One way or another, Aggie-Lobo rivalry is history
Grandpa, what was the Lobo-Aggie rivalry? Well, buddy, it was important a long time ago. People here had a thing for men’s college basketball, and the teams from the University of New Mexico and New Mexico State used to play twice a year — once in Albuquerque, once in Las Cruces. Had a lot of interest here. Believe it or not, it used to be important a long way from the state, too.
No way! Really?
Yup. Believe it not, way back in the 1960s, the Lobos and Aggies were regularly in the top 10. They were so good, the state built them two nice arenas to handle all the fans. It may have been one of the most forward-thinking things New Mexico ever did.
The one in Albuquerque is called The Pit. It used to hold about 18,000 people until they decided to turn it into an airport lounge for fat cats that occasionally held a basketball game. The one in Las Cruces is called the Pan American Center. It was actually the real Pit — loud and nasty when it was filled. But the lounge was always outside: Students used to get tanked up for a couple of days before the Lobos or UTEP showed up. Really. They’d camp out to get the seats near the floor. Easier to spit at the Lobos that way.
Who had the better program?
Don’t tell your grandma I said this or she’ll start singing the Aggie fight song, which is really a drinking song.
It was the Aggies. You can look it up. They’ve been to a lot more NCAA Tournaments and once, back in 1970, went to the Final Four. The Lobos never made it to the Sweet 16. Their best chance was in 1978, when all they had to do was beat Cal State-Fullerton in the first round before going back to Albuquerque for the West Regional. But the Lobos lost. Ever want to get a Lobo real mad? Ask ’em about Cal State-Who? Or better yet, ask ’em if they ever beat Harvard.
Harvard?
Yeah. But that’s another story.
So, I know the Lobos and Aggies are playing now. But why doesn’t anyone care?
Well, that’s a little complicated. For
one thing, college sports, the kind that are played in front of real people, aren’t that big a deal anymore. They’re more like pro sports: players get paid and coaches make enough money to retire to Belize before they’re 40. Those big arenas in Las Cruces and Albuquerque weren’t even half-full for a long time, and it wasn’t just because New Mexico State played in minor conferences and New Mexico couldn’t beat Air Force.
See, it all changed in 2022. It was sad. There was a fight at a Lobo-Aggie football game — don’t get me started on football — and some kids from UNM decided they’d get revenge when the Aggies came to town for basketball. A New Mexico State basketball player sorta got enticed to go to a UNM dorm and he brought a gun. When he got attacked by a UNM student, he shot and killed him. The schools canceled the games that year.
Did they play again?
Oh, sure. They huffed and puffed — Aggies and Lobos like to do a lot of huffing and puffing like they’re important; they don’t understand Kentucky and UCLA and Duke don’t know they exist — and they finally got back to playing. But only one game a year; not home and home as they’d done for decades.
Truth is, the coaches never really wanted to play each other twice. It had a lot to do with their power indexes or whatever the computer geeks use to determine who got into the tournament. But that’s what college sports turned into. The guys with the influence weren’t power forwards or point guards, but TV networks and accountants. That’s why UCLA is playing a Big 20 conference game at Rutgers tonight. I know you’re not going to watch, but I’ll tune in for a couple of minutes before Grandma makes me take my Metamucil. I won’t get to the end. Makes me sleepy.
So if the Lobos and Aggies didn’t play each other twice after 2022, who did they play?
Well, it’s interesting. The Lobos got themselves into tournaments like the Clorox-Costco-California Raisins Shootout. It’s in Bakersfield. I think Utah Valley and Missouri-Kansas City were in that tournament, so the Lobos jumped at the chance. The Aggies just scheduled another game against Western New Mexico before their big conference matchup against Texas-San Antonio. Or is it Texas-Pan American? I can never keep the hyphen teams straight.
Wouldn’t you want to play Duke or North Carolina?
You would. But like I said, the Lobos and Aggies aren’t at that level anymore, not even for a road game. It’s not all their fault. The big conferences just gobbled up all the schools that draw a lot of TV sets. We don’t have a lot of TV sets.
Sounds like you sorta miss the Aggies and Lobos from the old days, Grandpa.
Well, bud, I do. There’s actually a pretty proud history in that rivalry. These names mean nothing to you, but I remember them: Petie Gibson. Sam Lacey. Jimmy Collins. Lou Henson. Norm Ellenberger. Bob King. Ron Nelson. Slab Jones. Marvin Johnson. Dave Bliss. Michael Cooper. Sam Crawford. Randy Brown. Neil McCarthy. Rob Robbins. Luc Longley …
Grandpa, I’m sorry. I gotta go. There’s an esports game on my cellphone that me and my buddies are gonna watch. Oh, yeah? Who’s playing?
It’s Texas-Permian Basin against Southern Oregon. Big game!