This and That: Things To Know For Week 5

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Michael's, the two-time defending champions in Class 3A, enters&nbsp; Saturday's fascinating cross-classification clash against 2A Eunice in Santa Fe with a 24-game winning streak.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Currently 4-0, the Horsemen won all 13 of their games in 2024, including the Class 3A state championship game over Dexter, and their final seven games of 2023. The last time St. Michael's lost a football game? Oct. 1, 2023 when West Las Vegas blocked an extra point late and returned home with a stunning 7-6 road victory.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If St. Michael's wins Saturday, they would tie Hatch Valley (2003-05) and, ironically enough, Eunice (2017-18) for the sixth longest winning streak in state history at 25 games.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Horsemen must go undefeated the remainder of the regular season to become just the third team in state history to win 30 or more consecutive games. They would still have a long ways to go to break the all-time record of 69 straight wins held by Animas (1985-90) but the second longest streak of 34 games (Gadsden, 1952-56) would be within their sights.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>CLOSING IN ON 10,000</strong>: Speaking of Eunice, Cardinals quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='854273' first='Elijah' last='Melancon'] </strong>is second in the state in passing yardage entering Week 5. In four games, he has thrown for 1,087 yards and 16 TD while completing 64.0 percent of his passes (57-of-89). Remarkably, he has tossed just two interceptions. Melancon has been Eunice's starting QB since he was a freshman in 2022, when he threw for 2,182 yards and 31 TD. In 41 career games, Melancon has thrown for 9,131 yards and 131 TD. He is just the sixth QB in state history with over 9,000 career passing yards. Only three have thrown for 10,000 yards and Melancon could soon join that exclusive group.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>SILVER'S SURPRISE</strong>: The list of 4-0 teams going into Week 5 contains some familiar names: Las Cruces, St. Michael's and Eunice. Some names are not as familiar: Gadsden, Los Alamos, Santa Rosa and Silver. The latter might be the biggest surprise of all as the Colts went 4-7 in 2024 and lost in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs to Grants. Why is Silver unbeaten? Three key reasons are the passing of QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1709925' first='Josiah' last='Madrid']</strong> (709 yards passing in 3 games), a balanced and productive ground game led by <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1751703' first='Mekhi' last='Grant']</strong> and stout defense. The Colts haven't allowed more than 14 points in any game this season. Eight players have 10+ tackles, so they're sharing the load. But those impressive defensive numbers will be seriously tested in the next two weeks. Valencia RB [player_tooltip player_id='1599923' first='Michael' last='Storms III'], one of the top running backs in Class 4A, &nbsp;comes to town Friday night. Week 6 has Class 4A power St. Pius X making the journey to Silver City for a much-anticipated matchup.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>THURSDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>El Paso (TX) Eastlake 51, Rio Rancho 28</strong>: Rio Rancho scored first on a Jace Lee TD catch + 2-point conversion, but it was all Eastlake after that as the Rams suffered their third straight loss. Eastlake finished the half by scoring 21 unanswered points to take a 21-8 lead at halftime. Eastlake scored twice in the third quarter to take a commanding 35-8 lead. Rams WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1266408' first='Parker' last='Miller']</strong> caught a 4th down TD pass to cut the deficit to 35-14. But Eastlake responded with a TD drive and then scored another TD to make it 51-14 late in the 3rd quarter, and they cruised home from there. Rams RB <strong>Ethan Rolo</strong>n and WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1266408' first='Parker' last='Miller']</strong> scored TDs in the 4th quarter to make the final score a little closer. Rio Rancho has a bye next week before opening District 6A-1 play at Cibola on Oct. 3. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mayfield 43, Santa Teresa 22</strong>: In a battle of winless teams, Mayfield QB <strong>Xavier Ochoa</strong> rushed for 4 TD and passed for another as the Trojans walloped the Desert Warriors at Field of Dreams. All 4 of Ochoa's TD runs were 38+ yards or longer, three from 40 yards or more. Ochoa's 17-yard TD pass to Marcus Castillo in the final minute of the 1st half gave Mayfield a 36-6 lead at halftime. Santa Teresa QB [player_tooltip player_id='1137846' first='Nicholas' last='Vierra'] accounted for all of the Desert Warriors' scoring with 3 rushing TD. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Belen 56, Del Norte 38</strong>: Belen traveled to Milne Stadium and cranked up the offense against the Knights. Belen improved to 2-3. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Navajo Prep 42, Santa Fe Indian 24</strong>: The Navajo Prep defense intercepted 4 passes and limited the SFIS offense to 215 total yards in Farmington. Sophomore Jai Harvier rushed for 63 yards and 1 TD on 10 carries for SFIS, which is playing as an independent in the 2024-25 alignment cycle. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">New MaxPreps Statewide Top 10 <a href="https://t.co/ZOQnW02Fzt">pic.twitter.com/ZOQnW02Fzt</a></p>&mdash; Prep Redzone New Mexico (@PrepRedzoneNM) <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM/status/1967396545982333044?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 15, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">WEEK 5 PREVIEW: In our latest Baker&#039;s Dozen, we take a comprehensive look at the Top 13 games of Week 5 highlighted by a Class 5A showdown in southern NM.<a href="https://t.co/nvUuH6ic3F">https://t.co/nvUuH6ic3F</a><a href="https://twitter.com/GadsdenPanthers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GadsdenPanthers</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/artesiafootball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@artesiafootball</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachFacio?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachFacio</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/HobbsEaglesFB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HobbsEaglesFB</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/LCHSFOOTBALL?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@LCHSFOOTBALL</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Westlasvegasfb?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Westlasvegasfb</a> <a href="https://t.co/tv0nhKQ8kh">pic.twitter.com/tv0nhKQ8kh</a></p>&mdash; Prep Redzone New Mexico (@PrepRedzoneNM) <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM/status/1968464979184480752?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 17, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I got surgery yesterday and everything went well, but sadly my football season is over. It pains me so much i can't be out there the rest of the season to ball out with my brother but everything happens for a reason. <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepRedzoneNM</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachDezAnaya?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachDezAnaya</a> <a href="https://t.co/pjjvYSE8dT">pic.twitter.com/pjjvYSE8dT</a></p>&mdash; Jayden “jay” Muñoz (@jaymunoz73) <a href="https://twitter.com/jaymunoz73/status/1968789979737248134?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 18, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">3rd game of the year Vs Bernalillio. I had 1 FF, 2 FR, 11 tackles, 1 TFL, 66 yards, and 2 TD&#039;s<a href="https://t.co/mbsCKV4YkF">https://t.co/mbsCKV4YkF</a></p>&mdash; [player_tooltip player_id='1606046' first='Mario' last='Romero'] (@MarioRomero5609) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarioRomero5609/status/1968391121790263412?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 17, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/cnBBTEVOAY">pic.twitter.com/cnBBTEVOAY</a></p>&mdash; 🏈 Brienne Green 🐾 (@ArtesiaSports) <a href="https://twitter.com/ArtesiaSports/status/1968460696045121898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 17, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Thank you <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepRedzoneNM</a> for the article in Top Performers of Week 4.<a href="https://twitter.com/sfnmsports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@sfnmsports</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nmpreps?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmpreps</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nmprepcosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmprepcosports</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/NMrecruits?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NMrecruits</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/StMikesHorsemen?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@StMikesHorsemen</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/JRichterNCSA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JRichterNCSA</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/joeybutz12?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@joeybutz12</a> <a href="https://t.co/5ujcG1SshZ">pic.twitter.com/5ujcG1SshZ</a></p>&mdash; [player_tooltip player_id='853063' first='Isaiah' last='Dominguez'] (@Zae_d_24) <a href="https://twitter.com/Zae_d_24/status/1968340209336197455?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 17, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Excited for the opportunity ahead!!! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GATA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GATA</a> <a href="https://t.co/E7DnLA6jFt">pic.twitter.com/E7DnLA6jFt</a></p>&mdash; J.P. (@Jordan97Perales) <a href="https://twitter.com/Jordan97Perales/status/1967674922387509334?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 15, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->