Greetings from South Dakota

BROOKINGS, S.D. -- Good afternoon from Coughlin-Alumni Stadium. Click the title for some pregame updates.

--WR Brandon Rice did not make the trip. His hamstring, apparently, is stubbornly refusing to heal. This is the third consecutive game he has missed.

--The rental car said 50 degrees when I got out of the stadium. It is windy again, but it’s worse up here on the press level then it is down on the field. Last year in Sioux Falls, the end zones were completely open and created a sort of wind tunnel on the field. Here there is an enormous scoreboard at one end and pine trees at the other. It still could affect the kicking games, but the Aggies should be able to pass. The field itself is fairly chewed up, and has been since the opening week when a high school game was played in a driving rain.

--Everyone here is really impressed that the Band-uh has made the trip.

--Check the print edition tomorrow for an update on UC Davis’ conference situation, which, from an Aggie perspective can be summed up as not good.