FARMINGTON – The Farmington High School football team tested some uncharted waters last season and came away with some positive results.
Reaching the Class 6A postseason and winning a first round playoff game in a 34-33 thriller at Hutchison Stadium over Carlsbad, head coach Jeff Dalton is looking forward to jumping back into action.
“We’ve got a lot of returning starters on both sides of the football,” Dalton said. “We think the offense will only get better after a solid season last year, and once we patch up some holes on defense, we’ve got a good core coming back for us as well.”
The Scorpions took part in team scrimmages earlier this month as well as 7-on-7 games against teams from across San Juan County. The team’s first official day of practice for the upcoming season will be July 31, but the team is already on the field learning to get back into form.
“We learned how to play two-hand touch,” joked Dalton. “But I think it was important to get into a routine and get that chemistry back.”
Senior quarterback Trel Griego, who also excelled this past school year in basketball and track and field, was one of the top signal-callers in the state last year.
Griego threw for 2979 yards last season and 31 passing touchdowns. He also scored 11 times on the ground, rushing for 667 yards on nearly 200 carries.
“(Griego) really learned how to pick up the offense as the season went along,” Dalton said. “He’s excited for getting back out there and I think he’s only going to get better with the experience under his belt.”
Griego saved his best performance of the season for the playoff victory over Carlsbad, passing for 374 yards and four TD passes. He also ran for a score as the Scorpions earned one of the biggest wins of its season.
“(Griego) is such a good kid. He does a lot for the community and he’s always out there wanting to do more.”
Junior Michael Beck is also expected to be back on the field this season for the Scorpions. Beck led the team with over 50 catches and 13 touchdown receptions.
Senior running back Ethan Tsosie is also going to be called upon to improve off his campaign last year, when he averaged more than six yards per carry.
This will be the second season in which the Scorpions will be playing as a Class 6A school. Last season, the Scorpions finished with a record of 6-6 and reached the state Class 6A playoffs before being eliminated in the second round by La Cueva. The Scorpions were 3-1 against District 2-5/6A rivals.
Dalton is hoping the lessons learned last season will help moving forward.
“I think the biggest difference between playing in 5A and 6A is the depth of talent,” Dalton said. “At the starting level, I think we’re all pretty even, but it’s when you get to the second team and third team guys, that’s where the numbers come into play.”
There are 21 high school football teams playing in Class 6A. Classifications are based on average of school attendance numbers over the course of a three-year time frame. According to the New Mexico Activities Association, there are seven classifications for football, as opposed to only five for all other sports.
The minimum number of students for a school to be considered eligible for Class 6A football is 1450. The NMAA moved FHS from Class 5A to 6A in late 2021 with an average enrollment of 1557.
That pales in comparison to La Cueva, which has an average enrollment of 1799. Other schools in District 2-5/6A, in which both Farmington and La Cueva play, like West Mesa (1845), Sandia (1800) and Eldorado (1710) all have bigger enrollment numbers.
“That’s where the numbers really matter,” Dalton said. “But we’re not going to use that as an excuse, we competed well and played some big games last season against a lot of these schools and we’re excited to get back out there and compete again.”
San Juan County schools like Piedra Vista and Bloomfield reached the state championship games in Class 5A and 4A respectively. The Panthers lost the Class 5A title game 27-14 at home against Artesia, while Bloomfield brought home the state championship with a 13-7 win at home over Silver City.
Farmington’s opening round postseason win at home over Carlsbad was important for the Scorpions on a couple of levels. Not only did the Scorpions beat the Cavemen in the first ever meeting between the two schools, but the win may have served notice that the perceived advantage of prep football teams from southern New Mexico over the northern part of the state may be diminishing.
“I think the gap between the southern part of the state and the north has closed a bit,” Dalton said. “With teams from up here beating teams from Goddard and Roswell and Silver City, I think that notion has changed a little bit. Kids are all dealing with the same things no matter what part of the state they’re from.”
The Scorpions will open the 2023 season at Hutchison Stadium against crosstown rival Piedra Vista. This will be the 20th meeting between the two schools, with Piedra Vista holding an 11-8 advantage in the all-time series, with the Panthers having won each of the last two games.
Farmington Scorpions Football 2023 Schedule
Home games in ALL CAPS
Friday, Aug. 18, 7 p.m. @Piedra Vista
Friday, Aug. 25, 7 p.m. DURANGO
Friday, Sept. 1, 7 p.m. LOS LUNAS
Saturday, Sept. 9, 1 p.m. @Cibola
Friday, Sept. 15, 7 p.m. ALBUQUERQUE HIGH
Friday, Sept. 22, 7 p.m. @Rio Rancho
Friday, Oct. 6, 7 p.m. WEST MESA
Fri., Oct. 13, 7 p.m. @Sandia High
Sat., Oct. 21, 1 p.m. @Eldorado
Fri., Oct. 27, 7 p.m. LA CUEVA
