UTEP Miners

Joe Gomez - Haskins painting in background

Longtime UTEP Supporter Joe Gomez Donates Famed Don Haskins Portrait

11/10/2025 2:12:00 PM

EL PASO, Texas – Joe Gomez, longtime UTEP supporter and a fan of the Miners for nearly 70 years, announced that he is donating a painting of legendary coach Don Haskins to the University. The painting will continue to be displayed in the South entrance to the Don Haskins Center, facing Glory Road.

The Haskins portrait was originally displayed at the Adair Margo Gallery in El Paso prior to being given to Gomez. The painting was created by artist Phil Behymer in 1997 to commemorate Haskins' induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

"Adair gifted it to me, and I said that I would do the best job with it that I possibly could," Gomez said. "Once the Special Events Center was renamed the Haskins Center, it needed to be there."

Nicknamed "The Bear," Haskins was the head coach of the Miners for 38 seasons (1961-99), posting 319 victories and leading Texas Western College to the historic 1966 national championship.

Gomez was born in Puerto Rico but moved to El Paso in 1958. He has been a UTEP fan ever since, with the '66 title run holding his most special memory.

"Bobby Joe Hill making the two steals in the championship game – that was beautiful, absolutely beautiful," Gomez said. "That's the moment I remember the most. He was my favorite player."

Gomez graduated from UTEP in January of 1970 and has continued to support the Miners in any way possible over the years. In particular, he helped facilitate $800,000 of improvements to the Sun Bowl press box and locker rooms prior to his retirement in 2008.

He has also served as the unofficial historian of the 1966 National Championship Team, with much of his memorabilia currently on display in the lobby of the Foster Stevens Basketball Center.

"Joe is a Miner through and through, and we can't thank him enough for his continued generosity," UTEP Vice President and Director of Athletics Jim Senter said. "You would be hard-pressed to find anyone as passionate about UTEP and Texas Western as Joe Gomez. He loves this University, and he loves his Miners."

Gomez forged his long-standing connection to UTEP during his years in college.

"I had a wonderful four years, and I did a lot in college," he said. "The school was Texas Western back then, and the name changed, but I've never forgotten the great times."

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