November Madness: Quarterfinals Preview, Class 6A

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We've reached the quarterfinal round of the 2023 New Mexico high school football playoffs in Classes 6A-3A. The semifinals will be played in 2A this weekend. Here is a preview of the four Class 6A games:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hobbs (8) at Cleveland (1)</strong>: Hobbs makes its first trip to the Albuquerque Metro area in two years. The last time was also at Cleveland in the quarterfinals of the 2021 playoffs. Hobbs lost, 42-14, to the future 6A champions, so the Eagles hope the outcome will be different on this trip north. However, it will take an A-plus performance in all three phases to beat the Storm at Thunderbolt Stadium. Cleveland, as expected, is peaking at the right time with four wins in a row since the shutout loss at home to West Texas power Frenship, including the 37-0 win over crosstown rival Rio Rancho in Week 11.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='851873' first='Jordan' last='Hatch']</strong> is developing into a promising young quarterback with 1,205 passing yards and a 62.5 completion percentage. He's supported by a strong ground game led by RB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='590512' first='Harris' last='Mbueha']</strong> (1,274 rushing yards + 16 TD) and fleet of talented receivers (<strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1103860' first='Jaden' last='Davis']</strong>, <strong>Angel Gallegos</strong>, TE <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='836902' first='Jon' last='Baca']</strong>). Davis is also a baseball standout who has signed with New Mexico State. The offensive line is solid with <strong>Gabe Marquez</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='340188' first='Ben' last='Linfoot']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='851862' first='Moses' last='Sparks']</strong> and others. The Storm have next level talent at all three levels of the defense, including LBs <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='274701' first='Stratton' last='Shufelt']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='275565' first='Isaac' last='Medrano']</strong>. DL <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='611047' first='Psalmon' last='Kegler']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1103199' first='Chuka' last='Tutman']</strong> give Cleveland as good a defensive front seven as any team in the state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hobbs' offensive trio of QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='817391' first='Owen' last='Callaway']</strong>, RB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1103655' first='Saul' last='Armendariz']</strong> and WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='592369' first='Jeremiah' last='Jaquez'] </strong>ranks among the best in the state. Jaquez has 60 receptions for 734 yards and 7 TD in 11 games. He had 111 receiving yards vs. Clovis in the first round last week. Armendariz  topped 100 yards rushing for the fourth time this season in the first round win over Clovis. Calloway has thrown for 1,168 yards and 10 TD. Hobbs has a history of producing outstanding linebackers and the next great one appears to be junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1119266' first='Tristan' last='Davis']</strong>, who has 113 tackles, 13.0 TFL, 5.5 sacks and 6 QB hurries this season. <strong>Gustavo Diaz-Castro</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='815949' first='Zaeden' last='McPherson']</strong> are pretty good linebackers too. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/HobbsEaglesFB/status/1721556362080236016?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/HobbsEaglesFB/status/1721556362080236016?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Las Cruces (7) at Centennial (2)</strong>: These teams met two weeks ago in a winner-take-all district championship game won by Centennial, 30-23. It was a close, hard fought game won by the Hawks. Nothing suggests anything different this time. Las Cruces is coming off an impressive 42-6 opening round win over Los Lunas in which QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='853029' first='Gunnar' last='Guardiola']</strong> threw 4 TD passes and solid RB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1137388' first='Daniel' last='Amaro']</strong> had two scores. After last season's disappointing 2-7 record, Las Cruces didn't win its first game until the midway point of the season, a 44-7 win over rival Mayfield. That convincing victory ignited a five-game winning streak for the Bulldawgs that didn't end until the loss to Centennial in Week 11.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Centennial, meanwhile, hasn't lost since an 0-2 start against Cleveland and El Paso (TX) Franklin, putting together a seven-game winning streak that catapulted the Hawks to the No. 2 seed for the playoffs. The stretch includes victories over La Cueva, Hobbs and Las Cruces. Dual threat <strong>Zaiden Davis</strong> has filled in nicely for [player_tooltip player_id='340297' first='Daniel' last='Hernandez'] at quarterback. He's rushed for 526 yards and 6 TD, combining with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1037108' first='Jesus' last='Barraza']</strong> (614 rushing yards on 87 carries) to give the Hawks a highly productive offensive backfield duo. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='280925' first='Jordan' last='Lucas']</strong> and <strong>Christian Ortiz</strong> are the top WR Targets.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Defensively, Centennial has allowed just 65 points in the last six games, an average of about 11 points per contest. The lineup is filled with next level talent starting with LB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='274702' first='John' last='Sierra']</strong>, who has been offered by New Mexico. The leading tackler is <strong>Juan Andres-Bitar</strong> (68 tackles). The Hawks are impressively balanced on defense with NINE defenders amassing 36+ tackles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/Jordan_Lucas_07/status/1720574453082357922?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/Jordan_Lucas_07/status/1720574453082357922?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>               </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Farmington (11) at La Cueva (3)</strong>: These two district rivals are meeting for the fourth time in the last 12-1/2 months, so there are few secrets. The most intriguing matchup in this quarterfinal is definitely the quarterbacks. Farmington's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='274791' first='Trel' last='Griego']</strong> and La Cueva's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='611098' first='Cameron' last='Dyer']</strong> are two of the best in the state at their craft. Griego engineered the Scorpions' 31-21 upset over No. 6 Volcano Vista last week by throwing for 410 yards and 5 TD. Through 11 games, Griego has thrown for 3,591 yards and 39 TD, so he's dangerous every time he steps back to throw the football. Griego is also Farmington's leading rusher. The WR trio of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='611107' first='Michael' last='Beck']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='615414' first='Cayden' last='Haliburton']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1119681' first='Vigil' last='Jace']</strong> – all juniors – has combined for 177 receptions.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>By this point, La Cueva's climb out of an early 0-3 hole (1 forfeit to Rio Rancho) to the No. 3 seed in the 6A playoffs has been well documented. All seven victories during the current streak have come by 28+ points. They haven't just been beating opponents, they're dominating them. The 6-foot-4, 195-pound Dyer is the CEO of an explosive offensive unit. He's thrown for 2,265 yards and 26 TD while rushing for 931 yards and 18 TD. Together, Dyer has accounted for close to 3,200 yards and 44 TD. <strong>Eliseo ‘Cheeto' Lumbrera</strong> is a speedy running back who recently visited Arizona. The receiving corps is arguably the fastest in the state with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='853013' first='Tanner' last='Montano']</strong>, <strong>Kobe McGill</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='274718' first='Cruz' last='Markham']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='274790' first='Jackson' last='Hix']</strong>. All could be the No. 1 receiver on most teams. Junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='835712' first='Mark' last='Handy']</strong> is an elite offensive lineman who was recently offered by Texas Tech.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='611083' first='Mason' last='Posa']</strong> leads the stout La Cueva defense and every game it seems the extremely athletic Posa makes at least one or two ‘Wow' plays. That's why numerous Power 5 schools have offered. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='611069' first='Nick' last='Mertz']</strong> is an outstanding LB for the Bears as well. Farmington's defense is exceptionally balanced with more than a half dozen players sharing the load.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/camdyer7/status/1720087870847991995?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/camdyer7/status/1720087870847991995?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>               </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Rio Rancho (5) at Sandia (4)</strong>: Rio Rancho will play in Albuquerque's Milne Stadium for the first time in a decade. And the fact they're facing Sandia, which earned a top four seed, cements one of the feel-good stories of the year in Class 6A. But the Matadors haven't just relied on luck to win games. They've gotten efficient and reliable QB play from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1103734' first='Cruz' last='Rivera']</strong>, productive running from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='590746' first='Hunter' last='Maldonado']</strong> and consistently solid performances from the WR trio of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='590743' first='Jacob' last='Adcox']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1119683' first='Joey' last='Harris']</strong> and <strong>Grayson Frederich</strong>. The Sandia defense has allowed 20 or fewer points 6 times in 10 games.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Since losing to Hobbs on Sept. 15, Rio Rancho has won five of six games, including wins over Farmington, Volcano Vista and West Mesa. Offensively, the Rams rely on the dual threat skills of QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='613752' first='JJ' last='Arellano']</strong>, the ball-carrying talents of 1,000-yard rusher <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='590563' first='Rayce' last='Ramirez']</strong> and the speed and elusiveness of WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='590564' first='Anthony' last='Raymer']</strong>. All three had prominent roles in last week's first round win over West Mesa along with WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='275082' first='Dominic' last='Valencia']</strong>. The Rams steady defense is led by the strong LB corps featuring <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='817417' first='Andrew' last='Gustafson']</strong> (100 tackles), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1259046' first='Jacob' last='Lesperance']</strong> (86) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1103708' first='Ryan' last='Brown']</strong> (71). They are the three leading tacklers for Rio Rancho.                 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/SandiaMatadors/status/1720779936808554577?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/SandiaMatadors/status/1720779936808554577?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/SandiaMatadors/status/1721163423273111825?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/SandiaMatadors/status/1721163423273111825?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->