Rain doesn't bother Rams

PORTALES - A light, steady rain didn't bother Portales High coach Jaime Ramirez nor his squad Friday night as the Rams tested themselves against Las Vegas Robertson.

"They're (Class) 3A, we're 4A," Ramirez said following the 1 1/2-hour scrimmage at the PHS practice field. "It was nice to get a look at a good 3A team. We just wanted to see if we have the right people in the right positions.

"We just tried to look at personnel, evaluate talent."

Sophomores Devin Diaz and Elijah Kladiihbah are the front-runners for the quarterback position.

"They both looked good today," Ramirez said.

He said the Rams in general had a good scrimmage.

"No one really stood out," Ramirez said. "We played pretty consistent as a group.

Portales opens the 2021 campaign with a Saturday game against Hope Christian in Albuquerque. Both coaching staffs got to watch the other side's scrimmages, with the Huskies going against St. Pius and Estancia earlier in the week.

Ramirez said Hope Christian was impressive during its scrimmages.

"I think it'll be a good ballgame," he said.

Cats scrimmage against Cruces - Clovis High got its first look at outside competition on Wednesday when the Wildcats traveled to Ruidoso to tangle with Las Cruces High.

Fifth-year coach Cal Fullerton said the teams scrimmaged 1s against 1s for 10 plays each, then 2s against 2s for 10 before the first-stringers came back for 15 plays apiece.

"It went good," he said of the scrimmage. "Our kids' effort was great."

Fullerton said the Cats took the first possession on offense and scored on a pass from senior quarterback Milo Acosta to junior R.J. Nora.

Senior Angel Chavarria had several good runs during the scrimmage, Fullerton said, also noting that seniors Payton Reames and Elijah Wattenbarger and junior Adam Acuna turned in solid performances in the offensive line.

Defensively, Nora and junior J.D. Burton played well at safety, he said, as did senior Gage Angeles at defensive end.

On the second team, Fullerton cited junior running back Cam Dickson and sophomore quarterback Manuel Gutierrez for their play.

"Las Cruces High had all of their offensive and defensive linemen returning," Fullerton said. "I thought our guys established themselves against them."

He said the main injury of note was to Gutierrez, a projected starter at linebacker. He sustained a separated shoulder and is listed as "questionable" for Friday's opener against longtime rival Hobbs at Leon Williams Stadium.

Hobbs was slated for a Friday scrimmage against Mayfield. Fullerton said the Cats and Eagles were to exchange scrimmage films on Saturday.