St. Michael's could still finish atop district by throttling Raton next week

Oct. 23—LAS VEGAS, N.M. — The most competitive district in Class 3A football is looking more and more like a big ol' mess after Friday's Robertson rout of visiting St. Michael's.

Then again, who would want it any other way?

With one weekend left in the regular season, top-ranked and undefeated Raton — most of whom was in attendance to watch the Cardinals roll to a 37-point win that was never in doubt — has a one-game lead on both Robertson and St. Michael's and a two-game lead on West Las Vegas.

The possibility exists for a three-way tie, one that would be broken by point differential between the teams. District rules call for a plus/minus of

13 points for each game.

In that scenario, Robertson is plus 11 by virtue of a two-point loss to Raton and a 13-point max win against St. Michael's.

The best St. Michael's can do is cancel its plus/minus out by beating Raton by at least 13 points. If it ends that way, Raton would fall to minus 11 by virtue of its win over Robertson and its double-digit loss to the Horsemen.

"I guess in that case we'd win a three-way tie," said Robertson coach Leroy Gonzalez. "All you can do is your part."

Then again, the possibility also exists for a perfectly symmetrical final standing where every team is separated from one another by a single game. At the top, an undefeated district champ, at the bottom a winless last-place team with the three in the middle stacked nicely in between.

"It does get kind of messy doesn't it?" Gonzalez said. "At this point, all we can do is win the games we have and see what happens. It all comes down to next week's game. We're hoping for a three-way tie."

Raton ends its regular season with a trip to St. Michael's next week while the two Las Vegas schools get together for their annual backyard brawl.

The math is pretty simple: If Raton beats the Horsemen, it finishes 10-0 as the District 2-3A champion and the likely top overall seed in the state playoffs; if Robertson wins, it finishes 8-2 and, presumably, lands a first-round bye in the playoffs as a top-four seed.

From there, it gets a little trickier. If the Horsemen can't pull the upset and end Raton's perfect run, a 7-3 record highlighted by a two-game losing streak heading into the postseason might mean saying adios to a first-round bye. It would force a first-round playoff game the first week of November, a scenario that means the Horsemen would need to win four games to get a state title instead of the three for those teams landing a top-four seed and a first-round bye.

The New Mexico Activities Association seeding and selection committee has a problem on its hands. Aside from the occasional rare instance that demands one district get most of the top seeds, it traditionally puts more of an emphasis on winning district championships. Teams that win their way in usually get preferential treatment and are rewarded with higher seeds.

Gonzalez said this could be one of those odd years where 2-3A gets its just rewards.

"We've had four of the best teams in the state all year, and if you look at the rankings, I think we have four of the top five spots," he said. "If you go by that, we should have at least three teams get that bye week."

Entering Friday's games, Raton was the undisputed top-

ranked team, followed by

No. 2 St. Michael's, No. 3 Socorro, No. 4 West Las Vegas and No. 5 Robertson. That will obviously change next week with Socorro rising to No. 2 and Robertson expected to jump to at least No. 3.

"If you look at just the rankings, it's hard not to say our district gets at least two teams in there," Gonzalez said. "Buy you know, I've always thought we were one of those teams that does better if we just keep playing and don't get a week off. If you have to fight to get in [to the playoffs], then the last thing you want is to get that bye and sit out for a week when everyone else is playing."

After Friday's loss, St. Michael's needs nothing less than a win over Raton to ensure a first-round bye. Then again, Gonzalez said, not doing so isn't the end of the world.

"There's something about not getting time off that, I don't know, makes some teams just play better," he said. "That break is the last thing a team needs sometimes."

So, don't lose hope, St. Michael's fans. Shorthanded as the Horsemen may have been Friday, brighter scenarios do lie ahead for a team that still — when at full strength — has the goods to go all the way.