Clovis expects fight from 0-2 Rio Rancho

CLOVIS — Records don’t always reveal everything. So nothing is guaranteed for Clovis High’s football team — 2-0 record and all — against 0-2 Rio Rancho tonight at Leon Williams Stadium.

Still, the numbers do tend to leap out. The Wildcats have rolled up 81 total points in their two victories thus far at Hobbs and Aztec. The Rams, in Week 1 at Centennial and their Week 2 home opener against Pine Creek, allowed 74 total points.

Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells has said that football teams are as good as their record says they are. And those most eye-opening numbers in Clovis’ and Rio Rancho’s first two games along with the teams’ respective records seem proof of Parcells’ maxim.

They key word there is seem. That Parcells-ism doesn’t wash in this case, says Clovis head coach Cal Fullerton.

“We expect Rio Rancho to come out swinging,” Fullerton said after Thursday afternoon’s practice at Leon Williams Stadium. “They’re kind of against the wall right now and you probably can’t look up the last time that team started off 0-2, much less 0-3. So it’s going to be important for us to show up early because I know they’re going to be coming out swinging with everything they’ve got.”

“They’ll come out fighting, no matter what,” Wildcats senior linebacker/tight end Ian Yruegas said after Thursday’s practice. “Like (defensive) coach (Drew) Hatley said, they’re going to come out in a dogfight. They’re 0-2, so they’re going to come out swinging on us.”

“Because they’re 0-2 they’re going to come out here and try to get their first win. No one likes to lose, especially when you’re 0-2. ... Especially against us,” Clovis junior receiver/cornerback Malik Phillips, who snagged two touchdown receptions and rolled up 128 receiving yards last week at Aztec, said after Thursday’s practice.

Aside from urgency, Fullerton pointed out an important fact to back up his point and disprove Parcells’ mantra. Though Rio Rancho surrendered 45 last week, Pine Creek — hailing from Colorado — is one of the Centennial State’s best teams.

And, regardless of opponent, every game and every week are different. One big difference for the Wildcats this week is their surroundings. Instead of trekking past the sagebrush en route to Hobbs or having to break up the ride to Aztec with a hotel stay, the ’Cats will finally be amidst the friendly confines of Leon Williams Stadium, where they haven’t played a down since last Oct. 27, more than 10 months ago.

So aside from any on-field advantage the Wildcats might hope to have tonight, they’ll definitely have the advantage of playing at home for the first time this season.

“For sure, it’ll be real nice,” Fullerton said. “We’ve been on the road two weeks in a row; it makes for a long weekend, especially last weekend. So we’re excited, the kids are really excited to get out in front of our home crowd. We can’t wait to get out there.”

“It’s going to be great,” Phillips said. “It’s our home field. We’ve got the whole community coming out there and watching us.”

“I’m excited, I’m very excited. I can’t wait,” said Yruegas, who will be playing his last-ever high school football home opener. “It’s going to be fun, a lot of energy.”

In front of those home fans, Clovis will be trying for its first 3-0 start since the 2000s. Fullerton wasn’t exactly sure at what point in that decade the Wildcats last began 3-0, that’s how long it’s been.

“To tell you the truth, I couldn’t tell you,” he said. “Coach Hatley said it’s been about 10 years.”

Doing it this year will take an avoidance of mental lapses that occurred in last year’s Week 3 matchup. Those Wildcats, too, were playing Rio Rancho — that time on the road — and trying to go 3-0. Clovis had the ball and the lead twice late in the fourth quarter and coughed it up both times. The eventual result was a 34-31 overtime loss. So keeping the ball off the home stadium turf when the ’Cats have it will be key.

Clovis has displayed opportunistic defense thus far, so the fact that Rio Rancho’s junior quarterback Isaiah Chavez has thrown three interceptions may bode well for the Wildcats. Chavez has been fairly accurate, though, completing 16 of 24 passes (67 percent) against Centennial, and 10 of 16 (63 percent) against Pine Creek, making him 26 of 40 (65 percent) overall. He threw for 187 yards and a touchdown at Centennial, 111 and no touchdowns against Pine Creek.

As for Clovis’ offense, the running game has been solid, fueled mostly so far by DeMarco Fitch, Andrew Jaramillo and Montez Wright, with all three scoring significant touchdowns over the past two Fridays.

Sophomore quarterback Chance Harris has also given Clovis’ ground game a boost, and though senior Caden Zarikta played the second half last week against Aztec, Fullerton stated unequivocally Thursday that Harris will make his third consecutive start tonight.

Which means Harris will have to be especially alert, based on what Fullerton knows about Rio Rancho’s defensive schemes.

“They like to blitz from everywhere,” Fullerton said. “It doesn’t matter, down-and-distance, anything like that, they’re going to bring it and try to make plays in the backfield. And they do a really good job of it. They come at you and come at you fast, and move around, so we’re really going to have to have our head up and be able to get some people blocked. Hopefully, we can make some big plays when they do blitz.”

However it plays out, the Wildcats hope they’re 3-0 when it’s over. They certainly don’t want Rio Rancho to spoil it again.

“We’ve got to get vengeance against Rio, because we lost last year,” Yruegas said, laughing. “We’ve got to get revenge, you know what I’m saying?”