2026 2A Team Previews: McCurdy Bobcats, Laguna Acoma Hawks

As we enter Game Week, here are previews for two Class 2A teams: McCurdy Bobcats and Laguna Acoma Hawks.   MCCURDY BOBCATS   It will be a family affair at McCurdy as Carlos Perea begins his first season as the Bobcats head coach. His son, former West Las Vegas standout QB CJ Perea, will be the offensive coordinator. McCurdy will shift from a run-dominated offensive attack to a more balanced system featuring more passing. The 2026 roster will include about 20 players.   “They ran the same couple of plays over and over,” Carlos Perea told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “That's what I've heard from the players and the parents. It was boring. As a result, a lot of guys washed out. They didn't want to play anywhere. We're going to be a lot different. We'll be throwing the ball a lot more. We'll probably be 60-40 pass-to-run. We have some good athletes at receiver. It will be similar to a West Coast offense with a quick passing game.”      The starting quarterback will be Gakina Monroe. The backup QB and No. 1 RB is senior [player_tooltip player_id='2104435' first='Julian' last='Nino']. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='1613262' first='Devin' last='Ortiz'] will get some carries as well. He served as the Bobcats' QB in 2025 and rushed for over 800 yards. Justin Lovato, Ivan Aragon, Austin Aragon will play wide receiver with Ezra Greenwald at tight end. Adrian Martinez is a promising newcomer. The offensive line features senior Mario Maestas, Gerard Towles, Derek Dean, Ethan Martinez and8th-grader Josh Quintana.   The defense (4-4-3 alignment)  will feature Mario Maestas at defensive tackle along with [player_tooltip player_id='2104435' first='Julian' last='Nino'] and Derek Dean at DE. Ethan Martinez will play DT. The linebackers will be Gerard Towles, [player_tooltip player_id='1613262' first='Devin' last='Ortiz'] and Gakina Monroe.  The safeties will be Justin Lovato and Ezra Greenwald, while the cornerbacks are Austin Aragon and Ivan Aragon.                 2026 MCCURDY SCHEDULE   Aug. 21 at Cobre   Aug. 29 CROWNPOINT (Sat., 11 a.m.)   Sept. 5 NEWCOMB (Sat., 11 a.m.)   Sept. 12 TULAROSA (Sat., 1 p.m.)   Sept. 18 at Zuni   Sept. 25 at Hot Springs   Oct. 2 Bye   Oct. 9 at Santa Fe Indian   Oct. 17 TUCUMCARI (Sat., 1 p.m.) *   Oct. 23 at Raton*   Oct. 30 at Santa Rosa*   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/McCurdyBobcats/status/2085183372033446321 </div></figure>   LAGUNA ACOMA HAWKS   The Xavier Cheromiah Era begins at Laguna Acoma. He takes over a Laguna Acoma program that finished 4-5 in 2025. Cheromiah was the Hawks' defensive coordinator for three years before being promoted to head coach. The Laguna Acoma roster includes about 25 players heading into Friday night's season opener.   Three quarterbacks are battling for the starting job: junior Keenan Brown, senior Keyon Kie and sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='2256796' first='Marques' last='Sarracino']. Cheromiah hoped to have a starter named by Monday of Week 1. Junior [player_tooltip player_id='1613423' first='Brez' last='Tiller'] will be the No. 1 running back. Junior [player_tooltip player_id='1613564' first='Camren' last='Martin'] will be the No. 2 RB. Brown will also line up at RB when he's not the QB.   Senior Isaiah Pasquale (he has next level aspirations) ascends to the No. 1 WR role. Basketball and baseball standout Xavier Presley is a promising newcomer. The offensive line features several returners and averages about 250 pounds. Returners include senior  Damian Garcia (also serves as team's punter) and junior Andre Garcia.  Daniel Jauncito is a promising newcomer. Six-foot-3, 300-pound freshman  Santiago Victorino played varsity last season and could potentially dominate. Six-foot-2, 290-pound senior Ryan Concho brings more good size to the O-Line.   Most of the Hawks' offensive line will also play defensive line. Damian Garcia and Ryan Concho will be the defensive ends. In the interior, Andre Garcia, Daniel Jauncito and Santiago Victorino will rotate. The three linebackers in Laguna Acoma's 4-3 alignment will be MLB [player_tooltip player_id='1613423' first='Brez' last='Tiller'], OLB Keenan Brown and OLB [player_tooltip player_id='2256796' first='Marques' last='Sarracino'].   The secondary will be led by Keyon Kie, Isaiah Pasquale and Xavier Presley. The fourth DB spot is up for grabs.   2026 LAGUNA ACOMA SCHEDULE   Aug. 21 at Capitan (6 p.m.)   Aug. 27 at Newcomb (Thur.)   Sept. 4 SANTA ROSA   Sept. 12 SANTA FE INDIAN (Sat., 1 p.m.)   Sept. 18 at Tularosa   Sept. 25 at Raton   Oct. 2 TOHATCHI*   Oct. 9 Bye   Oct. 16 at Crownpoint*   Oct. 23 at Zuni*   Oct. 30 HOZHO ACADEMY*   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/McCurdyBobcats/status/2080387194867577326 </div></figure>

As we enter Game Week, here are previews for two Class 2A teams: McCurdy Bobcats and Laguna Acoma Hawks.