Football Set To Kick Off Season Thursday Evening

The New Mexico Highlands University Cowboys will kick-off the 2023 season on Thursday evening as they travel to Portales, NM, to square-off against the Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds.  Kickoff at Greyhound Stadium is set for 6:00 pm.  Fans can watch the game on the Lone Star Network .

Cowboy Notes: 

The Series: Highlands looks to avenge a 34-18 loss to ENMU in the 2022 season opener in Las Vegas in a game played at Sanchez Family Stadium.  Eastern leads the all-time series with the Cowboys 33-13.  The Greyhounds have won three in a row in the series.  NMHU last win in the series came in 2013 with a 31-28 win in Portales.

Hudson File: Thursday's games marks the start of Ron Hudson's second season at the helm of the Cowboys.  Ron Hudson was introduced as the Head Coach at NMHU on January 6th, 2022.  Coach Hudson is a graduate of Muskingum College (OH) where he was a four-year starting center for the Fighting Muskies football team. 

In-State Rivals:  For the first time since 2015, the Cowboys will play Eastern New Mexico and Western New Mexico in the same season.  The 2015 contest against WNMU was the final meeting in the RMAC as the Mustangs moved to the Lone Star Conference to start the 2016 season. 

RMAC Coaches Poll: New Mexico Highlands University earned 23 points in the 2023 RMAC Preseason Coaches' Poll which was good for 8th place in the balloting of the 10 head football coaches in the conference.  The Cowboys were 3-7 overall and 3-6 in the RMAC in 2022. 

Roster Break Down:  This year's edition of the Cowboy's roster features 39 freshman, 14 sophomores, 24 juniors, and 22 Seniors.  13 states are represented on this year's roster with California (32), New Mexico (31), and Texas (16) leading the way.

Up Next: After Thursday's game in Portales, the Cowboys return to action on Saturday, September 9th, when they return to Las Vegas to host Western New Mexico University at 6:00 pm.

Home Schedule: The Cowboys will play six games in the friendly confines of the Sanchez Family Stadium in Las Vegas in 2023.  Season tickets for the upcoming season are available now at NMHU Tickets.

Keep Up With The Cowboys:  For all the latest news on NMHU Football, log on to NMHUAthletics.com and be sure to follow the team on X @NMHUFootball.