Perhaps you saw or were at the University of New Mexico’s inaugural football game of the 2011 season last Saturday. Perhaps, like myself, you were disappointed in what looked like it could have been a reversal of the losing trend. Perhaps the last-second penalties and resulting turnover were just a little too much. Perhaps you’re thinking that there is nothing good happening in the Lobo Nation until the arrival of our basketball season—if even that will offer respite.However, I’m here to tell you that, despite our tumultuous start to a young football season (which can still be saved, by the way, regardless of losing the first game and regardless of it being one of the games I’d circled as one we could and should win) there are still many reasons to be excited about UNM’s teams. Our local university may not rank up there with the Oregons or LSUs, and maybe not even the Cals or Texas Techs, when it comes to football.Fortunately, there are many other sports where we are doing just fine, if not outright excelling. Recently, our women’s cross country team was ranked, before the start of the season, as the No. 2 team in the nation. Despite losing to Northern Arizona University last weekend, our volleyball team had three members make the all-tournament team. Our women’s soccer team continued the winning ways of New Mexico with a 1-0 triumph over the Gauchos of UC Santa Barbara.Perhaps most impressively, the Lobo men’s soccer team is thus far undefeated, with a big tournament coming up here in town. The soccer team has some big shoes to fill and is looking forward to a good season after a middling disappointment last year.With the sole exception of the cross country meets, all of these sporting events can be seen via a new ticketing experiment UNM is trying out, the Olympic Sport Pass.For an adult, $50 will get admission to all women’s and men’s soccer games as well as the volleyball games. Next semester, as the madness of basketball is fading away, the same pass can be used for admission to the baseball and softball home games.So as the football season progresses, I’d urge everyone to expand their horizons. Continue to support our cherry and silver football team, sure, but think about branching out and seeing some of the other kids at the university do what they do best, and oftentimes, win the game while doing so.
Other Lobo Sports Offer Football Relief
Olympic Sport Pass A Good Idea
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