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Aggies keep on rolling; vie for C-USA title

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The NM State Aggies have added another game to their schedule: it’s the championship game for Conference USA.

Now 8-3 after a come-from-behind 38-29 victory at Western Kentucky Nov. 11, the Aggies have the most wins they’ve recorded in a season since 1965.

And they are also 6-1 now in conference play in their first season in C-USA. NM State’s opponent for the championship game will be Liberty, which remains undefeated in conference and is ranked No. 25 in the nation.

The championship game will be Friday, Dec. 1, at Liberty in Lynchburg, Virginia, at 5 p.m. Mountain Time. This will be the third time in just over a year the Aggies will play Liberty on the road. Last year, on Nov. 26, NM State defeated Liberty 49-14. In the third game of this season, Liberty returned the favor, beating the Aggies 33-17. That makes the C-USA title game a tiebreaker of sorts.

But there is other business to take care of before then.

The Aggies’ reward for defeating Western Kentucky and earning a berth in the Conference USA championship game is a trip to Auburn, Alabama, to face perennial Southeastern Conference powerhouse Auburn this Saturday, Nov. 18.

At 6-4, Auburn is having a down year for Auburn, but they’re still Auburn. They beat Arkansas last week 48-10, and have won three in a row by two touchdowns or more.

The Aggies’ final home game will be 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 25, against Jacksonville State at Aggie Memorial Stadium. Jacksonville State, which also has only one loss in conference play, is ineligible for the conference championship game since this is their first year competing as a Football Bowl Subdivision team.

For the second straight year, the Aggies clinched a postseason bowl berth, but we won’t know which bowl until Sunday, Dec. 3, when the pairings are announced.

Athlon Sports this week projected the Aggies might go to the New Mexico Bowl, which is Saturday, Dec. 16, in Albuquerque. One ESPN writer projected they could go to the New Orleans Bowl, also Dec. 16, in New Orleans. Another ESPN writer projected NM State to go to the Frisco Bowl, Tuesday, Dec. 19, in Frisco, Texas, north of Dallas. Conference USA has tie-ins with other bowl games, including the Bahamas Bowl, which this year, oddly, will be played in Charlotte, North Carolina, due to stadium renovations in the Bahamas.

For ticket inquiries and questions regarding the Dec. 1 C-USA championship game in Virginia, call the NM State box office at 575-646-1420.


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