Current position | |
---|---|
Title | Athletic director |
Biographical details | |
Born | September 3, 1967 |
Playing career | |
1986–1989 | New Mexico State |
Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
1993–1997 | New Mexico (Assistant AD) |
1997–1998 | Southwest Texas State (Associate AD) |
1998–2006 | Missouri (Associate AD) |
2006–2014 | Southern Illinois |
2015–2025 | New Mexico State |
Mario Moccia is the former director of athletics for New Mexico State University. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] He previously served as athletic director for Southern Illinois University Carbondale from 2006 to 2014, [6] [7] [8] as an associate athletic director at the University of Missouri from 1998 to 2006, as an associate athletic director at Southwest Texas State University from 1997 to 1998, and as an assistant athletic director at the University of New Mexico from 1993 to 1997. Moccia attended college at New Mexico State University, where he played on the New Mexico State Aggies baseball team.
Moccia was named athletic director at New Mexico State University on November 24, 2014. [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15]
He signed a new five-year contract in July 2019 which runs through the 2023–24 academic year and pays him $280,000 annually. [16]
He was fired from NMSU on January 2, 2025, following an investigation by the New Mexico Department of Justice in the culture within the 2022-23 NMSU basketball team, namely a lack of discipline and a failure to protect student workers and players from sexual hazing and sexual assault committed by student athletes. [17]
Las Cruces is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico and the seat of Doña Ana County. As of the 2020 census the population was 111,385, making Las Cruces the most populous city in both Doña Ana County and southern New Mexico. The Las Cruces metropolitan area had an estimated population of 213,849 in 2017. It is the principal city of a metropolitan statistical area which encompasses all of Doña Ana County and is part of the larger El Paso–Las Cruces combined statistical area with a population of 1,088,420 making it the 56th largest combined statistical area in the United States.
New Mexico State University is a public, land-grant, research university in Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1888, it is the state's oldest public institution of higher education, and was the original land-grant institution in New Mexico. NMSU is a university system, with its main campus in Las Cruces and satellite campuses in Alamogordo, Doña Ana County, and Grants. Through the NMSU Cooperative Extension Service, it has centers or programs in all 33 counties in the state.
Pan American Center is a multi–purpose arena in Las Cruces, New Mexico, located on the campus of New Mexico State University. The arena has a current seating capacity of 12,515 people.
KRWG-TV is a PBS member television station in Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States. The station is owned by the Regents of New Mexico State University. KRWG-TV's studios are located at Milton Hall on the NMSU campus in Las Cruces, and its transmitter is located atop Tortugas Mountain in central Doña Ana County. KRWG-TV's signal is relayed on low-power translator stations across southern New Mexico.
Garrey Edward Carruthers is an American politician and academic who served as the 27th governor of New Mexico and the chancellor of New Mexico State University. He previously served as special assistant to the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture from 1974 to 1975, director of the New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute at NMSU, state chair of the Republican Party of New Mexico from 1977 to 1979, and United States Deputy Secretary of the Interior for Land and Resources from 1981 to 1984.
The New Mexico State University teams are called the Aggies, a nickname derived from the university's agricultural beginnings. The mascot is known as "Pistol Pete". NMSU's colors are crimson and white. Since 2023 the Aggies have competed in Conference USA in all men's and women's sports. New Mexico State sponsors six men's and ten women's teams in NCAA sanctioned sports. The athletic director Mario Moccia, who had held the position since January 2015, was fired in January 2025 following an investigation into scandals during the 2022-23 NMSU men's basketball season. Amber Burdge, one of NMSU's deputy athletic directors, is his temporary replacement.
The New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball team represents New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Founded in 1904, the Aggies compete in Conference USA after spending 18 seasons in the Western Athletic Conference from 2005 through 2023. The Aggies, who last played in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament in 2022, are one of 34 college basketball teams with multiple NBA retired jerseys from former players and a team that reached the NCAA Final Four. The team plays home games in the Pan American Center.
The New Mexico State Aggies football team represents New Mexico State University in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football as a member of Conference USA.
The Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year is an award given to the Western Athletic Conference's (WAC) most outstanding player. The award was first given following the 1980–81 season. Keith Van Horn of Utah and Nick Fazekas of Nevada are the only players to have won the award three times. Three other players—Michael Cage, Josh Grant and Melvin Ely—have won the award twice. Danny Ainge, the first ever WAC Player of the Year, was also the John R. Wooden Award winner in 1980–81.
Doña Ana Community College is a public community college with several campuses in Doña Ana County, New Mexico. It was established in 1973 at the request of the Gadsden, Hatch, and Las Cruces school boards to provided vocational and technical education opportunities to the citizens of Doña Ana County. It is independently accredited by The Higher Learning Commission. The community college offers instruction leading to associate degrees and technical certificates and preparation for further academic work. It is a branch of New Mexico State University. Doña Ana Community College has six campuses, with three in Las Cruces, and one each in Anthony, Sunland Park, and Chaparral. Dual credit classes are also offered in conjunction with local high schools.
Anthony Phillip Sanchez is an American college football coach and former wide receiver, who is the current head football coach at New Mexico State University, his alma mater. He was the head football coach at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) from 2014 to 2019. Before that, he was the head football coach at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas.
The Burrell College of Osteopathic Medicine(BCOM) is a private, for-profit medical school. The main campus is located on the New Mexico State University (NMSU) campus in Las Cruces, New Mexico, and their second campus is located on the Florida Institute of Technology (FIT) campus in Melbourne, Florida. It is accredited by the American Osteopathic Association's Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation and graduated its first class in May 2020.
The 1961 New Mexico State Aggies football team represented New Mexico State University during the 1961 college football season. In their fourth year under head coach Warren B. Woodson, the Aggies compiled a 5–4–1 record and finished in third place in the Border Conference.
Zachary Matthew Lofton is an American professional basketball player for Sagesse Club of the Lebanese Basketball League. He played college basketball for New Mexico State University (NMSU). He transferred to NMSU from Texas Southern, where he was named the Southwestern Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 2017.
Brian Green is an American baseball coach and former player, who is the current head baseball coach of the Wichita State Shockers. He played college baseball at Riverside City College, Chapman University, and New Mexico State University between 1991 and 1994. He then served as the head coach of the New Mexico State Aggies (2015–2019) and the Washington State Cougars (2020–2023).
The 1965 New Mexico State Aggies football team was an American football team representing New Mexico State University as an independent during the 1965 NCAA University Division football season. Led by head coach Warren B. Woodson in his eighth year, the Aggies achieved an 8–2 record and outscored their opponents with a total score of 236 to 153. The team played its four home games at Memorial Stadium in Las Cruces, New Mexico.
Mike Kirby is an American baseball coach who served as the head baseball coach at New Mexico State University. Kirby attended college at Cerritos College and California State University, Long Beach, playing on the school college baseball team at both schools. Kirby served as an assistant baseball coach at California State University, Fullerton, Los Angeles City College, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, the University of Oregon, and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Kirby was named head baseball coach at New Mexico State University on June 24, 2019.
Greg Heiar is an American basketball coach who is the head coach of the Trinity Valley Community College men’s basketball team.
The 2022–23 New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball team represented New Mexico State University in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Aggies were led by first-year head coach Greg Heiar and played their home games at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico as members of the Western Athletic Conference. They finished the season 9–15, 2–16 in Western Athletic Conference play to finish in last place. On February 10, 2023, the school announced the men's basketball program's season would be cancelled based on new reports of violations of university policies. The rest of the team's games were canceled and were deemed forfeits by the WAC. The NCAA does not recognize the forfeited games as part of the team's overall record. They did not take part in the WAC Tournament.
The 2023–24 New Mexico State Aggies men's basketball team represented New Mexico State University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Aggies were led by first-year head coach Jason Hooten and played their home games at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico as first-year members of the Conference USA. They finished the season 13–19, 7–9 in C-USA play to finish in a four-way tie for fourth place. As the No. 6 seed in the C-USA tournament, they lost to Western Kentucky in the quarterfinals.