It was a cool, crisp October night in 1987 at Wildcat Stadium.
I was the defensive coordinator, and Jerry Brown was the head coach. We were playing Portales in a crucial district game. Earlier that season, we had lost our starting quarterback, David Brown—Jerry’s son—to a back injury suffered against Kermit, Texas. That night, our quarterback was Eric Fitts, a converted linebacker and one of the players I coached.
We had just scored a touchdown and lined up for a two-point conversion. Eric took the snap. I don’t remember the exact play that was called, but I remember what happened next as if it were yesterday. Eric dove toward the goal line and crossed into the end zone just as a Portales defender hit him. His body was nearly parallel to the ground when his head slammed into the turf.
As Eric came off the field, we could tell he was a little unsteady. He sat down on the bench while I watched from the press box. Suddenly, he slumped over.
I immediately radioed Coach Rodie on the sideline and told him to get to Eric. Within moments, we realized he was having a seizure.
An ambulance rushed Eric to Lubbock, where doctors discovered he had suffered a subdural hematoma. His injury was so severe that it nearly cost him his life.
The Lovington community responded the way Lovington always has. People came together. Churches prayed. Prayer vigils were held not only in Lovington but in surrounding communities as well. Eric remained in a coma for several days, and for those of us who coached him, those were some of the longest days of our lives.
At that point, I had been coaching for about ten years. It was the lowest moment of my coaching career. In fact, I seriously considered walking away from coaching altogether.
But God had other plans.
Eric survived. Today, nearly four decades later, he is alive and well.
Why begin Wildcats Tale 2.0 with this story?
Because Lovington sports have never been just about wins and losses. They’re about young men and women, fans, coaches, families, and a community that rallies together in both triumph and tragedy. Those are the stories worth remembering, and those are the stories I hope to tell in the weeks and months ahead.
And the Tale goes on…