Southern teams seeking return to championship mix

Las Cruces was lone non-metro team in 6A semis last season

Only three times in the last 50 years has New Mexico’s largest football classification conducted a state championship game without a representative from the eastern plains or from the southern half of the state.

But two of those three occurences have happened since 2015, including last season.

Much like the metro area, those two regions that house the remainder of Class 6A’s programs don’t seem to feature a definitive threat to the throne in 2018, but rather a pool of potential candidates.

That list starts with Las Cruces High, the only team to reach last year’s state semifinals that wasn’t from the metro area. The Bulldawgs will open with a sophomore quarterback, Marcos Lopez, son of head coach Mark Lopez, but Las Cruces returns two excellent skill-position athletes in running back Chase Chaloupek (who had over 1,000 yards and 24 touchdowns) and receiver/defensive back Ivan Molina. a four-year starter.

“Obviously,” coach Lopez said, “(Marcos) has to get the ball into the hands of our playmakers.”

Although Las Cruces’ entire offensive line is new, that was also the case last year, so Lopez is not overly concerned.

Centennial returns an experienced, talented bunch, led by Lance Frost and Aidan Trujillo — one of whom will open at quarterback Saturday against Rio Rancho, the team that knocked the Hawks out of last year’s playoffs.

Whoever doesn’t get the QB slot will be a receiver; the Hawks are quite deep at receiver, tight end and at running back this season.

“We’re not terribly big,” Centennial coach Aaron Ocampo said, “but I feel pretty good about our group.”

The Hawks had an inf lux of young talent in the lineup last season, and Ocampo believes that will pay off this fall.

Oñate is in the second year of coach Scott Veliz’s system, and he expects the Knights to be in the hunt for a playoff berth. (In 6A, 12 of the 18 schools qualify for the postseason.)

“I would be extremely disappointed if we’re not in the playoffs,” Veliz said. He believes the Knights can improve greatly on a 2-8 record from last season. Oñate was one of the first programs in New Mexico to get started this year, with a midnight practice on Aug. 6.

Veliz’s son, Brandon, was a first-team all-district selection at cornerback and was a big target at receiver. Jayden Diaz moved from slot to quarterback for Oñate, which spent the offseason getting in the weight room, improving mental toughness and making football “a priority, not a hobby,” Veliz said.

Mayfield won only two games a year ago, the worst season for a Trojans team in almost a quarter century. The Trojans, much like Centennial, had a large number of young players in the lineup last year and veteran coach Mike Bradley hopes the Trojans can get back into the playoff picture after missing last year for the first time since 1993.

Neither Carlsbad nor Hobbs will be in the metro area for a game this season, but both could challenge for the District 3/4-6A championship.

“I think it’s up for grabs at this point,” Carlsbad coach Gary Bradley said.

The Cavemen’s top player is left tackle/defensive end Taylor Miterko (6-6, 280), who verbaled over the summer to Oklahoma State. Carlsbad has a fine 300-pound guard, Wyatt Hotter, next to Miturko on that side of the offensive line. Which should certainly bode well for returning tailback Tate Collins.

“It’s kind of a special group,” Bradley said. This group of seniors were freshmen when he took over in 2015. “Expectations are high for these guys.”

Linebacker Kyle Daniell and wide receiver Shamar Smith also bring extra athleticism to Carlsbad.

“We’re overwhelmed with great athletes,” Bradley said.

The Eagles graduated standout QB Gavin Hardison, who threw for over 5,300 yards last season, but Hobbs does return a couple of its top receivers in Semaj Cotton (10 TDs and over 1,200 receiving yards) and Jaime Rivera.

Senior Michael Greenough (6-3, 170) is Hardison’s successor at quarterback.

Clovis graduated an astonishing 42 seniors. A key piece for the Wildcats is senior cornerback/running back Montez Wright — already offered by Eastern N.M., and New Mexico State is on the trail, as well — who ran second to Manzano’s Jordan Byrd in the 100- and 200-meter state finals last May.

“Skill wise,” second-year Clovis coach Cal Fullerton said, “we’ve got a pretty decent group back, just not a lot of starters.”

The offensive and defensive lines are where Clovis is least experienced, largely because the Wildcats were so senior-dominant last year and younger players didn’t have a chance to get many quality snaps.

CLASS 5A: Outside the metro area, challengers are expected to include defending state champion Artesia, plus Piedra Vista, Roswell and Farmington.

The Bulldogs have a new QB in senior Trent Taylor, but Artesia returns a couple of stellar receivers in A.J. Estrada and J.R. Bustamante, who combined for 100 catches and 16 touchdowns last season.

One note of interest: John Roanhaus, son of Hall of Fame coach Eric, is the new head coach at Miyamura.