Clovis takes on second in Texas trio

CLOVIS — If the Clovis High football team is going to halt its losing streak at two and get back on the fun side of .500 tonight, defense — most specifically the defensive backfield — will likely be the biggest key.

Clovis defenders should be plenty busy tonight at Leon Williams Stadium, however they fare. Because Lubbock Coronado’s 6-foot-2 sophomore quarterback Sawyer Robertson likes to put it up, be it a deep pass or the dump-off and slant varieties.

Just look at the stats. While some high school quarterbacks have yet to attempt 79 passes through four games this season, Robertson has completed 79 through three, attempting 130.

His completion percentage is 61 percent, his QBR 108.3. Against Lubbock neighbor Cooper High on Sept. 7, Robertson attempted 53 passes and completed 33 of them for 260 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in a 43-42 overtime loss. His QBR in a season-opening 40-12 thrashing of Estacado on Aug. 31 was 123.3.

Through the Mustangs’ three games (during which they’ve gone 2-1), Robertson has thrown for 855 yards, 11 scores and no interceptions. He’s also rushed for two touchdowns. And thanks largely to him, Coronado has rung up 112 points, 37.3 per game, so far.

Gaudy numbers indeed. But that’s the math Clovis has had to deal with when game-planning and studying film this past week.

“That’s something different than a lot of teams we’ve played,” Clovis head coach Cal Fullerton said Thursday in the film room, after the Wildcats had been driven inside by rain. “Their run game is really their screen game, so they don’t run a lot of plays where it’s an actual run; they try to get it to their guys on the outside really quick. And even their guys on the inside, running bubbles and stuff like that, they try to get it to those kids quick and let their linemen get downfield and block our safeties, block our linebackers.

“He (Robertson) does a good job. He’s only a sophomore, he’s going to continue to get better, he’s gotten better through the three games. ... They’ve got some threats downfield, too, so when they do want to go deep, they can.”

“We’re going to go out there and play hard and we’re just going to try to get after it,” Clovis sophomore defensive end Jaden Phillips said Thursday. “Our d-linemen have to get after it to prevent big plays in the secondary.”

The Wildcats will be trying to contain Robertson and Coronado’s skill players while also looking to put it all together, after struggling with different issues during their two-game losing streak. Against Rio Rancho on Sept. 7, the ’Cats were plagued by miscues that cost them dearly in what turned out to be a one-score loss. Against Monterey in Lubbock last Friday, Clovis tidied up the mistakes, played a turnover-free game, but spent much of the first half losing the battles up front before playing them pretty even in the second — and climbed back in it as a result after trailing 21-0 at halftime.

“That’s one thing we’ve talked about,” Fullerton said. “Our last three games we’ve started really slow — against Aztec and then Rio Rancho and then last week at Monterey. I thought last week, after about two and a half quarters, we really played hard and our kids got after it. We’ve just got to figure out a way to start off and play four quarters that way. That’s something we’ve emphasized all week — every play, every snap, every time you get a chance to be on the field, it’s from the time the ball snaps to the whistle. Hopefully that’ll carry over. We’ve had a good week of practice.”

Sophomore quarterback Chance Harris makes his fifth consecutive start, coming off his best outing of the season. He threw no picks last week, reached the mid-200s in passing yards and flung a pair of touchdown passes — an eye-catching 14-yard toss to Andrew Jaramillo in the end zone’s right corner and a 26-yard scoring pass to Phillips on the left side. Harris also rushed six times for 33 yards.

“Kind of like the kid from Coronado, Chance being a sophomore and him getting more experience every week, I think he’s gotten better each week,” Fullerton said. “If he can keep from turning it over, keep from making mistakes and keep moving the chains, that’s all he’s asked right now.”

Many challenges for sure stand between the Wildcats and a 3-2 record, including the weather. If the forecasts hold, Clovis may be facing inclement weather for the first time this season.

“It could be cold, it could be windy and it could be raining, too,” Fullerton said. “So you never know. Once football season gets here, you better bring a raincoat.”

The Wildcats will have the advantage of trying to meet their challenges — weather included — at home, in what will be only their second game at Leon Williams Stadium this season.

“Our kids have been on the road a whole lot,” Fullerton said, “so it’ll be nice to be at home in front of our home fans this week.”

“We’ve all been working hard,” Phillips said. “We’re trying to get better for this home game.”