It’s safe to say that Pojoaque Valley’s football series with perennial Class 3A championship contender Robertson has been something less than successful.
It dates back to 1996 and in that time, the Elks never walked off the field victorious.
Until Friday.
When quarterback Josh Gonzales swept around the right end and tucked himself just inside the corner pylon for a successful two-point conversion, it gave Pojoaque (3-2, 1-0 District 2) a 32-31 overtime victory over the No. 3-ranked Cardinals (5-2, 0-1) in a groundbreaking win for the Elks.
“As a program, it shows that we are competitive,” Pojoaque coach Zeke Villegas said. “That we are a top 3A team and possibly a top-5 3A team. So it does a lot for the program.”
It was one of those watershed moments for the Elks that the players will never forget.
“I was at the back end of my route, waiting to see if Josh would throw it,” senior receiver Joaquin Baca said. “As soon as I saw him running for the corner, I knew he was going to get in. We all ran to the track where he finished it off and we started celebrating. I can’t even describe the feeling. Indescribable amount of joy and relief in the situation. Just so proud of the team and the guys.”
To really put this victory into perspective, over the previous 14 meetings between the teams dating back to 2004 (the farthest official records are available), the Elks have been outscored 710-94. They were mercy-ruled in eight of those games. They were shut out seven times, including the last four. The closest game came in 2012, a 24-15 loss.
But coming off a bye, Villegas said he had an inkling something was going to be different this time around in his third season at the Elks’ helm.
“The sense in practice was just different,” he said. “Everything was different the last two weeks. Going into the game. I really felt a very positive energy coming from the players. The kids really felt confident coming into this game.”
For the first time this season, Pojoaque lined up with a full squad, Villegas pointed out. Gonzales was back under center and he’s the key to the whole Elks’ ignition. His return from a one-game suspension that dragged on for weeks because of a game that was canceled before halftime, meant Baca could return to receiver. And the coach’s son, dangerous running back Jonah Villegas, saw the field for the first time this season after recovering from a shoulder injury. And runningback D’Marcus Rodriguez, who has been playing through ailments, was also at full strength.
“Our biggest thing going into the game was that I felt really good having all of our kids back,” Zeke Villegas said. “It made me feel a lot better about my play calling. You have to respect any of those kids that get the ball. We have multiple kids who can score at any time and it’s hard to coach against somebody that has that.”
The numbers back that up as Gonzales had a stellar game, completing just six passes, but two for touchdowns and 174 total yards. He added another two rushing touchdowns and ran for 142 yards on 15 carries.
Baca caught both TD passes and finished with five receptions for 162 yards. Rodriguez had 66 yards on 14 carries and scored the overtime touchdown on a run up the middle from nine yards out. And Villegas added 55 yards on eight carries.
“And we’re balanced,” Zeke Villegas said. “When we do pass, they’re going to be wide open because the defense is creeping up. All that early play calling is what sets up the big passes.”
The game was tight throughout, with the teams trading two touchdowns in the first quarter, but the Cardinals held a 14-12 lead after Pojoaque botched both of its extra-point attempts — something that would be a factor in overtime.
Robertson scored midway through the second quarter to take a 21-12, but the Elks countered with two scores of their own to take a 24-21 lead into halftime
In the second half, however, some personnel adjustments that the Elks made leading up to the game began to pay dividends as defensive back Deion Dixon moved from strong safety to cornerback. Gonzales stepped in at outside linebacker and Elijah Gonzales moved to cornerback.
“We moved some kids around in space where we felt they were better suited,” Zeke Villegas said. “I think that really helped us out a lot moving some pieces around this week.”
Pojoaque continued to move the ball well in the second half, but had trouble finishing in the red zone, which kept the game close.
Robertson tied it with a field early in the fourth quarter and neither team could get back in position to score before the game moved to overtime.
The Cardinals got the ball first in the extra session and pushed it in for the score. But Pojoaque was able to come right back and counter behind Rodriguez’s touchdown, leaving the Elks trailing 31-30.
“We were having trouble with our PATs, we had two that were blocked because of bad snaps” the coach said. “So that was really easy making the decision. But, for me, I really felt that we weren’t expected to win so let’s go for it and go for the win. I didn’t want to go into double overtime against them. We did that a few weeks ago and I didn’t want to do it again. We either get it in and win or not get it in and we still played a helluva game.”
Villegas had a special play all ready for the situation, with Gonzales rolling behind lead blockers Rodriguez and Matthew Romero, looking to either pass it or run it, depending on what Robertson showed.
“The receivers were able to take the Robertson defenders deep into the end zone and we were able to get the two lead blockers out in front and Josh read it perfectly,” Villegas said.
It was actually a final example of the dominance the line showed all game, Baca said.
“I want to give a big shout out to our line, those guys really were big,” he said. “The deserve a lot of praise for the way they handled the Robertson line. I’m just so proud of those guys. We’re only going up from here and they really do clean up and do amazing job.”
It all leaves the coach feeling optimistic about the Elks’ future.
“Getting the first district win on this one is a great thing,” Zeke Villegas said. “More good than these players even know. Just seeing their faces and celebrating after the game was something but it also reminded them that this is the team we know we have. It’s not just me saying it. This is who we are and who can be.”