PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW: BERNALILLO SPARTANS
Coach: John Cobos (4th full year; 5-27) Last season: 3-7 Returning starters: 6 offense, 7 defense
Key players: Damian Gutierrez, sr. (5-11, 210, QB/ILB); Reyes Herrera, sr. (5-11, 175, WR/CB); Adam Abeyta, sr. (5-9, 185, OLB/WR); Ayden Madrid, soph. (6-0, 220, ILB/FB); Aron Neely, sr. (5-11, 170, RB/FS); Michael Maes, jr. (6-1, 240, C/DT); Joshua Fosnock, sr. (6-2, 195, TE/DE); Tony Morrison, jr. (6-0, 185, CB/ RB/WR). Outlook: Cobos has been around this program for over a decade, and said he’s incredibly optimistic about this team’s chances, especially with a sturdy group of 10 seniors who know him and know his system and expectations. Gutierrez is a four-year starter at quarterback, a very rare feat indeed in high school football. And he’s got a Class 4A/5A All-Metro tight end in Fosnock at his disposal. “This is the year we’ve been talking about changing the culture,” Cobos said. “We put all the eggs in this basket. We feel this is the year for us to be competitive.” Herrera, one of the school’s top basketball players, brings an additional athletic element to the offense, which Cobos admits is further along than the defense with the opener less than three weeks away.
2018 schedule (x-denotes District 2/5-4A game)
Aug. 24, Gallup, 7 p.m. Aug. 31, at Navajo Prep, 7 p.m. Sept. 8, at Albuquerque Academy, 11 a.m. Sept. 14, Shiprock, 7 p.m. Sept. 21, at Santa Fe, 7 p.m. Sept. 28, IDLE x-Oct. 5, at Española Valley, 7 p.m. x-Oct. 12, St. Pius, 7 p.m. x-Oct. 19, at Pojoaque, 7 p.m. x-Oct. 26, Grants, 7 p.m. x-Nov. 2, Taos, 7 p.m.
Circle the date: The first half of this schedule is not terribly demanding, but the Spartans could certainly use a win right out of the gate against the Bengals to perhaps kick-start the season. Plenty of winnable games through the first half.