LAS CRUCES, N.M. - NM State will be the only FBS team in the nation playing football this spring and it will be doing so in the city of El Paso, Texas.
In an announcement made Friday by NM State athletics, the Aggie football team will call the Sun Bowl on the campus of UTEP its home for game action in the spring of 2021. The home of the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, the nation's second-oldest bowl game, the Sun Bowl is no stranger to hosting the Aggies as they have made numerous trips to the facility through the years to face off against Borderland rival UTEP.
On January 19, 2021, the New Mexico COVID-Safe Practices for Intercollegiate Athletics were amended so college teams could conduct full practices within the state for the first time since March of 2020. Games at the collegiate level, however, are still not permitted to take place within the state of New Mexico, necessitating the Aggies' move to the Sun City to play their out-of-the-ordinary 2021 spring schedule.
Currently the Aggies have two games on their 2021 spring slate and the dates for one of those games has changed as a result of the move to El Paso. NM State's first spring tilt of 2021 against Tarleton State will now take place on Sunday, Feb. 21 at 3:00 p.m. instead of Saturday, Feb. 20.
NM State's second and final game of its 2021 spring season has been set for Sunday, March 7, against Dixie State at the Sun Bowl. Kickoff has been scheduled for 3:00 p.m.
When it takes to the Sun Bowl this spring, NM State will be playing its first games in El Paso, Texas, against a team other than UTEP and in a game other than the Sun Bowl (a game which the Aggies appeared in during the 1935, 1959 and 1960 seasons) since Oct. 3, 1925, when it traveled to the city to take on El Paso High School (a 7-3 Aggie win).
For complete coverage of Aggie football through its 2021 spring season, visit NMStateSports.com - the official home of Aggie athletics - and follow the Aggies on Facebook (NM State Football), Twitter (@NMStateFootball) and Instagram (@NMStateFootball)
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