To call Española Valley High School head football coach Tylon Wilder enthusiastic may be an understatement.
In addition to enthusiasm, he is instilling toughness and determination throughout the Sundevils’ program, now in his third season.
“If you lose … Respond!” was firmly spoken on the sidelines during Friday’s practice.
That wasn’t spoken by a coach, but rather, that phrase was echoed by players to each other.
In the memory of most, Española had not put together back-to-back winning seasons until 2022 and 2023. A district title last season was the school’s first.
“I don’t know what it is exactly, but I know in the 68 years or so of history (of Española high school football) the school’s winning percentage hovers around 20%,” Wilder said. “Now, we have quiet confidence. 40 or 45 guys are showing up everyday during the summer to workout. When we were allowed to go to full pads, we went to pads. There is commitment. We’re building a program.”
Last season, Española faced adversity in the season opener when starting quarterback Alex Chavez was lost for the season due to an injury in a 35-0 defeat to Los Alamos. Instead of folding the tent and heading home for the season, the Sundevils responded by winning seven consecutive games after a 1-3 start, including several 50-point efforts, and Española drubbed Albuquerque St. Pius X, 31-7, for the school’s first-ever New Mexico Activities Association football playoff victory.
Yes, it stung to be smacked at Lovington, 52-0, in Española’s next playoff game, but even that experience had a silver lining to building the program. Wilder, a Hobbs High School graduate, knows first-hand the “Texas-style” football played in the state’s Southeast quadrant.
“We can be successful (in Class 4A) with 50 or 55 players,” he said. “Yes, it’s different in the South. I call it the ‘Lion’s Den.’ The band is louder. The cannon goes off when the opponent scores. It can be intimidating for players and even for coaches. But now we have players who saw this and learned this is what it takes to compete and go deep in the playoffs.”
With that playoff experience and building upon that for 2024, the Sundevils scrimmaged at Class 6A West Mesa and Class 5A Albuquerque Valley joined the party, (Aug. 15).
“West Mesa has some big dudes,” Wilder recounted. “Those boys are big, but we held our own and left there feeling confident, we had 10-minute, 10 play sessions on offense and defense. We scored four touchdowns during our sessions and our defense only gave up one touchdown. We know we aren’t going to get better going against cream puffs.”
One returning Sundevil starter who is no cream puff is senior and competitive power lifter, lineman Leandro Salazar.
“(Salazar) is a monster and he can run a 5.0 40 (yard dash),” Wilder said. “That’s fast for someone who is 265 pounds.”
Senior Nick Sandoval was the District 2-4A defensive player of the year and he joins fellow seniors Matthew Martinez, Jesus Gonzales and junior Leonard Martinez on a powerful line. Graduated are running backs Adrick DeLeon and Jack Purdy, who combined to account for more than 40 touchdowns.
Junior Irvin Primero stabilized the quarterback position last season when Española went on it’s seven-game victory tear, while seniors Cru Wilder, Zeke Cuevas, Victor Parra and junior Michael Maestas will divide the carries behind the experienced offensive line.
“I’m not much for names (to describe offense or defense), but in the trenches, we will play smash-mouth football this year,” Wilder said. “We try to design our offense around the personnel we have. In our first year (of Wilder’s tenure) we threw it because we could and we had the talent. We will throw (some) this season, but we are not a finesse team.”
When Primero does throw, he will target junior Cody Coffeen, seniors Jorge Rodriguez and Carter Wilder.
Junior, 300-pounder Marcus Bustamante will help anchor the Española defensive line, while Cuevas, Cru Wilder and Xavier Garcia return as experienced linebackers.
One consistent threat for Española is safety/placekicker Andres Valenzuela.
“He should be kicking in college somewhere,” Wilder said enthusiastically. “He’s got a strong leg and he made field goals from 45, 47 yards last year. Plus he’s the second-fastest player on the team. We only had him kick last year. He will be on the field this year.”
And in his third season, Wilder likes the direction the program is headed.
“It’s (occurring) almost exactly as I envisioned,” he said. “I am super excited. Not for me but for the kids. The kids are committed, the parents are with us, the community is behind us. Not to be measured in wins and losses, but we are trying to teach what it takes to be successful. We had some adversity last season, especially losing our quarterback. But we figured it out.”
The Sundevils responded.
Now Española has a chance to respond Friday night against the Los Alamos Hilltoppers, a team the Sundevils have not defeated in their last 23 tries.
Kickoff is at 7 p.m. at Sullivan Field in Los Alamos.