NMMI Sports Press
It is the second year of the newly re-instituted junior college bowl game at the Wool Bowl stadium in Roswell, NM, and with it brings a new title sponsor, Xcel Energy.
“I’m so excited that Xcel Energy agreed to be the title sponsor,” said bowl committee chairman Joe Forchtner. “Xcel Energy powers this entire region. They’re an integral part of the community, and they have a huge interest in athletics. They’re involved in sports sponsorship at the highest levels, from professional teams all the way down through nearly every level of the college ranks. I can’t think of a better title sponsor and I’m proud to call it the Xcel Energy Wool Bowl.”
Xcel Energy has deep ties to New Mexico and especially Roswell, as Southwestern Public Service Company (SPS) is one of the three original companies that currently comprise this U.S regulated energy provider. SPS was originally established right here in the Pecos Valley in 1904 by Maynard Gunsell, as an electricity franchise for the city of Roswell and it’s then-population of 2,000 residents.
“Our roots go really deep in Southeastern New Mexico,” said Mike McLeod, Xcel Energy’s community relations manager for South Texas and New Mexico. “As SPS grew, we began to look at ways to strengthen our company through mergers, back in the late 90s and early 2000s. That is really what formed what is today Xcel Energy. We’re made up of four operating companies – Southwestern Public Service Company being one of those – along with the Public Service Company of Colorado, Northern State Power Minnesota and Northern States Power Wisconsin. At SPS, we still have our corporate headquarters here in Amarillo, and Roswell is the regional headquarters for New Mexico.”
Xcel Energy has signed on to be the title sponsor of the Wool Bowl bowl game for the next two years: 2023 and 2024.
“An opportunity like this with the Wool Bowl is a perfect fit,” continued McLeod. “As one of the sponsors last year, I got to attend the game, along with several other Xcel Energy employees. I had my grandkids down on the sidelines, and there is no better picture than looking back up into the stands and seeing all the families. Family friendly events are what we really love to support and see. So when Joe approached us this year about the opportunity to fill in as the title sponsor – and we don’t do that lightly, we take very seriously what events we put our Xcel Energy name on – we jumped at the chance.”
A big part of Xcel Energy’s company plan is community service – giving back to the states, cities and towns in which they serve, or, as their website proclaims it: “When our communities thrive, we all thrive.”
“We only grow and we’re only as strong as our communities,” said McLeod. “Wherever we serve, we believe in helping to support our communities to be strong and healthy. And part of that is providing a good product. We pride ourselves on providing a safe, reliable, affordable, and clean energy supply for our customers. We try to support customers with programs that can help them conserve energy and save them money. And that’s really part of our opportunity with the Wool Bowl game – it gives us a platform to engage with customers. At many events that we do, we’ll have a booth with some energy experts on site, where our customers can talk about programs and services.”
Other area events that Xcel Energy has been a part of include the Chili Cheese Festival, the Piñata Fest, and the UFO Festival. Upcoming are the Jazz Festival and the CASA Winer Wonderland. McLeod also said that the Xcel Energy Foundation also supports many area non-profits as well, such as the Roswell Museum and Art Center, the Roswell Literacy Council, and Harvest Ministries, just to name a few.
As for the Wool Bowl, it is one of only a handful of football bowl games left for junior college competitors. Last season there were just three bowl games sanctioned by the National Junior College Athletic Association, along with a four-team national championship playoff, of which those bowl games could be a part.
“This is the only bowl game in the 575. It’s this community’s bowl game – it’s ours,” said Forchtner, who also served as the head coach of New Mexico Military Institute’s junior college football team for nine seasons, from 2012 to 2021. “We try to make it an event, not just a football game. Last year in the bowl’s first year back, we had a great turnout. And for the people who came, they experienced a great game, fireworks, food trucks, helicopters, an excellent halftime show, our sponsors’ tents, etc. This year we want to improve it and make it bigger, but that doesn’t happen without the support of the community.”
The history of Wool Bowl as the venue for a junior college football bowl game goes back to the mid-1960s; it was held for 16 straight years, from 1966 to 1981.
The New Mexico Military Institute participated in six of those previous bowl games at the Wool Bowl, with a record of three wins, two losses and one tie.
The NMMI Bronco football team would be one of the first teams considered to play in the bowl game, provided they are ‘bowl-eligible’ with a winning record during the regular season. This year’s Bronco team is already close to that eligibility mark: with a 4-3 record thus far, they need just one more win, with three games still remaining in the regular season.
Last year, in the bowl game’s resurrection, the No. 9 Broncos edged out No. 11 Lackawanna College – a team from Scranton, Pennsylvania – by a score of 28-26, giving them their fourth official Wool Bowl title.
“It’s just a great event and Joe and the bowl organizing committee proved last year they can bring quality football to this area,” finished McLeod.
This year’s Xcel Energy Wool Bowl will occur on Friday, December 1 with a 6:00 PM MST kickoff. The public is encouraged to attend and tickets can be purchased in advance online at the woolbowl.net website.