Lobos scored.  (Aggie fans stand at the beginning of the game, until the opposing team scores.)  They ended up waiting about five minutes (maybe two and half minutes game time).  The Aggies scored 6 unanswered points to start.  The Lobos came storming back.  Memorably, N’Dea Flye went one versus three Aggies in the lane for an uncontested layup.    Madi Washington, with no points in the first half, suddenly started killing the Aggies from outside.  (Are parents just handing out Internet-searchable names for their kids now?)  Even the cheerleaders were stunned.  During a break, one of the girls forgot to bring out a sign to hold up while being held up by one of the male cheerleaders.  77-69 Lobos after three.

Fourth Quarter

Early, Jasmine Cooper ran into one of the goal posts trying to recover a rebound.  The crowd held its breath for a moment, but she came up smiling.  The rest of the team was also undaunted.  After being down by 11 to start, the Aggies came back.  Zaire got a fast break assist to Gia for a layup.  Zaire also hit a three to give the Aggies the lead again to cap a great run.  And immediately after that, the Lobos answered with their own three.  The kill shot was probably from Cherise a little later, as she hit yet another three right at the shot clock buzzer to put the Lobos up by 6 with a minute left.  Gia got a steal on a trap and a layup for the last Aggie highlight.  Our unbelievable final score: Lobos 101, Aggies 93.

The band played out the Aggie fight song to end the event.  The fans enthusiastically chanted along with it.  If they didn’t get to see the home team win and had to pay a “rivalry fee” for the ticket, at least everyone got to see a hell of a game.  I certainly didn’t feel cheated.  High scorer for the game was Gia Pack, whom I’m anointing the team leader after this game.  Lobo Cherise Beynon came in second with 30.  While I’ve had specific criticisms for the team after other losses this season, this time I got nothing.  When the opposing team drops 15 three-pointers on the Aggies, shooting over 68%, I’m just happy they could keep up.  The Aggies ran into a very good team today.  OMG, 194 points scored and I only missed one basket on the scorecard.  I’m giving myself a round of applause. 

There was one learned lesson here: Don’t schedule these basketball games, especially rivalry games, on the same day as football.  Even with a bunch of Aggie fans literally sitting in the parking lot next door, most don’t want to go to two events on the same day (or pay for two events).  They did this last week with afternoon football then an evening Men’s Basketball game, and I’m sure it actually decreased attendance for both.  No time for further reflection.  I was off on a short hike to the football stadium.  Aggie Football’s destiny awaited.

                                 

NM State Aggie Football and Men’s Basketball November, 25, 2017

During the Aggie Coaches Show, Men’s Basketball Coach, Chris Jans, made two honest pleas for Aggie fans to go to the football game on Saturday.  According to the radio call, there was a great crowd on hand for a late November game for Aggie Football versus the Idaho Vandals.  That is to say, it wasn’t a great crowd, but relatively speaking, there were more fans than usual for this time of year.  Later, running back Larry Rose III said he was impressed with the fan support.  Certainly, it couldn’t have been a more beautiful afternoon in Las Cruces and this was a meaningful game with the Aggies needing to win their last two games to be bowl eligible.        

With Tyler Rogers still injured, Nick Jeanty would be starting at quarterback.  He got his chance early.  An interception by Leon McQuaker on first Vandal drive, led to a Larry Rose III touchdown on a short field, 7-0 Aggies.  Idaho had more troubles.  They fumbled deep in their own territory which was recovered by Shamad Lomax.  Larry Rose added another touchdown for a 14-0 lead.  The Aggie offense got a long drive on their next possession, but that ended on a blocked field goal.  For the second quarter, the Vandals missed a field.  The Aggies then fumbled the ball on their end of the field, which was converted to an Idaho touchdown, 14-7. 

In the third quarter, the Aggies had another field goal attempt blocked.  Clearly the Aggies have some work to do on special teams.  The Vandals would convert on a field goal in the quarter, 14-10.  The Aggies would finally get a field goal in the fourth, 17-10.  The Vandals gave the Aggies a short field again on a bad punt, but Jeanty was intercepted in the endzone to end that drive.  Idaho had the ball inside of five minutes left.  They converted on one fourth down, but with three minutes left, the Aggie defense made a stop on another one.  The crowd was going nuts at this point.  The Vandals had a final drive.  The last play of the game was a Jaden Wright interception to seal the 17-10 Aggie victory. 

The Aggie defense definitely showed up for this game and closed it out.  They had 11 sacks.  The offense had problems as the game went along.  Jeanty’s arm wasn’t able to stretch the defense, so the Vandals were able to figure them out pretty quickly.  Those short fields they gave the Aggies really helped.  Okay, one game left at home and it’s a must win for the team to finally have a chance to go bowling.

It’s an Aggie triple-header here.  After this morning’s Women’s basketball game and this afternoon’s football, the Aggie Men’s basketball team would be playing the UTEP Miners tonight.  Jack Nixon, calling the football and the men’s basketball, is going to have to rest his voice after today.  The lower bowl was again full, like for the Lobo game (11-17-17).  Athletic Director Mario Moccia was very happy with that night’s attendance, especially with the students on break.  Many of them stayed in town to root on the team.  They may have been here again tonight.

It was a defensive fight to start with some poor shooting.  About halfway through the first half, the Aggies went on an 8-point run, but it was still tight.  One memorable play of the first half was Eli Chuhua making three attempts with two offensive boards, but it was Johnny McCants finishing it off with a jam.  Even apart from being a local kid, McCants is becoming a favorite.  He also had a great block this half.  Late, the Aggies went on a 10-point run.  It was 29-22 Aggies at the half.

To start the second, the Miners would tie it up and make it close.  The Aggies would go on a 9-point run with a pair of three’s.  McCants again had a two-hand jam to get the crowd worked up.  Late, the Miners started drawing a lot of fouls and going to the line, but the Aggies kept scoring.  The game went up tempo briefly and the Aggies took advantage of it to pad their lead.  The Miners were reduced to fouling in the final minute, but it was too late.  72-63 Aggies.  Stat of the game: UTEP had no offensive rebounds.  The teams face off next week in El Paso.  Jack brought up a silly issue in the pre-game; the programs disagree over their all-time records against one another, so who knows what it is.      

NM State Aggie Women’s Basketball November 24-25, 2017

I missed the ladies’ Monday home game win against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.  I was really busy coming back to work from vacation and didn’t expect a Monday game.  I still feel bad about it.  It was a good, close win.  I was able to catch their next two games, which were part of the UTEP Thanksgiving Classic invitational in El Paso.  The Aggies would not be playing UTEP in either of these games, however.  I listened to these games over the radio.      

I was busy in the morning on Black Friday after Thanksgiving.  While I was back in time to start watching a morning hockey game before the basketball, I was so busy with housekeeping duties, I basically wasn’t able to watch.  This was too bad, since it was a great game between the Bruins and Penguins.  The Bruins took it 4-3 with a third period goal.  I saw one of the players give his stick away to the crowd at the end of the match.  Meanwhile on another station, unranked Pitt, having a losing season, beat #2 and undefeated Miami 24-14 in college football.  Crap!  I just lost $10,000 on that “sure thing.”  Just kidding, but that was interesting to watch the end of.

The Aggies’ game was against the Texas Southern Tigers.  I don’t know anything about them.  Whenever I think I’ve heard of every college team, a new one to me pops up to play the Aggies.  In the first quarter, the Aggies came out hot and getting turnovers.  They went up by 9 at one point, but the Tigers came back and ended up equal in turnovers.  17-14 Aggies after 10 minutes.  For the second, both teams came out cold with lots more turnovers and misses.  25-24 Aggies.

Gia Pack came out firing in the third, and the Aggies went up by 7.  Brooke Salas put in three three-pointers and the team went to a pressure defense.  It was actually quiet enough there that you could clearly hear Aggie Coach Atkinson on the sidelines.  (Thankfully, she didn’t say anything off-color.)  By the end of the quarter, the Aggies were up by 12, 46-34.  It was all looking good. 

Our final score was 66-50 . . . Texas Southern!  I don’t think Adam Young even gave the final score after the buzzer.  What the hell happened?  How do you lose by 16, when you’re up by 12 at the end of the third quarter?  I was listening and I can’t even tell you.  Well, Gia Pack and Monique Mills were hurt during the game, but I don’t think that was it.  The Coach was terse afterward, so there wasn’t much of an explanation there.  The Aggies won the turnover battle, but were -10 in rebounding.  Brooke Salas had 25 points to lead the Aggies.  Only four Aggies scored.  On the other side, two players were responsible for 53 of the Tigers’ points.  Let’s forget about this one and reset for tomorrow.

Okay, it’s tomorrow (Saturday).  The Aggies were facing the Arkansas Razorbacks.  They lost to UTEP on Friday.  The Razorbacks were down by 20 at one point, but came back in the fourth and only lost by 3.  In the first quarter, Brooke Salas came out shooting well, but picked up two fouls early and sat out the second quarter.  Jeneva Toilolo contributed well off the bench.  17-11 Aggies.  The Razorbacks made a bunch of uncharacteristic turnovers.  They were leading the nation in not making turnovers.  Both teams came out pretty cold in the second, but the Aggies held the lead, 25-23.

In the third, the Razorbacks found their shot and went up by 11.  It was 47-40 Arkansas after 30 minutes.  The fourth was hard-fought.  Jeneva got a big basket to cut the lead to 2.  Zaire Williams made a near half-court shot in the last minute to cut it to 6, but the final was 69-60 Razorbacks.  Gia Pack was the Aggie high-scorer.  Brooke was second with a double-double.  For these two games, the Aggies just didn’t have a closeout defense to finish off their opponents.  They’re going to have to work on that.    

Right after the game, I turned over to KROD out of El Paso to see if the Miners were playing right afterward.  They were, but a half-hour later, which conflicted with Aggie Football.  I didn’t find out it was on until late in the third quarter.  While I had a rooting interest in the football, the basketball game was probably better.  If only one could know ahead of time when a sporting event was going to be interesting.  UTEP and Texas Southern were tied halfway through the fourth, but the Miners pulled ahead and won 65-55.  It sounded like there was a good, enthusiastic crowd there for the game.  The Lady Miners are 4-0 on the season so far.

NASCAR Recap November 19, 2017

I sort of meant to cover NASCAR’s Championship race at Homestead-Miami today.  The big news was that this was Dale Earnhardt Jr’s last race before retirement.  He might race a bit more, but not full-time.  I started this blog (actually on Myspace) doing NASCAR recaps and covering his ascendancy.  It felt like I should put a coda on it.  Unfortunately, I was at the hospital with my dad.  We watched a bit, but never got into it. 

Later at home, I ended up watching Stadium’s coverage of the Patriot League Volleyball Championship during the early part of the race.  American University beat Navy in straight sets.  This might be my last volleyball match of the year, unless I run into some NCAA Tournament action.  Morgan Uber (I can’t get over that name) was working the sidelines during the match.  Afterward, she interviewed the tallest player on AU.  This girl must have been over 6’5”, because she was at least a foot-and-a-half taller than Morgan.  They made an odd couple on screen.

 

I suppose all I really have to say about Junior is that future NASCAR fans (that may be a presumptuous assumption right there, assuming there will be any) are going to wonder what the big deal was.  He didn’t win a championship or that many races.  All the gushing commentators could really say about him was that Junior had won the Most Popular Driver award fourteen years in a row.  It’s telling that that was his major accomplishment.  The one year he was really in championship contention, he cussed on-air in Victory Lane and was docked points.  It was all downhill after that.  (Getting caught in a fire inside a Corvette at an ALMS race didn’t help either.)  It’s almost impossible to overestimate Junior’s value in mainstreaming the sport.  It’s also just as hard to explain how that happened.            

On a similar note, Danica Patrick was also taking her last regular turn at the wheel.  She’d had sponsorship troubles this year that precipitated this early retirement.  “The Danica Experience,” as I called it, had its moments, but was mostly just about her, not her on-track accomplishments.  Meanwhile, Matt Kenseth too was leaving after this race.  Though still racing at a high-level, he couldn’t find sponsorship to pay him enough to keep him employed either.  I still blame his first championship season, where he only won one race, for foisting “The Chase” on us. 

Along with Carl Edwards’ sudden retirement and Jeff Gordon hanging it up recently, there are complex issues with this sport that are forcing drivers out.  I don’t have the inclination to bother discussing them.  I just don’t care.  Now there is a definite problem for the sport: a former huge fan, rendered apathetic.  Maybe next year, during the Daytona 500, I'll have more to say and maybe some pointless suggestions.

Congrats at least to Martin Truex Jr, an easy-to-like fellow.  It would have been a shame if the best driver this season didn’t win the championship because of the stupid, gimmicky championship format.  There was even some drama at the end, with Truex and Kyle Busch fighting for the race and championship win.  NASCAR got lucky there.  I guess we’ll see how NASCAR handles not having Junior around on track (he’ll be in the booth) next year.