A Temporary Home in the Desert
In the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the University of New Orleans baseball program was left without a home, its players scattered and its future uncertain. Coach Tom Walter, desperate to keep the team alive, turned to an unlikely ally: New Mexico State University in Las Cruces.
Rocky Ward, the Aggies’ baseball coach, embraced the challenge. He cleared a dormitory, waived tuition and carved out class slots for the displaced UNO athletes, who arrived in Las Cruces with little more than the clothes on their backs and the weight of loss behind them.
The transition was not merely logistical. Faculty and staff worked around the clock to transfer credits, secure scholarships and ensure the newcomers could keep up academically. Local businesses, including gear sponsors Adidas and Wilson, donated equipment, while the American Red Cross delivered essential supplies. Professors even arranged Thanksgiving flights so the players could briefly return home for family reunions.
Life in Las Cruces presented its own hurdles. Limited transportation and a second temporary stay at South Alabama tested the group’s resolve, but the players persisted. Their efforts paid off on the field: in 2006 the UNO team won ten additional games and finished with a winning record, a feat many attributed to the resilience cultivated during their exile.
The collaboration extended beyond athletics. In 2007 UNO hosted New Mexico State for a non‑conference series, presenting a plaque and granting honorary Mardi Gras membership to the Aggies. The story later inspired an ESPN E:60 feature that highlighted Coach Walter’s later kidney donation at Wake Forest University, underscoring the lasting impact of the partnership.
Beyond the baseball diamond, the alliance became a broader symbol of hope for post‑Katrina New Orleans. It not only saved a collegiate program but also influenced Walter’s career trajectory, leading to his hiring at Wake Forest in 2010. The narrative of NM State’s compassion continues to resonate as a testament to resilience, community and the power of unexpected alliances.