Rio Grande Rivalry

The Rio Grande Rivalry is an annual points-based intercollegiate athletics competition between the University of New Mexico and New Mexico State University. The current format of the rivalry, awarding each school points based on victories over the other in head-to-head competition, was introduced prior to the start of the 2007-08 academic year. Each head-to-head contest between the institutions in any NCAA varsity sport is worth 1.5 points, with the exception of American football, which is worth 3 points, and baseball and softball, in which each game is worth .75 points. The point totals are tabulated at the end of the academic year and a traveling trophy is presented to the school with the greater accumulated points total. The trophy is to be officially presented to the winning school at its first home football or men's basketball game against the other school during the following academic year.

Prior to the institution of the current all-sports format the annual head-to-head matchups between the UNM Lobos and NMSU Aggies, particularly in football and men's basketball, were often referred to as the "Battle of I-25" in recognition of the campuses both being located along that interstate highway.

The University of New Mexico celebrates the rivalry with the Red Rally, an annual event which takes place the Thursday evening before that year's UNM-NMSU football game, in which an effigy of an Aggie is set on fire.

New Mexico won the 2007-08 Rio Grande Rivalry by a cumulative score of 16.25-6.75.

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Football

The rivalry between New Mexico's only two NCAA Division I institutions dates back to 1894 - eighteen years before New Mexico achieved statehood - when the schools met in a football contest in Albuquerque. By the time New Mexico entered the union in 1912 UNM and New Mexico A&M (as NMSU was known prior to 1959) had already met on the gridiron six times. Beginning in 1993, the two universities played for the Maloof Trophy, but it was short lived- the trophy was retired in 2000. Although the rivalry remains spirited the Lobos have historically dominated the series, holding a commanding 66-28-5 all-time advantage and currently holding a six game winning streak against the Aggies. Most recently the Lobos defeated the Aggies 35-24 on September 27, 2008 at Aggie Memorial Stadium in Las Cruces. The most recent NMSU victory in the series came in 2002 when the Aggies won 24-13 in Las Cruces.

Men's Basketball

The men's basketball series between the schools has been much more competitive, although UNM holds the all-time advantage in that series as well. Currently Lobos hold a 106-94 advantage all-time over the Aggies. The most recent meeting in the series was a 83-69 Lobo victory at The Pit on December 19, 2007, snapping a two game losing streak to the Aggies. The Aggies had previously defeated the Lobos 71-62 on December 4 in Las Cruces. The December 19 contest was the 200th all-time meeting between the schools.

The UNM-NMSU series is somewhat unique among non-conference rivalries in that the schools traditionally play a two game home-and-home series each season. Most other rivalries in which the schools are not members of the same conference usually only meet once per season. Although a few individuals have proposed cutting the series back to a more conventional single annual meeting, fan sentiment at both schools remains strong for preserving the traditional two meetings per season format.

Women's Basketball

The women's basketball series between UNM and NMSU has been defined by extended streaks of dominance by one program over the other. Prior to the mid-1990's the Roadrunners (as NMSU's women's programs were known prior to 2000) were dominant, winning the first meeting by a 57-53 tally on February 1, 1974 and proceeding to win 24 of the first 35 meetings between the schools. Between 1985 and 1995 NMSU ran off a streak of 16 consecutive wins over their in-state rivals. It should be noted that this stretch also covered a two year period in which UNM did not field a women's basketball team. However on November 24, 1996 UNM turned the tables on NMSU in a big way. The Lobos' 48-47 win on that day in Las Cruces started a 22-game winning streak by UNM over NMSU that continued unbroken, despite a few close calls, through the 2006-07 season. But on December 2, 2007 the Lady Aggies ended 11 years of frustration against their instate rivals by knocking off the Lady Lobos 58-42 at the Pan Am Center. The all-time series now stands at 34-25 in favor of UNM, after the Lady Lobos beat NMSU 62-56 on December 21, 2007, at The Pit in Albuquerque. Like the men's teams, the UNM and NMSU women also traditionally play two games per year against each other, one game in each city.

Rio Grande Rivalry Championship