2021 Team Preview: Capital Jaguars

<strong>Capital 2021 Preview</strong> Head Coach: Joaquin Garcia Mascot: Jaguars Twitter: @capital_jaguar Colors: Black, Turquoise, Silver Enrollment: 1,421 Spring Record: 2-2 Key Players: QB Julian Munoz, WR Anthony Anaya, OL James Veleta Breakout Star: WR Anthony Anaya Overview: A new head coach means new schemes on both sides of the ball for the Jaguars. Joaquin Garcia, who was a Capital assistant last season, has implemented a spread attack on offense after Capital relied on former RB [player_tooltip player_id="26186" first="Luke" last="Padilla"] (signed with Fort Lewis) and others in a run-heavy scheme the past couple of years. Junior <strong>Julian Munoz</strong> has the inside track to the starting quarterback job after starting a couple of games in the spring. Early impressions during 7-on-7 season are positive. Who replaces Padilla at running back? Garcia plans a running back-by-committee approach in order to fill the void. Capital also lost Gio Munoz and a couple other contributors to graduation. Garcia plans the same ‘by committee’ approach at wide receiver. Expect junior WR <strong>Anthony Anaya</strong> to become a major factor in the passing game along with junior <strong>Avelino Trujillo</strong> and sophomore <strong>Francisco Diaz</strong>. The offensive line is anchored by <strong>James Veleta, Tito Valencia and Lazarus Griego. </strong>Defensively, <strong>Francisco Diaz</strong> returns along with Anaya. Younger players such as sophomore <strong>Angelo Baker</strong> and <strong>Fabian Ryan</strong> gained valuable experience in the spring and now look to take another step. Schedule: Capital‘s schedule features the annual local rivalry matchups with St. Michael’s and Santa Fe along with long road trips to Grants for the season opener, Miyamura and Farmington. Aug. 20 at Grants Aug. 28 at St. Michael’s (Sat.) Sept. 3 MORIARTY Sept. 10 SANTA FE Sept. 17 Bye Sept. 24 BELEN Oct. 2 at Rio Grande Oct. 8 PIEDRA VISTA Oct. 15 at Miyamura Oct. 22 at Farmington Oct. 29 LOS ALAMOS Top Storyline: How will Capital adjust to the different schemes introduced by new head coach Joaquin Garcia? Final Thoughts: Football has always taken a back seat to basketball at Capital, but Garcia hopes to change that. In fact, the new spread offense has caught the attention of some of the hoop players and they’ve joined the program. This season will be about implementing and getting comfortable with the new offensive and defensive schemes, and trying to advance the program a few steps following the departure of [player_tooltip player_id="26186" first="Luke" last="Padilla"], who shattered the school rushing record and is now playing Div. II football at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Co. Qualifying for the Class 5A playoffs would be a tremendous achievement in Year 1 of Garcia’s tenure. Coach’s Comments: “The kids are buying into what we’re doing. I’m happy with the way they’ve responded. We’re trying to change the culture. Offensively, we’re looking to spread people out and keep defenses honest. Defensively, we’re going to utilize our speed. . .Julian Munoz is working hard and he’s definitely going to be able to do a lot of different things compared to what we did on offense last year. We’re excited for him to take the lead. . .As far as replacing Luke at running back, somebody has to step up. It won’t  be easy because Luke was such a talent. We have to be successful as a team and not rely on just one player. . .At wide receiver, we have more skinny guys than big guys right now. We have some good basketball players coming out. They see what we’re doing on offense and they know they’re not just going to block on the outside on offense and will have the opportunity to make some plays. . .Right now, it’s baby steps. The players are used to a different program and I’m trying to capitalize on tradition here by adding my sense and flair to it. . .We have a good core of linemen coming back. But we need more help. . .Defensively, we’ll be OK. It’s a different scheme. We’re going to try to put a lot more pressure on people. . .Hopefully, when the season comes we’ll be ready to go. It’s been a lot of learning for the players and a lot of teaching for the coaches. It’s starting to come along.” – <strong>Joaquin Garcia</strong> https://twitter.com/capital_jaguar/status/1405756206132514818