The contenders are starting to separate themselves from the pack as the season heads into its crucial final weeks with plenty of playoff opportunities still up for grabs.
Española Valley vs. Kirtland Central, 6 p.m. Thursday
It’s time for the Sundevils to show their backbone, coach Caleb Holbrook said as they enter this one on a two-game slide.
“We have to handle Kirtland and Aztec,” he said. “We’ll see how the season pans out. We have to handle two out of the three and we can really earn a lot of respect if we can handle Bloomfield. I believe we can. We’re definitely not done, but we have to handle business this week and play it one week at time.”
Given Española’s troubles in handling the pass rush and as a way to open up the ground game a bit more, Holbrook said he’s looking to incorporate another tight end in Leonard Martinez.
Providing more time in the pocket for quarterback Irvin Primero could go a long way to solving some of the issues the team has had in moving the ball consistently.
Defensively, the Sundevils have played better, but are spending too much time on the field, which could be helped by an improved ground game.
Like, Española, the Broncos (1-5, 0-3), who are coming off a 42-0 loss to Bernalillo, have struggled offensively with a shaky quarterback situation. Juniors Trenton Salt and Chance Aspaas have both seen time under center, but neither has really grasped the job. Salt does lead the team in rushing, but only has 155 yards in five games.
Cody Coffeen is the Sundevils top receiver with 23 catches for 650 yards and seven touchdowns and Mike Maestas has added 22 catches for 389 yards.
Pojoaque Valley at Hope Christian, 11 a.m. Saturday
Coming off a big win, the Elks have to refocus on the task at hand, but coach Zeke Villegas is confident his squad is up to the job after scouting the Huskies (5-2, 0-1 in District 2-3A) on Saturday against St. Michael’s.
Elks quarterback Josh Gonzales provides a dual-threat option under center. And runningbacks D’Marcus Rodriguez and Jonah Villegas are turning into a thunder and lightning duo in the backfield, with Joaquin Baca providing a speedy, deep threat weapon downfield, the Elks offense has become a versatile entity.
“We could run or pass at any time,” the coach said. “And we have designed runs for Josh. He had a 50-yard run against Robertson. So if you’re going to play us in man, D’Marcus and Jonah and Josh in the backfield and we can run out of that. And if you come up, we can pass out of that. It’s pretty much, pick your poison. You can’t key on one player.”
Hope does present a challenge with a strong-armed quarterback in RJ Montoya, who has thrown for 1,032 yards and 13 touchdowns has not been picked off, while also rushing for a team-best 373 yards and five TDs. Ethan Carter and Darrien Williams are the leading receivers, combining for 42 catches, almost 800 yards and nine touchdowns.
“He’s one of the top quarterbacks in 3A,” Zeke Villegas said of Montoya. “They do like to throw the ball. We’re going to have to have some good pass coverage and their quarterback likes to run. They’re a well-coached team. They have some good size. It’s another good match.”
McCurdy vs. Laguna Acoma at Española Valley, 7 p.m. Friday
The Bobcats have not lost to the Hawks (2-3, 0-1 in District 1-2A) since 2018, but McCurdy interim head coach Mel Martinez is expecting a challenge.
“They keep on getting better every year,” he said. “They’re going to be a true test for us.”
What’s more, it’s the Bobcats homecoming weekend, with a rare night game scheduled at the Española Valley field.
“I’m not a big fan of homecoming as a coach,” Martinez said. “There’s a lot of distractions. It’s a night game and McCurdy has never had a home night game. So it’s a short week of practice with a lot of activities and a big district game.”
The roster is up to 17 healthy players, he said, although several of them are eighth-graders who will rarely see the field.
“We’re not big in numbers but this group has a lot of heart,” he said.
The Bobcats should be able to unleash their J-cubed backfield of JJ Vigil, who has 562 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns on 86 carries and Julian Nino, who has 508 yards and four TDs on 53 carries.
Escalante at Menaul, 1 p.m. Saturday
The Lobos hit the meat of their District 2 schedule starting with the Panthers (4-2, 1-1).
“We’ve got momentum on our side,” Escalante coach Carlos Casados said. “It’s an away game and we’ve been playing really good away from home. So we’re going into this game against Menaul, we’ll have momentum.”
There’s a little payback factor, as well since it’s the Panthers homecoming and last year when the teams played in Escalante, it was the Lobos homecoming and Menaul spoiled the party.
“All the guys that we got back last year, they outplayed us on our homecoming and ended up beating us by three points,” Casados said. “Our guys are looking to get them back this week.”
Menaul also has a bit of momentum as it is coming off a win over Clayton, but Casados is confident that his squad is ready.
“These next three game are pretty big in the district,” he said. “This is where your playoff seeding is determined.”
The Panthers have a ground-oriented attack behind powerful fullback Carlos Cummins.
“They have a big, athletic fullback but I think we have a game plan to stop the running game,” Casados said. “If we can get them to go to the air, we have a great defensive backfield to stop the air game.”