It was a “huge” week for everything going on with the Men’s Basketball team here at CSU Pueblo.
On Friday, October 4th, we had our first official practice of the season, which wasn’t considered a preseason workout. One thing most people don’t realize about college basketball is how early the official season begins.
It is crazy to think this is my last college basketball season, which has officially started. A few years ago, the rule always was for the first practice to be on October 15th, and the NCAA recently changed it. I am not sure about the specifics of the new rule, but it allows us to start team practices a little sooner but with a little more time off.
Practice was at 7 a.m. on Friday, and that evening, we also hosted a recruit that came in for Homecoming weekend, which always includes many events around campus. We met him at the volleyball game, which ended in an unfortunate Regis win in four sets.
On Saturday, Men’s Basketball hosted an elite camp for high school players in the area. It allows our coaches to evaluate and see where they are. I think elite camps are great ways for kids to show off their abilities and get in touch with coaches for a live, in-person evaluation of high school players.
After the elite camp Saturday morning, Football had a dominating 67-28 win against New Mexico Highlands, which is always fun in front of a large home crowd on homecoming weekend. We returned to the gym right after the game to play pickup with our recruit on his official visit.
After playing with the recruit, I returned to the apartment on the phone with my parents while they were in South Dakota for the 139th Black Hills Brawl. They went out to visit Rylan and catch the game this weekend at home for Mines.
At South Dakota Mines, everyone grows a mustache on the football team, and during halftime, there are the chariot races that the fraternities run. It was a great game, and Mines fell 22-20.
While it was homecoming weekend featuring the CSU Athletics Hall of Fame induction ceremonies on Friday evening, several Pack athletics attended a donors luncheon on Wednesday. I have been fortunate the past two seasons to receive the Harry H. Simmons Memorial Scholarship. I sat with Coach Simmons ‘ kids – Tim and Martha, at the event.
Alisha Little was also sitting at our table. She is the Sam Batey Sr. Scholarship recipient. Alisha had a fantastic season for the Women’s Basketball team last winter and, like me, returns for her final campaign as a ThunderWolve.
For your information, Sam Batey Sr. played four seasons in Pueblo. He played on the last two junior college squads (1961-1963) and the first two teams when Pueblo College became Southern Colorado State College (1963-1965). He was inducted into the CSUP Athletics Hall of Fame in 2012.
