Baker's Dozen Week 11 Preview: District Championship Weekend

The final weekend of the 2021 New Mexico high school football regular season is here. And it’s filled with plenty of drama and intrigue, including SIX winner-take-all district championship games. We take a look at those games and seven more in our weekly Baker’s Dozen, the Top 13 games for Week 11 (All games Friday night at 7 p.m. unless otherwise indicated) The Six Winner-Take-All District Championship Games Cleveland (9-0) at Rio Rancho (7-0) (Fri., 6 p.m.): Even back in the preseason, we knew this game between the top two teams in the state would have enormous ramifications when it finally came around on the schedule. Not only is it an intense rivalry with the ‘City of Vision’ trophy at stake, but the winner secures the District 6A-1 championship and the No. 1 overall seed for the upcoming 6A playoffs, meaning they get to play every November game at home, including the 6A title contest Thanksgiving weekend if they get there. Both teams possess an array of offensive weapons. Cleveland QB [player_tooltip player_id="139521" first="Evan" last="Wysong"] is a dual threat signal caller with the speed to run past defenders. The Storm will bring in sophomore QB Elijah Brody for a change of pace. WR [player_tooltip player_id="139523" first="Nic" last="Trujillo"] is the leading receiver with 38 receptions. Lucious Jackson is the top rusher with [player_tooltip player_id="138204" first="Josh" last="Perry"] sidelined with an injury. The Rams will match up with QB Dominick Priddy, RB [player_tooltip player_id="26227" first="Zach" last="Vigil"] and a balanced receiver corps featuring plenty of reliable targets. This game has ‘instant classic’ written all over it. https://twitter.com/_NMAA/status/1453397834129031172 Farmington (9-0) at Piedra Vista (6-3): While Cleveland and Rio Rancho have been dominating opponents in the Albuquerque Metro area, Farmington has been doing the same in the Four Corners. Just one of their eight games against New Mexico opponents has been decided by fewer than 40 points. Their last four games have all been mercy rule shutout wins. Transfer QB [player_tooltip player_id="26232" first="Brandon" last="Furbee"] directs the Scorpions high-powered offense. Piedra Vista, ranked No. 8 in the latest MaxPreps Class 5A poll, has quietly put together a solid season and now they have the opportunity to snatch the district title away from their main regional rival and possibly prevent them from being the No. 1 seed in the Class 5A playoffs. Belen (6-2) at Los Lunas (9-0)(Sat, noon): Along with Farmington, unbeaten Los Lunas has separated themselves from the Class 5A pack. A victory over rival Belen could hand them the No. 1 overall seed in the 5A playoffs based on superior strength of schedule. As we’ve been saying all season, junior [player_tooltip player_id="137885" first="Paul" last="Cieremans"] makes the Tigers offense go as a dynamic dual threat quarterback with 15 TD passing and 13 rushing. He’s supported by Karlos Cieremans (435 rushing yards) and Malachi Roybal (345) in the ground game. Can Belen beat Los Lunas at its own game? The Eagles rarely thrown the football, averaging 35 rushing attempts per game. Sam Tibbs is Belen’s go-to ball carrier with 622 rushing yards and 8 Td on 124 carries. https://twitter.com/_NMAA/status/1453397936201613312 Kirtland Central (5-4) at Bloomfield (8-1): Bloomfield, seeking their third straight district title, is ranked No. 2 in Class 4A by MaxPreps and could grab the No. 1 overall seed with a rivalry win over Kirtland Central if Portales somehow finds a way to upset top-ranked Lovington. The game features a tasty RB duel between Bloomfield’s [player_tooltip player_id="198283" first="Diego" last="Snell-Martinez"] (403 rushing yards) and Kirtland Central’s [player_tooltip player_id="26251" first="Zakk" last="Thomas"] (1,343 yards + 16 TD). The Broncos are currently ranked No. 9 in 4A by MaxPreps, so a victory in this one should catapult them to a mid-tier seed and a first round home game. Taos (5-4) at Moriarty (5-2): Another matchup with premier running backs. In this case, though. Unheralded Moriarty has several as they unleash a balanced triple option ground attack led by [player_tooltip player_id="138054" first="Erik" last="Wolf"] (581 rushing yards on 46 carries), Kenneth Poyner (415) and [player_tooltip player_id="138055" first="Matthew" last="Romero"] (294). Moriarty is currently ranked No. 5 in the latest MaxPreps 4A poll and certainly eye a top four seed. Taos has overcome an 0-4 start with five straight victories to put themselves in position to win a district title. [player_tooltip player_id="135114" first="Matthew" last="Suazo"] leads the Tigers offense, which was operating on a high level in last week’s 37-22 win over Pojoaque Valley. Albuquerque Academy (8-1) at St. Pius X (7-2)(Thur., 7 p.m.): Unlike most of the other five winner-take-all district championship games, these two teams don’t have much of a history. In fact, they haven’t met on the gridiron since 2014. So, while seeing the Chargers and Sartans on the same field will be strange, the stakes are high. Academy and St. Pius X are ranked No. 3 and No. 4 , respectively, in the latest Class 4A poll. Thus, the winner is practically assured of a top four seed and first round bye. The loser will likely host a Class 4A first-round game next week. Plenty of offensive talent on display: QB [player_tooltip player_id="137884" first="A.J." last="Rivera"] and WR [player_tooltip player_id="137928" first="Kellan" last="Gehres"] for Academy; RB [player_tooltip player_id="26257" first="Marco" last="Ybarra"] and WR [player_tooltip player_id="135303" first="Dominic" last="Esparza"] for the Sartans. https://twitter.com/_NMAA/status/1453398023912837124 Seven More Key Games Clovis (3-5) at Eldorado (6-3): In the wake of getting smacked at home by Sandia last week, Clovis is currently ranked No. 13 in the latest MaxPreps Class 6A poll, meaning they are squarely on the playoff bubble. Eldorado needs a win to secure a middle-tier seed and a first-round home game. Deming (5-4) at Mayfield (5-4): After a steady diet of 6A schools in their first five games, Mayfield is 3-1 against Class 5A competition, including lopsided district wins over Chaparral and Santa Teresa. The No. 5 Trojans will make a strong case for a top four seed in the Class 5A playoffs with a win over Deming, which is ranked No. 10, one spot behind Santa Teresa. Volcano Vista (5-4) at Cibola (5-4): Expect an offensive explosion from two teams that are side-by-side in the latest MaxPreps Class 6A poll. No. 7 Volcano Vista features one of the top WR corps in the state. No. 6 Cibola has arguably the top QB ([player_tooltip player_id="137861" first="Aden" last="Chavez"]) in the state and thrill-a-minute receiver [player_tooltip player_id="134963" first="Nathan" last="Lopez"]. This game should impact final seeding for the 6A playoffs. Roswell vs. Goddard (Wool Bowl): Roswell has dominated this bitter rivalry in recent years but it’s the Rockets that come into Friday night’s showdown with the higher ranking. In fact, Goddard is the highest ranked 5A team behind Farmington and Los Lunas and should cement a top four seed with a win at the Wool Bowl. Roswell looks to complete a remarkable comeback following an 0-4 start. They haven’t lost to a New Mexico opponent since then, a sign the Coyotes young roster is maturing nicely. Roswell is No. 6 in the MaxPreps poll and certainly wants a home game in the first round. Carlsbad (3-5) at Hobbs (4-5): Carlsbad is battling the likes of Sandia, Santa Fe and Clovis for a lower tier seed in the Class 6A playoffs after snapping a 4-game losing streak by beating Organ Mountain at home last week. No. 8 Hobbs feels better about their playoff prospects, but wants to finish at least with a .500 regular season record to erase any doubt. The Eagles’ [player_tooltip player_id="137921" first="Kaden" last="Trevino"] is a dynamic playmaker. Raton (9-0) at St. Michael’s (7-2) (Sat., noon): As the only unbeaten team remaining in Class 3A, Raton heads to Santa Fe looking to lock down an undefeated regular season and the No. 1 seed for the Class 3A playoffs. The Tigers’ talented QB-RB duo of [player_tooltip player_id="26234" first="Dylan" last="Quartieri"] (1,214 passing yards) and [player_tooltip player_id="138053" first="Cayden" last="Walton"] (1,400 rushing yards) has proven virtually impossible to stop this season. The Horsemen’s hopes for the No. 1 playoff seed likely vanished with last week’s 44-7 loss at Robertson in which St. Michael’s was missing 10 players due to Covid protocols. West Las Vegas at Robertson (Sat., noon): There is a lot on the line in one of New Mexico’s fiercest rivalries. Essentially, Robertson (No. 4 in MaxPreps Class 3A poll) and West Las Vegas (No. 5) are battling for a top four seed and the accompanying first round bye. Two talented quarterbacks will lock horns: Senior [player_tooltip player_id="26261" first="Matthew" last="Gonzales"] (299 yards in total offense vs. St. Michael’s) of Robertson and freshman C.J. Perea (nearly 1,600 passing yards) of West Las Vegas. https://twitter.com/_NMAA/status/1453398125889024009 Best of the Rest Manzano at Sandia: Matadors are No. 10 in the MaxPreps 6A poll. Alamogordo at Artesia: Bulldogs need a win over the Tigers and Roswell loss to Goddard to win the district. Organ Mountain at Las Cruces (FOD): A victory over the improving Knights should secure the No. 5 seed and a home game in the 6A playoffs for the Bulldawgs. Portales at Lovington: The Wildcats look to lock down the No. 1 seed in the Class 4A playoffs. Ruidoso at Silver: Ranked No. 6 (Ruidoso) and No. 7 (Silver) in the latest MaxPreps 4A poll, the winner will likely secure a middle-tier seed in the playoffs while the loser must hold its breath. Other Games Albuquerque at La Cueva Valley at Del Norte Bernalillo at Grants Los Alamos at Capital Santa Teresa at Chaparral Cuba at Crownpoint Pojoaque Valley at Espanola Valley Shiprock at Gallup Socorro at Hatch Valley Atrisco Heritage at West Mesa (Sat., noon) Rio Grande at Highland (Sat., noon) Hope Christian at Dexter Navajo Prep at Newcomb Tucumcari at NMMI https://twitter.com/_NMAA/status/1453385128911114245