2024 Look Ahead: Santa Fe Demons

When Santa Fe won six games in 2021 and finished with their first winning record in over two decades, the Demons appeared to have finally gotten over the hump.     But the last two seasons have seen Santa Fe post records of 1-9 and 2-8, sending them back to the drawing board in head coach Andrew Martinez's long-term rebuild of the program.     However, the Demons ended the season with a victory over local rival Capital, giving Santa Fe a little momentum heading into the off-season. Nowe they need to capitalize on it.     “It was nice to finish off the year with a W,” Martinez told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “It gives you some momentum going into the off-season. We needed to win that game and I'm glad we did. It gave everybody coming back some motivation and a better understanding of what we need to do in the offseason, which is working on our strength and our speed.”            This season, the major talking point surrounding Santa Fe will be how they best utilize speedster [player_tooltip player_id='615514' first='Bryce' last='Melton'] at wide receiver. Melton, a rising senior, is one of the fastest players in the state and the reigning Class 5A champion in the 100 and 200 meters. His personal record in the 100 meters is 10.49 seconds and 21.28 seconds in the 200.     Melton already holds multiple college offers even though he's still a relative novice to the game of football. As coaches always say, you can't teach elite speed.     “Last year was just his second playing football,” Martinez told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “Bryce had a very good year, both on special teams and as a receiver. He's a game breaker. We fed him a lot of different formations and other things last year in order to get him the ball.     “We're going to continue growing in that area. You might see Bryce at quarterback too. Either way, the great thing about Bryce is he's a true competitor and team player. Obviously, he can make big plays and change games.”       Who will throw the ball to Melton? The quarterback spot will feature a three-way competition between rising senior Jeremiah Larranaga, rising junior Jose Rivera and rising sophomore Izaiah Juarez, who started against Roswell last season at the Wool Bowl.        “Jeremiah probably throws the best deep ball of all our quarterbacks, and that includes last year,” Martinez said. “He throws a good deep ball. He's tall and he can run our offense. He's more comfortable throwing the ball than running with the ball.     “Jose is more of an athlete. He's definitely more comfortable running than throwing. But he's a competitors and he did well for our JV team last year, as did Jeremiah. Izaiah is a tough kid. He never flinched when we played Roswell. He's a true dual threat quarterback with good athleticism and good speed. It's going to be a good competition.”     The Demons will also have a new starting running back replacing [player_tooltip player_id='340262' first='Alexander' last='Mora']. Rising sophomore Jesus Navarette probably has the edge after gaining some valuable varsity experience in 2023. Navarette has good speed and elusiveness. Rising junior Derek Darby and rising sophomore Hank Clement will also compete for the job. Both are bigger, physical backs with nice size.     “We have three running backs we're comfortable with going into the season,” Martinez said. “Then we'll see what happens with other kids that's step up.     In addition to Melton, rising senior WR Santiago Villasenor will be a threat in the passing game. He played quarterback in 2022 before switching to receiver in 2023. Villasenor has excellent hands, good speed and looks polished in terms of running routes and catching the ball. Villasenor also plays defensive back.     Six-foot-4, 200-pound rising senior tight end [player_tooltip player_id='1258878' first='Nate' last='Christensen'] also returns to spark the Demons' passing attack. Christenson plays physical, loves contact and is a good blocker. He also plays free safety on defense.     [player_tooltip player_id='268298' first='Cruz' last='Graham'] returns to anchor the offensive line. He earned First-Team All-District honors last season as both an offensive linemen and defensive tackle. Guard [player_tooltip player_id='1258886' first='Jackson' last='Melton'] (brother of Bryce) is back as well. Jonathan Ticho will play both ways too.   Santa Fe was extremely young on defense last season. Graham, Ticho, Clement and Darby are the standouts along the defensive line. An intriguing newcomer is 280-pound rising sophomore Cody Hood, who will play the 1 technique at defensive tackle (defender lines up on the center's outside shoulder) and will be counted on to control the inside gaps, a first for Martinez since taking over the Demons program in 2017.     “Cody is an absolute tank who plays hard,” Martinez said. “His trunk is straight muscle. He's incredibly athletic for his size. We're excited about Cody and what he can do to help us.”     Two-year starter Ramon Martinez and Max Encinias return at inside linebacker, giving the Demons some experience at the second level. Chris Griego is slated for one of the outside linebacker spot. Joaquin Lerma should start at strong safety after missing most of last season with a shoulder injury. Christensen is the free safety. Villasenor will be one of the cornerbacks. James Serano adds depth.     2024 SANTA FE FOOTBALL SCHEDULE   Aug. 23 CAPITAL   Aug. 30 BELEN   Sept. 6 at St. Michael's (at Ivan Head Stadium)   Sept. 13 at Albuquerque High*   Sept. 20 at Sandia*   Sept. 27 at Eldorado*   Oct. 4 Bye   Oct. 11 ATRISCO HERITAGE*   Oct. 18 LOS LUNAS*   Oct. 25 LA CUEVA*   NOV. 1 WEST MESA*         <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/demons_football/status/1771623759553716407?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/demons_football/status/1721339494647914592?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/demons_football/status/1685365488845766656?s=20 </div></figure>

When Santa Fe won six games in 2021 and finished with their first winning record in over two decades, the Demons appeared to have finally gotten over the hump.