Realignment: Best New District Matchups For 2026 (4A-2A)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The NMAA's radical realignment of New Mexico high school football for the 2026 and 2027 seasons will give us some very intriguing new district matchups. Here are some in Class 4A-2A that at first glance appear to be most intriguing:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lovington vs. St. Pius X (4A-2)</strong>: Don't be surprised if this game decides the district title. Lovington, as always, will have plenty of talent in their return to Class 4A, albeit much of it new. The Wildcats' defense is usually fast and strong. St. Pius X will be striving for their third consecutive appearance in the Class 4A state championship game. Their high octane offense will be tested by Lovington.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Manzano vs. Bloomfield (4A-1)</strong>: Bloomfield has bludgeoned just about everything in its path over the past two years on the way to consecutive state titles. Manzano moves over from District 4A-2 and the Monarchs will get their opportunity to knock off Goliath. With talented young players like [player_tooltip player_id='1613352' first='Broden' last='Price'] and Vince Varela, Manzano should provide a good test for The Bobcats.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Silver vs. NMMI (3A-2)</strong>: More eyes will be on Silver in 2026 after former ENMU head coach Kelley Lee recently accepted the Colts' head coaching job. Lee loves to run power football, as he showed at ENMU. NMMI runs the triple option and does it very well. If you love Ground Strike Offense, this matchup is for you. Same for two other 3A-2 matchups – Moriarty vs. NMMI and Silver vs. Moriarty. Lot of parity in the district. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Dexter vs. Texico (2A-3)</strong>: The new look Class 2A has 24 teams, and the Demons and Wolverines promise to be two of the best. Texico has won back-to-back 2A state titles. Dexter moves to 2A after consecutive crushing defeats to St. Michael's in the 3A title game. Both expected starting quarterbacks are elite – [player_tooltip player_id='1155032' first='CJ' last='Granados'] of Dexter and [player_tooltip player_id='1613755' first='Cross' last='Figg'] of Texico. Sign us up for this one. Potential Game of the Year in Class 2A.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Incredible season son, keep working!! 🏈📚🏆💪🏼🟡⚫️⚪️<br><br>✅ 1st team All District QB <br>✅ 1st team All Metro QB<br>✅ 1st team All State QB <br>✅All academic <br>✅ 4A State Runner up <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AllStateQB?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AllStateQB</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Playmaker?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Playmaker</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DualThreat?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DualThreat</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ArmTalent?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ArmTalent</a> <a href="https://t.co/QSbdGDjcj5">pic.twitter.com/QSbdGDjcj5</a></p>&mdash; JCarpenter (@Gr8tful06) <a href="https://twitter.com/Gr8tful06/status/2000433302633947171?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 15, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Congratulations to <a href="https://twitter.com/Isaiah_3_C?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Isaiah_3_C</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoxLiggins?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoxLiggins</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CurtisFlakes1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CurtisFlakes1</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/ChaseNelson58?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ChaseNelson58</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Hersh_Olloway2?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Hersh_Olloway2</a> and Anthony Ruiz on receiving First Team All Metro Offensive Honors at their respective positions! <a href="https://t.co/4jdH2kXsxu">pic.twitter.com/4jdH2kXsxu</a></p>&mdash; coachflakes (@thecoachflakes) <a href="https://twitter.com/thecoachflakes/status/1992674614598898087?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 23, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🏈💜 ALL-STATE MONARCHS 💜🏈<br><br>Proud of these three for earning 2nd Team All-State honors and representing Manzano the right way — toughness, character, and consistency all year.<br><br>🔹 [player_tooltip player_id='1613352' first='Broden' last='Price'] – RB<br>🔹 [player_tooltip player_id='1137881' first='Aiden' last='Erickson'] – WR / KR<br>🔹 Vince Varela – DE<a href="https://twitter.com/VinnyVarela84?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@VinnyVarela84</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/broden23496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@broden23496</a> <a href="https://t.co/D7GYXqaS0W">pic.twitter.com/D7GYXqaS0W</a></p>&mdash; MonarchFootball (@ManzanoFB) <a href="https://twitter.com/ManzanoFB/status/1998529530299036080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://t.co/dbuQPAIYJi">https://t.co/dbuQPAIYJi</a><br>Regular Season!<br>8-1 (1 game canceled)<br>District Champs!<br>958 Passing Yards <br>9 Passing Touchdowns <br>58-100 - 58%<br>492 Yards Rushing <br>14 Touchdowns <a href="https://twitter.com/DDemonFootball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DDemonFootball</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepRedzoneNM</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nmpreps?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmpreps</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachKelleyLee?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachKelleyLee</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/coacholney?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@coacholney</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachDaPrato?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachDaPrato</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachTwelveGage?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachTwelveGage</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/osoukup?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@osoukup</a></p>&mdash; [player_tooltip player_id='1155032' first='CJ' last='Granados'] (@cj_granados10) <a href="https://twitter.com/cj_granados10/status/1987334482853257440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 9, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>      </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->