The Española Valley High School football team debuted a new, interim-head coach, Oct. 20, but little changed for the Sundevils, as they took on district opponent Capital High School.
The offense looked dangerous at times, showing potential in flashes, primarily in the first half. The defense carried over the issues remaining from its last game against Albuquerque Academy, and expanded upon the already-existing holes in coverage. Capital had two touchdown drives that consisted of one play.
In the end, the Sundevils dropped a fifth consecutive game, losing to the Jaguars by a final score of 46-12. Their closest game in the last five was their 40-20 loss, Oct. 6, against Albuquerque Academy.
Interim head coach Ron DuPree described his premiere at the helm of the football program as “bitter,” following the ousting of former head coach Jesus Maes.
“It was a rough two weeks,” he said.
In addition to missing Maes, DuPree said the past two weeks have been difficult, working with one less coach. Athletic Director Paul Roybal filled in at an assistant coach capacity, working with the defense.
Roybal earned himself a conduct foul for his behavior with the referees, setting the tone for an Española side that had trouble limiting penalties over the course of the night. The most devastating example of this came in the fourth quarter, as the Sundevils marched within the opposing 15-yard-line, but were pushed back to the 30-yard-line due to penalties.
Junior defensive tackle Alejandro Rodriguez was ejected for throwing a punch during the drive, and he will miss Española’s next game, Oct. 27, against Los Alamos High School.
Penalties or not, as a trend, the Sundevils had difficulty putting the ball into the end zone.
“We’ve moved the ball all year, we just don’t get it in the end zone,” DuPree said.
Española had 23 first downs on offense. The Sundevils’ two touchdowns came from runs off of the back of fullback Nicolas Martinez, a steady force in the offense all season. They scored both of their touchdowns after Capital had gone ahead, 13-0.
Markus Griego started at quarterback, after a sparkling second half performance against Academy, and his versatility balanced out the Española power running game. He tossed a 40-yard throw to DeAntrae Curtis, who caught the pass amid double coverage.
“It feels good,” Curtis said. “I’ve been working on this all season, and I am glad my teammates are starting to trust me. I’m only doing this because my teammates are trusting me.”
That catch put the Sundevils on the 10-yard-line, and it set up Martinez’s bulldozing, 10-yard run for a touchdown.
That would be Española’s last touchdown of the day, coming at the end of the first quarter. Martinez knocked Capital’s lead to one point with that play, the scoreboard reading 13-12.
From that spot, the Española offense had difficulty dealing with the Jaguars’ defense. While the offense was stunted, the defense gave up a number of big plays. The Jaguars ended their scoring with a 65-yard touchdown run on the first play of the drive.
“We controlled the ball,” DuPree said. “We just have to tackle better, and not make those silly mistakes.”