ALBUQUERQUE − The New Mexico State and Fresno State football team held their final press conference before Saturday’s Isleta New Mexico Bowl at University Stadium in Albuquerque. Kickoff will be at 3:45 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN.
The Aggies are 10-4 on the season and Fresno State is 8-4.
Aggies QB Diego Pavia ready to go
Pavia returned to practice in preparation for the bowl game and said he’s ready to give his best effort in trying to help the Aggies win their 11th game of the season.
Advertisement
“I feel confident in my ability to play the game with the swagger I do and I feel confident,” he said. “I’ll do anything for my teammates.”
Fresno State acting head coach Tim Skipper called Pavia a “magician.”
Pavia injured his throwing shoulder in the second half of the Conference USA title game against Liberty.
Aggies just one of three teams to play 15 games
New Mexico State will finish with 15 games this season and will join the national champion and the runner-up as the only three teams to have that many games this year. New Mexico State got an extra game due to playing at Hawaii and also played in the Conference USA title game against Liberty.
Advertisement
Coach Kill on the importance of the game for NM
Head coach Jerry Kill said this game is not just important for Las Cruces but for the entire state.
“This game is important for everyone and puts a spotlight on New Mexico,” Kill said. “New Mexico has good football and there lots of good players here.”
The first New Mexico Bowl was in 2006. The Aggies are making their first appearance in the game and Fresno State is making its fourth, including a 31-24 win against UTEP in 2021.
Advertisement
Fresno State QB also back in action
Fresno State’s quarterback is also expected to return for the game on Saturday. Mikey Keene threw for 2,596 yards and 21 touchdowns during the regular season and he said Friday, he is ready to go and excited about returning to help the team get back to where it was before a three-game losing streak to end the season.
Skipper comes from coaching family
Skipper, who played at Fresno State and coached on the college level for several years, comes from a family coaching background. His father Jim has coached for four decades, including several NFL years with current Denver Broncos head coach John Fox in Carolina and time in the USFL, XFL and NCAA; he began his second stint as the Carolina Panthers’ running backs coach in 2013. His brother, Kelly, has been in the profession since 1989 and currently coaches running backs for the Buffalo Bills. Kelly was an All-American RB at Fresno State.
Game is important for Fresno State coach Tedford
Fresno State coach Jeff Tedford won’t coach in the game as he deals with health issues but he was on the mind of Skipper, Keene and Levelle Bailey.
All three praised Tedford and what he’s done for them on and off the field and the importance of winning the game in part for Tedford.
Kill talked about Tedford during the NMSU portion of the news conference, saying college football needs the likes of Tedford in the game.
Advertisement
Aggies’ unique bowl history
Entering Saturday, the Aggies hold an all-time record of 4-0-1 in bowl games, making the Aggies the only program at the FBS level with at least one bowl appearance and no losses.
More: NM state football news New Mexico State football earns more postseason accolades
Felix F. Chavez can be reached at fchavez@elpasotimes.cm; @Fchavezeptimes on X (Formerly Twitter)
New Mexico state leaders know the best way to get more kids to graduate is to get more of them to go to school every day, and that means giving students a reason to show up.
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – New Mexico state leaders know the best way to get more kids to graduate is to get more of them to go to school every day, and that means giving students a reason to show up.
State lawmakers are hoping to do just that with a new, modernized set of high school graduation requirements focused on teaching kids the skills they need to thrive in the real world.
“I think it could have a huge impact, and I hope that it will,” said Albuquerque Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Gabriella Blakey.
Advertisement
Blakey says the state’s new high school graduation requirements are not a one-size-fits all approach, and that’s the point.
“It’s really connecting students to like why they go to school, and really finding what their own passions and interests are, and not making every student’s career path in high school look the same,” said Blakey.
Students will still be required to earn 24 total credits, including four units of English, and four units of math. Although, Algebra 2 will no longer be required to graduate.
“We have opened up opportunities for students to make wise choices about their career and make wise choices about their interests and strengths in order to support a really strong mathematics pathway through their four years of high school,” said Amanda Debell, deputy secretary of the Public Education Department.
Students will still need three units of science, and four units of social studies, which must include some type of financial literacy coursework.
Advertisement
“So students are learning when it’s appropriate time about money and their financial lives, post and during high school, because many of them are earning money now,” said Debell.
There are still PE and health class requirements, but the biggest change is coming to the electives. Individual school districts will get to decide on two credit requirements for their students based on local input.
“For example, we see districts offering more agricultural type electives because they are in an agricultural area, or we see additional language courses being added as a requirement,” Debell said.
Giving New Mexico’s students more power over their future.
“By being able to open up these credits in this way, we’re really able to tailor a more personalized environment for our students. And our students really tell us that that’s what they want,” said Blakey.
Advertisement
The incoming freshman class, the Class of 2029, will be the first class to graduate under these new requirements.
PED leaders say districts will have to decide on those extra two credits in the next few weeks.
ALBUQUERQUE, NM – May 19, 2025 – The Cibola National Forest and National Grasslands will implement Stage 1 Fire Restrictions on all National Forest System (NFS) lands in the Magdalena Ranger District as described per order 03-03-03-25-08 and as shown on the attached map.
This Order shall be in effect from Thursday May 22, 2025 at 8:00 AM through Thursday July 31, 2025 at 2359, unless rescinded.
The purpose of this Order for Stage 1 Fire Restrictions is to reduce the risk of human-caused wildfires during periods of high fire danger and severe fire weather conditions.
