2021 Season Preview: Clovis Wildcats

<strong>Clovis 2021 Preview</strong> <strong>Head Coach</strong>: Cal Fullerton <strong>Mascot</strong>: Wildcats <strong>Twitter</strong>: @chs_wildcats; @cfully17 <strong>Colors</strong>: Purple and White <strong>Enrollment</strong>: 1,611 <strong>Spring Record</strong>: 3-2 <strong>Star Players</strong>: QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="134999" first="Milo" last="Acosta"]</strong>, RB <strong>Kash Roberts</strong>, WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138039" first="Robert" last="Nora"]</strong>, OL <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="135077" first="Payton" last="Reames"]</strong>, DE/OL <strong>Will Jordan</strong>, DE <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="134991" first="Jaden" last="Nigreville"]</strong>, DT <strong>Gabe Angeles</strong>, LB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="134998" first="Manny" last="Bustillos"]</strong>. <strong>Breakout Star</strong>: WR [player_tooltip player_id="138039" first="Robert" last="Nora"]. <strong>Overview</strong>: It took several games for the Clovis offense to finally get going in the spring, but when it did, victories over Carlsbad and Roswell ensued. Some of the credit goes to Acosta, who ignited the Wildcats’ offense by throwing for 666 yards and five touchdowns in four appearances. Now he has the full-time gig. However, Acosta suffered an ankle injury at the end of April, but should be ready to go by the season opener. Acosta,  Roberts (rising sophomore) and Nora (rising junior) were the lone non-seniors to touch the ball on offense in the spring. Roberts won’t be on the same level as New Mexico signee [player_tooltip player_id="26162" first="Jeston" last="Webskowski"] at the beginning of the season, but he could get there eventually. As a freshman, he was listed at 6-foot-0, 180 pounds with plenty of time to grow and develop. Initially, Clovis will likely go with a running back-by-committee with Angel Chavarria contributing at both RB and inside WR. Nora caught four passes and averaged nearly 27 yards per reception in the spring. He also has good size for his age, listed at 6-foot-1. [player_tooltip player_id="135077" first="Payton" last="Reames"] stands out at O-Line. Defensively, one of the biggest questions is whether Nigreville, who just completed baseball season for Clovis, will play football this fall. Clovis is still waiting for an answer. Even without him, the defensive front seven looks imposing. Angeles has impressed at camps and in the weight room. Bustillos is one of the top linebackers in the state and is coming off a spring in which he collected 55 tackles in 5 games. <strong>Mark Cabeen</strong> will patrol one of the other LB spots after seeing limited action in the spring. The secondary features four newcomers. <strong>Schedule</strong>: Clovis opens the season with its traditional rivalry game against Hobbs followed by two games against a pair of Texas opponents. We’ll find out a lot about the Wildcats when they travel to Rio Rancho in Week 4. After a bye, the always challenging district schedule kicks in. Two trips to Albuquerque and one to Santa Fe await Clovis in the final four weeks. 8/20 - HOBBS 8/27 - YSLETA (El Paso , Tex.) 9/3 - at Frenship (Wolfforth, Tex.) 9/10 - at Rio Rancho 9/17 - Bye 9/24 - LA CUEVA 10/1 - ALBUQUERQUE 10/8 - at Santa Fe 10/15 - at Manzano 10/22 - SANDIA 10/29 - at Eldorado <strong>Top Storyline</strong>: How will new faces at quarterback, running back and wide receiver pan out for Clovis? <strong>Final Thoughts</strong>: Few teams were affected more by the Covid pandemic than Clovis. After the fall season was postponed, all-state QB [player_tooltip player_id="26155" first="Chance" last="Harris"] decided to enroll early at Colorado State and missed the spring season. As a result, Clovis had to scramble to find a quarterback for the spring season. Eventually, Acosta emerged. Workhorse All-State RB [player_tooltip player_id="26162" first="Jeston" last="Webskowski"] is another key loss. Is Kash Roberts the next big thing in Clovis? Possibly. This could be a season where the defense carries the Wildcats, at least for a while until the offense finds its footing. The defensive front seven looks solid and could be one of the best in the state, especially if Nigreville decides to play football. As always, Clovis is a threat to win the district and advance to the playoffs. We know the Wildcats will be battle tested heading into district play. <strong>Coach’s Comments</strong>: “We had a big senior this past spring, but we’re going to be pretty young in the fall. We have a lot of sophomores and juniors we’ve moved up. We don’t have a lot of seniors. So we’re starting fresh with these kids. We’re throwing a lot at them, but we’ll keep teaching them. . .There’s nothing Milo has to prove to us that he needs to do. He has shown us what he can do in a situation where he gets thrown into something where he was not expected to be the starter. . .Kash Roberts has done everything we’ve asked of him. But in terms of experience and game situations, he’s green right now. It’s kind a wait-and-see deal. Will he do it in a game when it’s faster and more physical? But we like what we see right now. . .[player_tooltip player_id="138039" first="Robert" last="Nora"] is pretty special. He’s probably one of our best prospects. He’ll get some balls thrown to him, for sure. After him, we might have to split time between seven or eight guys to try to get the job done. . .We have a chance to be pretty good on the D-Line. You can’t say enough about Gabe Angeles right now. He gets after it in the weight room. He’ll be fun to watch. . .It’s still up in the air with Jaden. He’s a really good football player, so if he doesn’t play we’ll need somebody else to step up like Jaden did as a sophomore. . .We have high expectations for Will Jordan. He’s still growing. His father is our offensive and defensive line coach, so Will has grown up with football" – Cal Fullerton. https://twitter.com/chs_wildcats/status/1388138025557762048 https://twitter.com/GageAngeles/status/1397561152071081985 https://twitter.com/chs_wildcats/status/1385075254528200706 https://twitter.com/chs_wildcats/status/1385072317185855488 https://twitter.com/GageAngeles/status/1386513402307268617 &nbsp; &nbsp;