Opening night
La Cueva rallies to beat Cibola in the first prep football game of the season
It wasn’t quite the new-look La Cueva Bears we were expecting, but it wasn’t an entirely old school look, either. It was a bit of both — with massive contributions from a ferocious pass rush and even a former golfer.
Spliced together, those elements were enough to give La Cueva a spectator-friendly, season-opening prep football victory, 31-26 over Cibola on Wednesday night at Nusenda Community Stadium.
“It’s a big booster for us,” sophomore defensive tackle C.J. Rodriguez said. “To come out of the gate and start the season like that was big for the whole team.”
The Bears scored the final nine points of the game, and there were four lead changes in a game that wasn’t truly decided until Cibola’s last-ditch attempt to mount a drive was stopped with under a minute left in the game near midfield.
Kevin Fanelli — who was part of La Cueva’s state championship golf team in May, but quit to join the Bears’ football program — hauled in a 40-yard touchdown pass from Chris Campbell with 7:31
remaining for a 29-26 lead.
The La Cueva defense, which terrorized the Cougars’ offensive line and their QB, Gannon Chavez, throughout the second half, registered a safety less than a minute later as Rodriguez sacked Chavez in the end zone.
“Originally when we came out,” Rodriguez said, “we were expecting them to run the whole time. We did what we could to get pressure on him.”
Indeed, the Cougars looked like the team unveiling a new offense, not La Cueva.
Chavez’s remarkable scrambling ability led to numerous huge — and thrilling — gains in the Cibola passing game. He finished 27-of-40 for 389 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. He also ran for a score.
Meanwhile, the Bears raised the curtain on their new spread offense.
The results were hit and miss and, La Cueva coach Brandon Back lamented, too slow moving in the first half. Campbell threw for only 104 yards in the opening two quarters — but 37 of those were on a TD strike to Fanelli on a fourth-and-7 on the game’s opening drive. That was the last of a 12-play drive that consumed more than half the first quarter.
Moments later, Chavez evaded the La Cueva defense for seven or eight seconds before firing a 43-yard touchdown pass to Joaquin Espitia-Candelaria. Cibola went for 2 and failed, and trailed 7-6.
“I didn’t expect that kid to be as slippery as he was,” Back said of Chavez.
Campbell had a 13-yard TD run for a 14-6 lead two plays after Blaine Smith returned a kickoff 85 yards for La Cueva. However, the Cougars scored two times before halftime to seize the lead. Brandon Garcia caught a 16-yard TD pass, and Chavez added a 4-yard run to cap a lengthy drive with 1:01 to go before the half. Cibola led 19-14.
And then La Cueva came out and began to run the ball in the second half, much like the Bears always have done. Their offensive line got repeated pushes, and Campbell and Josh Woisin benefited. Woisin scored a 1-yard TD with 4:00 left in the third for a 22-14 edge.
“Our line did a hell of a job,” Campbell said. “It’s all on them. We beat them up front or we don’t win the game.”
Chavez tossed 32 yards to Nathaniel Manzanares early in the fourth quarter for a 26-22 Cibola lead. But that was an exception in the second half, as La Cueva’s defensive line manhandled Cibola’s offensive line.
The Bears got six sacks of Chavez in the second half, including one that resulted in a safety with 6:33 to go that made it 31-26.
Those six sacks resuled in minus-52 yards. Cibola finished with minus-10 yards on the ground.
Meanwhile, the 6-foot-3, 205-pound Fanelli finished with seven catches for 151 yards.
“He’s a beast,” Back said. “We knew he was gonna be good. He’s a big body, and he’s deceptively faster than he looks.”