A new coach is looking to build a new culture in Pojoaque football.
Pojoaque had a strong year in 2021 led by a strong senior class, but cratered a year ago. Now, they have to rebuild the pieces nearly from scratch.
Zeke Villegas, a former assistant at Capital and the creator of the Northern New Mexico Children’s Sports League, is the new coach for the Elks.
“Goals for this year is building the confidence, understanding how good they are,” Villegas said. “At the end of the day, I don’t really think they know how good they are.”
The Elks are looking to rebound from a winless season to make their mark on a competitive district. Behind a new coach and a new quarterback, Pojoaque should see improvement with a young group of players.
“We’ve been been working since January,” team quarterback Ethan Meloy said. “Eight months of hard work. Weight room, studying playbook, and finally getting some confidence in us.”
A difficult schedule and injuries snowballed for a miserable 2022 season. A winnable game against Santa Fe Indian was rained out (in the second quarter, with the Elks driving looking to take a lead). Before, they had lost 56-6 to the eventual state champions. After that, they lost 42-0 to a strong Los Alamos team, then continued to struggle against strong opponents, and they played every non-district game on the road.
By the time they faced Española Valley to end the season, they were completely out of gas, losing 50-7 to an energized team. In total, they were completely unable to capture the momentum of a 5-4 season in 2021. They were outscored 475-20 in nine straight losses all by at least 42 points.
Meloy, a senior, takes over for the graduated Adam Pacheco at quarterback; Pacheco had led the team through three seasons, but missed time last year with an injury.
Meloy was in a summer battle with junior Mario Baros, but Villegas made the decision in late July to go with the senior. Meloy is a dual threat with plenty of speed. And he also brings a swagger and leadership to the position, often livening up the sidelines (though taunting also got him in trouble in their scrimmage).
“He can run, he can pass, he’s smart under center,” Villegas said. “He knows the playbook. He’s been a great leader for the team. His confidence is what helps.”
“Ethan brings a lot of leadership,” said running back Jonah Villegas. “He has a lot of chemistry with us, he has big bonds with us.”
Pojoaque took on Tucumcari in their preseason scrimmage at home on Aug. 10. And while it is hard to take too much away from a 3A competition that has won one game out of its last 31, Pojoaque looked like a strong team moving the ball up and down the field.
Operating under center for most of the day, Meloy threw his first touchdown to sophomore receiver Andrew Martinez. Starting running back Josh Urioste scored an 80-yard touchdown, Killian Medina had a short touchdown after a long reception, and freshman running back Jonah Villegas scored a long touchdown run of his own.
The strength of Pojoaque, according to players, is from team chemistry. On Medina’s touchdown, Meloy said, it was not the intended route, but the quarterback and wide receiver “telepathically communicated” and found the open space.
Defensively, Pojoaque was strong, holding Tucumcari’s offense throughout the day, letting up just one long touchdown pass. They forced multiple fumbles and had sacks and an interception.
The Elks have plenty of underclassmen expected to start and have a big impact, starting with Jonah Villegas, Zeke’s freshman son, who brings speed and confidence from a winning culture at St. Michael’s middle school. Joaquin Baca, who grabbed an interception, is a sophomore starter. And they expect freshmen in slot receiver Jaden Leyba-Moya and Michaelangelo Leapingwolf to be contributors.
Pojoaque is already excited for its Week 2 rematch with Bloomfield and a shot at the state champion.
“We really get to see where we’re really at,” Villegas said.
The schedule eases up a bit for Pojoaque as they also get some home games. Their season-opener changes from Socorro (11-1 in 2022) to Navajo Prep (1-8). They also add Cloudcroft to their schedule, who plays their first game at 11-man since 2019.
Beyond that, Pojoaque will be in a competitive district. Reigning champion Taos loses its top performer in quarterback Daemon Ely but also can be expected to have a strong culture. And Moriarty returns plenty of talent from what has been a winning team. Española Valley, also, could improve and be a challenge for the Elks.
“You can’t teach heart and hard work,” Meloy said. “We have so much talent being executed, it’s crazy.”