New Mexico high school football champions crowned: Game scores, summaries and photos
Nov. 25—Here's a roundup of the 2023 New Mexico high school football champions.
Class 6A: La Cueva Bears
La Cueva is a much different team than the one Cleveland saw back in August.
For that, the Bears owe the Storm at least a small debt of gratitude.
No. 3 La Cueva (10-4) claimed its first blue trophy in football since 2018 with a surprisingly dominant 35-14 victory over top-seeded Cleveland (9-4) in the Class 6A championship game Saturday afternoon on the Storm's home field. It was the Bears' 10th consecutive triumph after an 0-3 start, as they avenged a 27-7 loss to Cleveland in Week 2 of the regular season.Full game story
Class 5A: Artesia Bulldogs
The winning team had a 91-yard touchdown pass, scored on a stunning fourth-and-15, and hit another unexpected TD on a 29-yard throw on second-and-goal. The Artesia Bulldogs will long remember the events that unfolded over these 48 minutes.
But probably not as much as the only stat that truly mattered, the one they were most fervently chasing:
32.Second-seeded Artesia's 35-21 victory over No. 1 Roswell on Saturday afternoon locked up the program's 32nd state championship, as Artesia beat the Coyotes for the Class 5A state football championship before an overflow crowd at historic Bulldog Bowl.Full game story
Class 4A: Lovington Wildcats
In a way, it made perfect sense. The best team from the state's toughest district finished the season as New Mexico's Class 4A football champion.
That would be the second-seeded Lovington Wildcats, who on Saturday went on the road and demolished district rival Portales 57-21 in the 4A final at Greyhound Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Senior quarterback Wyatt Gomez was clearly the offensive MVP of this postseason for the Wildcats (10-3). He threw for five touchdown passes in the semifinals against Silver, then chucked five more (with over 300 passing yards) on Saturday against the fourth-seeded Rams (11-2), whose only two losses this season were at the hands of Lovington.Full game story
Class 3A: St. Michael's Horsemen
The St. Michael's Horsemen had to work for the blue Class 3A football state championship trophy they earned Saturday.
But first, their family members had to handle some heavy lifting.
Top-seeded St. Michael's used a dominant second half to pull out a 21-16 victory over No. 2 Robertson in snowy Santa Fe, scoring two fourth-quarter touchdowns to finally turn the tide.Full game story
Class 2A: Texico Wolverines
The Class 2A championship proved to be a runaway victory for No. 2 seed Texico (11-2), which pulled away for a 44-7 victory at home over top-seeded Eunice (10-3).
Full game story (at the end of roundup)
8-Man: Melrose Buffaloes
In the 8-Man Championship, top-seeded Melrose routed No. 7 Clayton 50-0.
6-Man: Roy/Mosquero Longhorns
No. 2-seeded Roy/Mosquero scored 24 points in the third quarter and held on for a 46-38 victory over No. 1 Gateway Christian in 6-Man Football Championship game in Roy.
