St. Michael's gears up for challenging schedule
Aug. 17—Given his calm demeanor and relaxed approach, it might seem as though Zach Martinez doesn't rattle easily.
Some things, though, do get to him. It's hard to see, but it's there when he's ready to reveal it.
The thought the St. Michael's starting quarterback carried day and night through the offseason was his performance in last year's Class 3A state championship game in Las Vegas, N.M. He was picked off five times in a loss to district rival Robertson, a game that ended a weird and wild year for the Horsemen.
"I think I went to sleep all year thinking about that game," Martinez said. "Those things make you better, though. It's why I'm back here."
Martinez enters his first full season as the starting QB for the Horsemen. The starter on junior varsity this time last year, he was inserted into the heart of the varsity's offense midway through the season and helped the team reach the state final for the first time in nearly a decade.
He's now just one piece in a talented and deep lineup that includes running back Marcus Leyba, a senior who is ready for whatever workload head coach Joey Fernandez throws at him. Last season it was everything from snaps at receiver, quarterback and as the primary ball carrier.
This year, he'll be the guy doing most of the heavy lifting in the backfield.
"My goal for this year is 1,000 yards at least," he said. "You look at our line, you see what kind of players we have back, it makes me want to show leadership for the younger guys and give a good blueprint the way the older guys did for me when I was coming up."
A quick look at the schedule suggests nothing will come easy. The Horsemen won't face a single 3A school until the start of district play. After Saturday's home opener against Taos, they'll have just one game on their own grass between now and the second weekend in October.
"We've always wanted to challenge the kids and, you know, we've had some older teams that could handle a tougher schedule and we've had teams where it wasn't easy," Fernandez said. "I think this group will be OK. There's some good leadership out there and they all know what to expect."
The Horsemen's balance of power tipped in a new direction last year with three combined losses to Robertson and Santa Fe High. They've struggled with the Cardinals in recent years, but the loss to the Demons seems to have gotten the attention of everyone in Fernandez's clubhouse.
It's one reason why the offense will follow the lead of Leyba and the seniors that plow the road along the line of scrimmage. As many as seven full- or part-time starters return on offense, six on defense. The majority of those can be found on the offensive and defensive lines.
"We don't have those huge guys people probably want to see, but we want guys here who can get off the ball and not be afraid to make contact," Fernandez said. "You can have a big kid who doesn't do that, so how big a kid is doesn't really matter."
One of the biggest additions on both sides is Taven Lozada, a 6-foot-3, 220-pound senior who was on the team's JV last season after transferring from Santa Fe High.
He'll start at tight end and as an edge rusher on defense.
The O-line has returning starters in Matthew Pacheco, Matthias Duran and Dillon Pacheco. Defensive end Gage Bass and Duran, a tackle, anchor the D-line.
"Most of our linemen were with me since we were on JV together, so I feel good about where we are," Martinez said. "A lot of us are seniors, so we're comfortable being out there together."
And with that, one of the few things that seems to have the power of rattling the St. Mike's signal caller fades in an instant. As calm and collected as ever, he gave his assessment of what lies ahead for the next few months of Horsemen football.
"You know, I think we might be really good," he said.
NOTES
A new scoreboard has been installed at the Christian Brothers Athletic Complex. It stands in the footprint of the old device just outside the end zone on the west side of the football field. Fernandez said it cost $20,000 and was donated by the Hunt Law Firm. ... The Horsemen had a two-hour scrimmage last week against visiting Moriarty. St. Michael's historian Mike Pitel said the Horsemen varsity and junior varsity programs found the end zone seven times to the Pintos' two. ... The Horsemen enter this weekend's opener ranked No. 2 in the preseason Class 3A power poll on MaxPreps. Robertson is a solid No. 1 while fellow 2-3A rivals West Las Vegas and Raton bookend the top five with Socorro at No. 3. ... This fall marks the 20th anniversary of the longest game ever played in New Mexico high school football history. Back in 2002, Ruidoso knocked off St. Michael's 62-56 in four overtimes in Santa Fe. The Horsemen are also tied for the second-longest game ever, a three-overtime loss to Lovington in 2008.
