His final game at Muleshoe and last as a quarterback in a competitive game was a senior-year loss in a state semifinal game at old Texas Stadium. Its like Christmas Eve and Im 6 years old. It would be a challenge, Simmons said, but one that the then-26-year-old coach accepted and conquered. Who can help student-athletes cash in? She's from Dimmitt, 45 miles away. That was the best the town had ever done, Wood said, until Lincoln., In West Texas, Muleshoes team was for decades a source of disappointment. But the last 103 years havent been all wins and Roses. Riley had instant success at East Carolina, and drew job opportunities from four schools. Each of the thousands of bales waiting to be loaded and shipped off weighs up to 500 pounds. For a routine follow-up, Riley mentored Alabama transfer Jalen Hurts during his graduate transfer season, and Hurts is now the starter for the Philadelphia Eagles. "Weather here is always important because this is an agricultural community," said Rennels, 74, sounding every bit a schoolmarm lecturing a student just off the turnip truck. It didn't hurt that Riley had the services of quarterback Baker Mayfield, who won the Heisman Trophy in December. "Small town, very tight-knit community. 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Muletrain, it should be noted, actually has been around since the late 1950s as a radio offering on a station that beamed it in from Clovis, N.M., 30 miles away. He just knew the game. Things always change year to year in college football and that's one of the things we enjoy. Riley isn't coaching at the nearby college -- Texas Tech -- long-favored by most of his hometown folks, is an inconvenient truth. DW Rutledge. "I think we've got enough to do some great things, but a lot's gotta happen between now and then. Two years into that gig, Riley found himself promoted to head coach when Stoops unexpectedly retired in June of 2017. After coaching for 14 years, the Clovis native got his dream job and was named the Mules head football coach and athletic director in February. He holds a masters of administration in education from Sam Houston State University, and graduated cum laude with a bachelor of science in physical education from Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, where he was quarterback for the football team. Gonzalez, Donavan ( Jr.) Vasquez, Uriel ( Sr.) Morales, Aaron ( So.) Wood said that Riley got the Mules coaching staff into a meeting with Leach before the 2008 season, and then helped the coaches install the Red Raiders spread offense. Oklahoma University head football coach Lincoln Riley raises the Big 12 Championship trophy after the Sooners beat TCU 41-17 in the conference title game at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas last December. Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley already has made inroads in Southern California football recruiting, which should help him bolster USCs talent pool. if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,50],'easternnewmexiconews_com-box-4','ezslot_1',130,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-easternnewmexiconews_com-box-4-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[320,50],'easternnewmexiconews_com-box-4','ezslot_2',130,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-easternnewmexiconews_com-box-4-0_1'); .box-4-multi-130{border:none !important;display:block !important;float:none !important;line-height:0px;margin-bottom:7px !important;margin-left:auto !important;margin-right:auto !important;margin-top:7px !important;max-width:100% !important;min-height:50px;padding:0;text-align:center !important;}"Getting to work for one of the most legendary coaches this school has ever had, and a great guy on top of that, it was fun for me to sit back and watch him work while I grew as a young coach," Riley said. We were so close in age, it became a friendship, but he was a friend I respected. His offense has placed five players in the top 10 for rushing yards in a season and nine players in the top 10 for receiving yards in a season. In each of his first three seasons at Oklahoma, Riley led the Sooners to a 12-1 regular season, only to lose in the College Football Playoff semifinals to Georgia, Alabama and LSU of the Southeastern Conference. Maybe even a national title. But he dislocated his throwing shoulder before the start of the season trying to make a tackle during a practice. Mike and Marilyn Riley have lived in Muleshoe all of their lives. Great, great people. Every time we get steaks and have friends over, they ask, Where did you get these knives? Always my wife will say, The Rileys bought them for us as a wedding gift. He tells me to come and visit him. But when they worked there during high school, the boys learned valuable life lessons such as time management and the importance of every worker in the chain. Just like he isnt shocked by the anger in Oklahoma. Cortez, Raymond ( So.) He inspired the whole town, Wood said. He was only a year or two older than me, but he knew the offense. Watch film with intensity, remember so much about the film, most kids would not remember. Anytime they wanted to bounce something off of someone, Donnie was the person that they talked to , I think it was their mutual love and admiration for college football. "He knew where every kid was supposed to be on every play," the coach said. He'd dissect defenses really quickly. Wood began with a program that fielded 22 players in a school of about 450 students. It was so sudden, Graves says. Richards went on to lead. Richards comes to Muleshoe from Flour Bluff High School in Corpus Christi, where he served as offensive coordinator. 4:13. How can a West Texas boy go to L.A.? asked David Wood, who coached Riley at Muleshoe High. No telling if the city founders had any inkling the name might itself become a celebrity of sorts. Annie Rice/Avalanche-Journal Muleshoe's head football coach Jason Richards reacts to water being poured on him after the team's win against Brownfield in a bi-district playoff football. The people in Muleshoe say they didn't know Riley was headed for gridiron greatness. He was all for it.. We're pretty exited around here. They celebrated East Carolina University victories when their oldest son spent five seasons as the Pirates offensive coordinator. Evaluate Jason Florez's football recruiting profile. . The theories are numerous, but some here who know the Rileys wonder if the sprawl of Los Angeles might offer a semblance of anonymity. The town wanted to be good. He brought a program and a culture to Muleshoe that hadnt been there, Riley said. As soon as the band quit marching, itd just be a few of us, some parents and the coaches wives in the stands, Stacy Conner, pastor at the First Baptist Church and a Riley family friend, jokes. His immediate retirement plan is . "It's quite an accolade to say I was able to be a part of his life," Wood said. Not that the folks of Muleshoe don't respect Saban and what he's done for the Alabama Crimson Tide. He was telling me about some other opportunities that were in the foresight of his career. J. Brady McCollough is a sports enterprise reporter for the Los Angeles Times, focusing on national college football and basketball topics. Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley yells from the sideline during a game. Hes just an athletic big kid. When Lincoln attended Texas Tech, about 70 miles northwest of their home, the Rileys cheered for the Red Raiders. Access your Muleshoe Journal e-edition or subscribe here. 877-845-6272. Success on the intramural field, spurred him to attempt to walk on to the Tech team in the spring of his freshman season. He joined The Times after six years with the Southern California News Group. Muleshoe rolled through four playoff games on their way to the Class 3A state semifinals, including a rare win over Friona that inspired Riley and three teammates the next summer to climb the rival towns water tower and spray paint the winning score, 23-13, for all to see. Jeremiah Barron struggled with injuries last season, but also has the potential to be a versatile player for Muleshoe. And perhaps, 2018 will bring another run to the College Football Playoff. But its also a dream come true. I said, Ruffin, Ive read all about him. But thats the kind of guy that Ruffin is. He's certainly more comfortable in his job than he was a year ago at this time. Growing up here, Ellis says, it often felt like you were insulated from the ails of the outside world. Never thought about it growing up, Mike Riley said. Kyle Atwood, a close friend and Rileys leading receiver in high school, expects USC flags to be flying in town soon enough. COURTESY/Riley family. Lincoln is also well-known for being the Oklahoma Sooners' head football coach. Will Oklahoma fare better or worse in 2017 season? "We'll see," Riley said. One is USC head coach. Oklahoma football head coach Lincoln Riley hugs quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) after the Sooners won the Big 12 title last December in Arlington, Texas. He was just more of a kid that soaked it all in. You could see anything in the world just ahead of you. USC coach Lincoln Riley is introduced as the Trojans new head football coach at the Coliseum on Nov. 29, in front a bustling city backdrop vastly different than where he grew up. Riley was on the football and track teams at Muleshoe (Tex.) "I guess probably once I started to think about going to college, I enjoyed the game so much in high school that I felt it would be part of my life some way, some how. Though Riley had a coach's mind, Wood never saw him going into that profession, thinking that mind might be too good for coaching. There were multiple years in which we were 0-10 or 1-9, Atwood says. ", 521 Pile StreetClovis, NM 88102Ph: (575) 763-3431, Powered by ROAR Online Publication Software from Lions Light Corporation "I don't think they would havehad to pay him," his father Mike said. The following season, Muleshoe went 15-0 and won its only state championship. Head Boys Track Coach Aaron Simon. Everyone knows everyone, especially the Muleshoe native whose hiring as OUs coach created shockwaves throughout the college football world. And it's no mirage. Head Boys Powerlifting Coach Jaxon Lee. 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