November Madness: Class 6A Quarterfinal Round Preview

Except for the margin of victory in a couple of games, the first round of playoff games in Class 6A contained fewer surprises. The home team (higher seeded team) won all four games. Will the quarterfinals follow the same script? Here is a look at the four quarterfinal round playoff games in Class 6A: Hobbs (8) at Cleveland (1)(Sat. 1 p.m.): It’s been more than two years since a New Mexico-based school beat the Cleveland Storm - Volcano Vista posted a 35-7 victory over Cleveland on Oct. 18, 2019. Since that loss, the Storm has won 19 straight games, many by lopsided margins, although the last time we saw them on a football field they had to rally from a three-TD deficit to edge rival Rio Rancho, 28-27. Cleveland has the talent to score a lot of points. During the regular season they averaged 48.1 points per game. [player_tooltip player_id="139521" first="Evan" last="Wysong"] is a dynamic dual threat QB with 1,405 passing yards and a team-leading 651 rushing yards already. He has accounted for 25 touchdowns, an average of 2.5 per game. Lucious Dickson has filled in nicely at RB since [player_tooltip player_id="138204" first="Josh" last="Perry"] was lost for the season in early October. Dickson had 144 rushing yards on 26 carries – both season highs – in the emotional win at Rio Rancho. When Wysong throws the ball, [player_tooltip player_id="139523" first="Nic" last="Trujillo"] has been his favorite target all season long, amassing 43 receptions for 750 yards and 8 TD. The Hobbs defense led by junior LB [player_tooltip player_id="198321" first="Kenyon" last="Singleton"] (3rd in state with 126 tackles) and senior [player_tooltip player_id="135118" first="Aldo" last="Argott"] (88 tackles) must find a way to slow down the Cleveland offense. If they can’t the Eagles offense must try to keep up with the Storm, a tough task. QB [player_tooltip player_id="134908" first="Colton" last="Graham"] is one of a handful of New Mexico signal callers to throw for 2,000+ yards this season. He has 2,003 passing yards while completing 65 percent of his passes. Junior [player_tooltip player_id="137921" first="Kaden" last="Trevino"] (52 receptions) is one of the top receivers in the 2023 class, ranking seventh in the state with 857 receiving yards. Cibola (7) at Rio Rancho (1)(Fri., 7 p.m.): Cibola proved in the first meeting between these district rivals five weeks ago that they could hang with the Rams for about a quarter-and-a-half. Now they need to show they can do it for the entire 48 minutes. That’s easier said than done, of course. But the Cougars certainly possess the high-powered offense to give Rio Rancho a scare. Quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="137861" first="Aden" last="Chavez"] has thrown for the most passing yards in the state (2,855) and should eclipse the magical 3,000-yard barrier in this game barring an early exit. The explosive WR duo of senior [player_tooltip player_id="134963" first="Nathan" last="Lopez"] (82 receptions for 1,156 yards; most receptions in state) and junior [player_tooltip player_id="137936" first="Branden" last="Castillo"] (52 receptions) have been entertainingly good all season long, especially the diminutive yet fearless Lopez, dubbed “The Peoples’ Champion.” Cibola will mix in some runs plays for RB Anthony Garcia (430 rushing yards on 111 carries) to keep the Rams defense led by stellar DB [player_tooltip player_id="26231" first="Lucas" last="Lucero"] from focusing just on stopping the pass. Cibola’s problem in the first meeting with Rio Rancho on Oct. 1 is they had few answers for Rams RB [player_tooltip player_id="26227" first="Zach" last="Vigil"], who carried 30 times for a whopping 339 yards and 4 TD, including 241 yards in the second half, against the Cougars. Overall, Rio Rancho ran for 413 yards in the 65-35 win over Cibola. Then again, nobody has been able to stop the ultra-talented Vigil this season, who needed just seven games to eclipse 1,000 yards and is now verbally committed to play FBS football for New Mexico. Rams QB Dominick Priddy, who has signed to play baseball at Amarillo College, is keenly accurate throwing the football (66.1 completion percentage) to a quartet of receivers, all of whom have at least 14 receptions. Volcano Vista (6) at La Cueva (3)(Fri., 7 p.m.): Another quarterfinal matchup between a pair of teams that met earlier this season. La Cueva won that previous matchup, 38-16, as Bears QB [player_tooltip player_id="137862" first="Aidan" last="Armenta"] (2,357 passing yards + 22 TD) threw for 307 yards and 1 TD on 15-of-28 passing. If he has sufficient time, Volcano Vista QB [player_tooltip player_id="26247" first="Josh" last="Gerardo"] has the potential to match Armenta throw-for-throw. As talented as the quarterbacks are, the headliner for this matchup is the array of wide receivers on both sidelines. Few teams in the state can match Volcano Vista’s dynamic duo of [player_tooltip player_id="135097" first="Kaden" last="Valdez"] and [player_tooltip player_id="198052" first="Kieran" last="Cordova"]. Valdez leads the state in receiving yardage (1,177) and is close to the top in average yards per reception (21.4). Cordova ranks third in the state in receptions (59) and fifth in receiving yardage with 990. For La Cueva, athletic junior [player_tooltip player_id="208744" first="Exodus" last="Ayers"] has been solid in his first year playing football and has used his extraordinary basketball skills to make numerous leaping catches. Sophomore Jackson Hix has 24 receptions for 463 yards. The La Cueva defense deserves a lot of the credit for the earlier victory over Volcano Vista. The Bears scored THREE defensive touchdowns, all in the first half. Two scored on interception returns and one on a fumble recovery by DE Deven Dyer. The biggest name on La Cueva’s defense is LB Hunter Haemker, a UNM commitment. Las Cruces (5) at Centennial(4)(Fri., 7 p.m.): Few games had a wilder ending this season than the first matchup between Las Cruces and Centennial. The Bulldawgs jumped out to a big lead before the Hawks roared back in the second half and won the game, 42-41, on a trick play in the final seconds. Now the two bitter cross-town rivals square off with a spot in the semifinals on the line. Both teams have talented QB-RB-WR trios. After sitting behind Marcos Lopez in the spring, Las Cruces QB [player_tooltip player_id="26253" first="Dallas" last="Boyd"] is one of the top dual threat QBs in the state and now a card-carrying member of the prestigious 1,000-1,000 club as he has reached the millennium mark in passing yards and rushing yards. RB [player_tooltip player_id="134990" first="Elijah" last="Ogas"] and sophomore WR Zakye Hawkins join in the effort. That talented trio accounted for all six of the Bulldawgs’ TDs in last weekend’s 42-7 first round victory over Clovis. Centennial, meanwhile, earned the district title and the No. 4 seed in the Class 6A playoffs because they have plenty of offensive talent on their sidelines as well. QB [player_tooltip player_id="26267" first="Ian" last="Lopez"] is also an excellent dual threat QB and is supported by RB [player_tooltip player_id="208691" first="Mikah" last="Gutierrez"] and WR [player_tooltip player_id="137930" first="Isaiah" last="Abeyta"]. The biggest question mark for Centennial is how the Hawks will perform considering they haven’t played a game since Oct. 22. Thus, when they run onto the field Friday night at Field of Dreams in front of an expected large crowd, three weeks will have elapsed between games. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-231762" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/11/Screenshot-2021-11-10-at-21-25-00-2021-NMAA-State-Football-Championships-6A-MaxPreps-300x228.png" alt="" width="300" height="228" /> https://twitter.com/CHSStormFB/status/1457121174345900041 https://twitter.com/CHSStormFB/status/1455680695062302724 https://twitter.com/HobbsEaglesFB/status/1458179812376334350 https://twitter.com/zacharyvigil21/status/1455694547380576258 https://twitter.com/cibolafootball/status/1455930076738961410 https://twitter.com/LaCuevaFootball/status/1457445999216005124