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Dec. 9—There’s always a local connection.
And in the case of this year’s Isleta New Mexico Bowl, there’s a couple to choose from.
With TCU and Louisiana-Lafayette set to square off in the New Mexico Bowl on Dec. 28, the Horned Frogs in particular will be rekindling a few local connections on their visit to Albuquerque.
For instance, those of TCU head coach Sonny Dykes. The son of former Texas Tech coach Spike Dykes, the 55-year-old lived spent part of his childhood in Albuquerque while his dad was coaching at New Mexico in the late 1970s.
“Bill Mondt was the head coach, Rocky Long was (on staff) and I was a third-grader at Comanche Elementary School,” TCU’s third-year head coach chuckled during a press conference Monday. “That’s my deal. And my brother and sister both graduated from Sandia High School, so we have some strong ties to the area.
“Weren’t there for a long couple of years, but we’ve had some family that’s lived there through the years. And have obviously gotten back to Albuquerque several times … It’s a great city.”
Of course, a few of those return trips took Dykes back to University Stadium. While he was on staff at Texas Tech from 2000-06, the Lobos and Red Raiders played twice in Albuquerque — including a 27-24 UNM win on Sept. 11, 2004.
“It’s a tough place to play,” Dykes said of University Stadium. “Rocky did a tremendous job with that program and it was never much fun coming to Albuquerque and having to play against those New Mexico teams.
” … We’re looking forward to spending some time in the city and doing some things with our players that are a little bit unique and different, some things they’ve probably never done before.”
While TCU has no players from New Mexico on its roster, Dykes isn’t the only coach on staff with connections: Albuquerque native and La Cueva High School graduate Mark Cala…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/tcu-enters-isleta-mexico-bowl-040200100.html
Author : Albuquerque Journal, N.M.
Publish date : 2024-12-10 04:02:00
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