November Madness: Class 5A State Championship Game Preview

Class 5A State Championship Game Preview   Who: Roswell (12-0) at Artesia (11-1)   Where: Bulldog Bowl, Artesia, NM   When: Sat., Nov. 25, 1 p.m.   It was inevitable, wasn't it? Even when Roswell beat Artesia, 29-8, in October when those two teams were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 overall in the state by MaxPreps, everybody figured they would meet again Thanksgiving weekend for the 5A championship.   So, here we are. Which team jubilantly lifts the blue trophy late Saturday afternoon is subject to debate. But what's indisputable is how these two teams dominated their 5A opponents this season on the road to the championship game. In 12 games against 5A foes, Artesia and Roswell won by a combined 505 points, an average of 40.8 points per game. They also combined to go 8-0 against Class 6A schools.   Roswell will try to become the first 5A school to beat Artesia at the Bulldog Bowl during a full season (we're omitting the abbreviated spring 2021 campaign) since Oct. 25, 2019 when Goddard won, 46-34, on the Bulldogs' home turf.   “We're in a good place,” Roswell coach Jeff Lynn told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “I like the way we've played the last two weeks (in the playoffs). It would have been easy to look past those two games, but our guys went out and played well anyway. This game is going to be different (than the first meeting). We need to prepare for a four quarter game. We have to play clean. We didn't necessarily play clean in that first game.”     Make no mistake, Roswell has the players to achieve that objective. The Coyotes are as complete a team on both sides of the ball as any in New Mexico. They are dynamic on offense with QB [player_tooltip player_id='425194' first='Manny' last='Fuentez'], RB [player_tooltip player_id='340165' first='Bryce' last='Sanchez'], WR-by-committee and a better-than-expected offensive line. Roswell's defense, arguably the best in the state, is big, fast, strong, aggressive and loaded with playmakers.   Fuentez has thrown for 1,549 yards and 27 TD on 115-of-144 passing, an impressive completion percentage of 79.9 percent. His TD Pass-to-INT ratio is nearly 4-to-1. Sanchez has rushed for 1,404 yards and 13 TD on 194 carries (7.2 yards per carry). Hence, whenever the ball is in the hands of Fuentez or Sanchez, something good usually happens.   “They're definitely the leaders of our offense,” Lynn said. “They're great kids and good students. Bryce started as a sophomore. They've paid their dues and worked really hard. It's really gratifying to see those guys have big seasons. We have five or six guys with around 15 catches. Manny does a good job finding the guy that's open and spreading the ball around.”   Tight end [player_tooltip player_id='1103395' first='Josh' last='Estrada'] is Roswell's leading receiver with 30 receptions. After him, five Coyotes have between 11 and 16 catches.     While Artesia's offense is explosive, the Bulldogs defense led by LB [player_tooltip player_id='590673' first='Diego' last='Wesson'] (team high 78 tackles) and DB Josiah Rodriguez (Four Pick-6 interceptions) is sneaky good and very underrated. Six-foot-4, 215-pound junior DE [player_tooltip player_id='1052441' first='Kaden' last='Grantham'] has 8 tackles for loss.      “Diego is the catalyst,” Artesia head coach Jeremy Maupin told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “Our secondary is phenomenal. They have a ton of turnovers.”             How good is Roswell's defense? The Coyotes have allowed fewer than 10 points in 10 of their 12 games with four shutouts. One of those was the first meeting with Artesia when the only points registered by the Bulldogs came on a Pick-6 in the fourth quarter when the outcome had already been decided. So, make it five shutouts for the Roswell defense if you wish.   Linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='836944' first='Keegan' last='Nichols'] leads the Roswell defense with 64 tackles. Four others have 10+ tackles for loss. Brothers Eli Lynn and [player_tooltip player_id='613759' first='Noah' last='Lynn'] and [player_tooltip player_id='860880' first='Mason' last='Greathouse'] (6-2 230, offer from Western New Mexico) spearhead the D-Line. The talented secondary is the main reason the Coyotes established a school record with 18 interceptions.        “The defense is the strength of our team,” Lynn said. “Our defensive front  is very good. Our linebackers are tough. The secondary is great, too. We're smart and athletic and have good size. They do a great job of preparing, communicating and then on game day they get after it.”        With the Bulldogs playing at home, expect a more productive Artesia offense this time around. The statistics support that statement. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='590681' first='Nye' last='Estrada'], now is in his second season as the Bulldogs' starting QB, has thrown for 2,417 yards and 27 TD with just seven interceptions.   “Nye is a fantastic young man and he has done a very good job,” Maupin said. “He lost his top two targets from last season (Peyton Greathouse moved to Tennessee). He has brought some of these young guys along, especially the slots. We had some wideouts that weren't as experienced. Nye has had a very good season.”      Artesia's ground game is led by junior [player_tooltip player_id='1118283' first='Frankie' last='Galindo'], who began the season as a receiver but moved to the offensive backfield when [player_tooltip player_id='850276' first='Jesse' last='Leroch'] was lost for the season in the second game with an injury. Since then, Galindo has rushed for 1,144 yards and 25 TD, an average of two scores per game. He's been a touchdown machine for the Bulldogs.   “We're glad to get Frankie back for next season,” Maupin said. “He's a very good athlete.”   The quartet of [player_tooltip player_id='1118257' first='Ethan' last='Conn'], [player_tooltip player_id='1119239' first='Izac' last='Cazares'], Juan Diego Duran (elite sprinter) and [player_tooltip player_id='590308' first='Matthew' last='Saiz'] share the pass catching duties. In addition, Galindo is very good catching passes out of the backfield. Thus, Estrada has an array of weapons at his disposal in the passing game and he does a great job distributing the ball around to prevent defenses from focusing on one receiver.   “Nye has done a good job distributing the ball. Against Los Alamos (in the quarterfinals), we had 12 or 13 receivers with a reception,” Maupin said. “Izac is a fantastic athlete. Ethan took over the role of the No. 1 receiver from Peyton Greathouse. Juan Diego moves well down the field and he's our home run threat. When Peyton Greathouse moved, our mentality was next man up. We didn't sulk. We've had a good season without him.”   The Bulldog Bowl can be an intimidating environment for teams that rarely play there, but Roswell's players, especially the seniors, have been there on multiple occasions. As a result, they likely won't be overwhelmed by the frenzied crowd.   “It's a big time environment, but we play in a big-time environment too,” Lynn said. “We've been in those environments. We know what's like when its loud. We play Artesia on the freshman and JV levels too. We know what it's about. Hopefully, we keep it in perspective and play well.”   Maupin is confident Artesia will play much better against Roswell in Saturday's championship game than in the first meeting, and not just because the Bulldogs are hosting.   “We didn't give them our best effort the first time around,” Maupin said. “They did some things we weren't ready for. It was definitely a humbling experience. After beating Cleveland, our guys were riding high. But we got bullied in the first game. We refocused, fixed some things and I think we're back on the right track. Ultimately, I want both teams to play their best game. Hopefully, we'll come out on top.”   Artesia will be playing their fifth straight game at the Bulldog Bowl.           <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/artesiafootball/status/1726640249022157209?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/KeeganNichols_7/status/1723078876262498755?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/Diegowesson54/status/1726832301026533400?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/CoyotesRising/status/1726047591195160737?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/artesiafootball/status/1726009215133626718?s=20 </div></figure>

Class 5A State Championship Game Preview