Aztec Football Analysis
Aztec beat Class 5A team Santa Fe 56-7 in their season opener. Here's some analysis not in my game story.
Running Offense: The Tigers' offensive line could be the best in the state of New Mexico. Granted, I'm not familiar with the best teams in the state, but with three players among the top 100 statewide as ranked by NMPreps.com on that one unit, they're tough to top.
It's hard to evaluate sophomore running back Bryce Grady, who rushed 11 times for 214 yards. Grady broke into the secondary untouched nearly every carry and averaged 19.5 yards a carry. The linebackers, as Santa Fe coach Raymond Holladay admitted, did a poor job of closing on Grady.
Still, the game boosted Grady's confidence in his first varsity start. He admitted he felt nervous taking over for Mike Hathcock on one of the top football teams in 4A. He did use his blocks well, didn't try to do too much, and hit the hole hard. He needed one cut -- or sometimes none at all -- and reached top speed fast, often by the time he reached the line of scrimmage.
Passing Offense: The Tigers didn't need Brycson King to win. That being said, Santa Fe effectively limited the passing game, especially in the first half.
King's interception should've been a completion -- Alan Orr was open -- but he let the ball hang in the air and allowed Jared Milliorn to recover for the pick.
The Demons shut down Aztec on three straight offensive possessions (wedged around John White's 60-yard punt return for a touchdown), forcing incomplete passes on third down twice and causing Jake Espinoza to fumble on the third. Then Espinoza took a screen pass 72 yards for a touchdown.
King did finish 15-for-21 for 201 yards. Many of his completions were conservative.
Running Defense: The Demons averaged 2.0 yards a carry and finished with 49 rushing yards, 19 of which came on their opening drive. Linebacker Bronson Glazier, defensive back Josh Smith and Matt Hegarty flew to the ball all night and the Tigers were bigger up front on this side of the ball as well.
Santa Fe turned conservative in the second half, and it was easy to read run.
Passing Defense: Aztec didn't fare as well here.
Montoya Moses' 35-yard touchdown in the first quarter resulted from a blatent blown coverage.
Sophomore quarterback Jason Fitzpatrick isn't winning any awards this year, and his pass turned Moses around in the end zone and hung for a long time. He could afford that luxury because nobody was within 15 yards of Moses.
Santa Fe moved the ball through the air in the first half, with 85 yards, and missed a few other opportunities where the Tigers' coverage fell a bit lax.
Special Teams: A blocked punt by Hegarty, a 60-yard touchdown return and six perfect extra points bode well for Aztec. Two long kickoff returns by Santa Fe keep this effort from scoring as an A+.
Overall: Espinoza fumbled twice and didn't catch another pass that can't be considered a drop, but one he could've caught. The team finished with 10 penalties. Two other fumbles and an interception will probably have coach Brad Hirsch talking ball security this week.
Still, the Tigers handled business and dominated physically.
Grade: B+
Kirtland Central falls: The Broncos lost 47-14 to San Juan. If you're interested, you can find stats of the game here.
San Juan, a Class 2A team in Utah, is ranked No. 17 in the state by MaxPreps for all schools, regardless of classification.
Hometown wins: Sports editor Darren Vaughan's high school team handled business tonight. Grand County (Utah) beat Monticello (Utah) 24-7.
My old school, Hoover (Ala.), beat Gardendale (Ala.) 51-21.
A sad story emerged out of Alabama tonight when Lincoln coach Keith Howard, 48, died of an apparent heart attack after experiencing chest pains during the game.
However, not the best selection of headline -- "Lincoln High head football coach has chest pains during game, dies." Instead of saying he died first, it brings your mind through the process: he went to the game, had chest pains, and died. A bit shocking.
Stay true and keep pounding,
Christopher
Running Offense: The Tigers' offensive line could be the best in the state of New Mexico. Granted, I'm not familiar with the best teams in the state, but with three players among the top 100 statewide as ranked by NMPreps.com on that one unit, they're tough to top.
It's hard to evaluate sophomore running back Bryce Grady, who rushed 11 times for 214 yards. Grady broke into the secondary untouched nearly every carry and averaged 19.5 yards a carry. The linebackers, as Santa Fe coach Raymond Holladay admitted, did a poor job of closing on Grady.
Still, the game boosted Grady's confidence in his first varsity start. He admitted he felt nervous taking over for Mike Hathcock on one of the top football teams in 4A. He did use his blocks well, didn't try to do too much, and hit the hole hard. He needed one cut -- or sometimes none at all -- and reached top speed fast, often by the time he reached the line of scrimmage.
Passing Offense: The Tigers didn't need Brycson King to win. That being said, Santa Fe effectively limited the passing game, especially in the first half.
King's interception should've been a completion -- Alan Orr was open -- but he let the ball hang in the air and allowed Jared Milliorn to recover for the pick.
The Demons shut down Aztec on three straight offensive possessions (wedged around John White's 60-yard punt return for a touchdown), forcing incomplete passes on third down twice and causing Jake Espinoza to fumble on the third. Then Espinoza took a screen pass 72 yards for a touchdown.
King did finish 15-for-21 for 201 yards. Many of his completions were conservative.
Running Defense: The Demons averaged 2.0 yards a carry and finished with 49 rushing yards, 19 of which came on their opening drive. Linebacker Bronson Glazier, defensive back Josh Smith and Matt Hegarty flew to the ball all night and the Tigers were bigger up front on this side of the ball as well.
Santa Fe turned conservative in the second half, and it was easy to read run.
Passing Defense: Aztec didn't fare as well here.
Montoya Moses' 35-yard touchdown in the first quarter resulted from a blatent blown coverage.
Sophomore quarterback Jason Fitzpatrick isn't winning any awards this year, and his pass turned Moses around in the end zone and hung for a long time. He could afford that luxury because nobody was within 15 yards of Moses.
Santa Fe moved the ball through the air in the first half, with 85 yards, and missed a few other opportunities where the Tigers' coverage fell a bit lax.
Special Teams: A blocked punt by Hegarty, a 60-yard touchdown return and six perfect extra points bode well for Aztec. Two long kickoff returns by Santa Fe keep this effort from scoring as an A+.
Overall: Espinoza fumbled twice and didn't catch another pass that can't be considered a drop, but one he could've caught. The team finished with 10 penalties. Two other fumbles and an interception will probably have coach Brad Hirsch talking ball security this week.
Still, the Tigers handled business and dominated physically.
Grade: B+
Kirtland Central falls: The Broncos lost 47-14 to San Juan. If you're interested, you can find stats of the game here.
San Juan, a Class 2A team in Utah, is ranked No. 17 in the state by MaxPreps for all schools, regardless of classification.
Hometown wins: Sports editor Darren Vaughan's high school team handled business tonight. Grand County (Utah) beat Monticello (Utah) 24-7.
My old school, Hoover (Ala.), beat Gardendale (Ala.) 51-21.
A sad story emerged out of Alabama tonight when Lincoln coach Keith Howard, 48, died of an apparent heart attack after experiencing chest pains during the game.
However, not the best selection of headline -- "Lincoln High head football coach has chest pains during game, dies." Instead of saying he died first, it brings your mind through the process: he went to the game, had chest pains, and died. A bit shocking.
Stay true and keep pounding,
Christopher
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