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H.S. Football Playoffs: Sandia upsets Clovis; La Cueva, Rio eliminated

By Jeremy Fowler
Saturday, November 25, 2006

While two Albuquerque teams folded on the road, Sandia marched into one of the toughest places to play in New Mexico High School football without being intimidated.

The Matadors (11-1) defeated perennial power Clovis 24-21 in a Class 5A football quarterfinal on Friday night at Leon Williams Stadium. Sandia will face top-ranked Mayfield in a Saturday semifinal at 1 p.m. in Las Cruces.

La Cueva and Rio Grande were eliminated after blowout playoff losses on the road.

Alamogordo routed the Ravens 48-0. The Bears were hapless in a 31-0 loss to Mayfield (11-0).

At Milne Stadium, Cibola beat Highland 24-21. The Cougars (10-2) will play Alamogordo (9-2) in a semifinal matchup.

After Friday's performance at Clovis, the Matadors seem poised for any road challenge - even against the 11-0 Trojans, coach Kevin Barker said.

"We have to be together, 43 players against any town," Barker said. "Our kids believed they could come down here and beat (Clovis). We never had a doubt. We've had a chip on our shoulder for awhile, but all I told our team is to go out there and play. This win will make us stronger on the road (against Mayfield)."

Two factors fueled Sandia's playoff motivation:

Its No. 5 seed, which Barker said should have been higher. The Matadors had one loss and defeated Highland (9-2), the No. 2 seed, earlier in the season.

Clovis' 51-12 win last season over the Matadors.

The number 51 never left the team's drawing board in the school's locker room.

Clovis couldn't manage half of that total against this year's Matadors, scoring seven points through the first three quarters.

Quarterback Derris Jackson again led Sandia, rushing for two touchdowns - including a 46-yarder where he broke four tackles - and throwing a 35-yard score to wide receiver Michael Scarlett in the first quarter.

Jackson had 144 yards rushing on 23 carries and completed 7-of-19 passes for 115 yards.

Scarlett snagged two interceptions, with his last thwarting Clovis' final drive with less than two minutes left.

Now these two All-Metro players look to duplicate their stellar performances against Mayfield.

The last playoff matchup between the two was the 1976 state title game, which Sandia won.

This time, Sandia could go as far as Jackson pilots it.

"He's exceptional," Barker said. "He always rides us, and the kids follow him very well."

While one Albuquerque team is emerging, another has slipped further from what was a title team and dynasty machine-in-the-making two years ago.

La Cueva, which won consecutive titles from 2003-04, failed to make the title game for the second straight season.

The Bears managed 78 yards in the first half. Things didn't improve much in the second, when quarterback Larry Oms was sacked four times.

Instead of adjusting from a 6-2 loss to Mayfield in late September, the Bears retracted.

"They were just a little more prepared than last time," said La Cueva coach Fred Romero, whose Bears finished the year 6-6. "It's tough to play in Las Cruces. You have to play the perfect game, you have to tackle well, and we didn't do any of that."

As for the Ravens? They suffered a scare Friday that could overshadow the underwhelming performance on the field.

Ravens senior running back Josh Benton was taken off the field on a stretcher after taking a blow from Alamogordo safety Paul Stewart.

The 5-foot-8 Benton was sent to an El Paso hospital. Coach Randy Gutierrez said Benton was still unconscious at 11 p.m. Friday.

The hit occurred after Alamogordo intercepted a pass intended for Benton, whose injury stopped the game for about 25 minutes early in the third quarter.

Rio Grande (7-5) threw five interceptions and turned the ball over seven times total.

"We were just trying to get out of there at that point," coach Randy Gutierrez said.

Rio, usually a potent rushing attack, managed 15 yards rushing against Alamogordo (9-2).