Wolverines roll in second half

TEXICO - Early on, Texico has shown it can score the football.

On Friday night against Dexter, the Wolverines gave indications that they can at least come up with key stops from time to time.

The teams went from a scoreless first quarter to a 21-21 halftime tie. But Texico tallied on its first four possessions after intermission and posted two defensive stops during that time en route to a 53-35 victory.

Sophomore quarterback Cade Figg and senior running back Cade Collins were both over 100 yards rushing and each accounted for three TDs, including a passing score by Figg. The Wolverines have broken the 50-point barrier in each of their first two games, but are 1-1 after dropping their opener at Jal 63-56.

Texico coach Bob Gilbreath said his team was able to wear down the Demons (1-1), who routed Santa Rosa 45-12 in their lidlifter, although an injury to starting QB Joshua Duran late in the first half may have taken Dexter out of its style a bit.

"After that point, our physicality took a toll on them," he said.

The Demons continued to move the ball after the injury and scored three times with athletic senior Juan Fuentes sliding over from running back to QB, but they simply couldn't stop the Wolverines.

Dexter coach Arturo "Archie" Duran said the injury to Joshua Duran came from helmet-to-helmet contact as he tried to make the tackle on a Texico pass to senior Braden Bender, adding that taking him out was precautionary.

"It changed our whole game plan," the coach said. "But the kids did the best they could, and that's all we can ask.

"We just made some mistakes, and they (Wolverines) capitalized on them."

Figg finished with 141 yards on 17 carries while Collins added 119 on 15 totes.

"We hit our rhythm right there, and we kind of took off," Figg said of the second stanza. "The first quarter, we were a little sloppy."

Texico covered 70 yards in 12 plays and took a 21-13 lead with just 54 seconds left in the half on a 3-yard TD run by Figg, but the Demons countered by going 53 yards in just two plays and added a tying 2-point conversion in the closing seconds.

That seemed to give them momentum, but Figg & Co. put together two eight-play scoring drives when play resumed, adding 2-point conversions after both. In between, the Wolverines stopped Dexter on fourth-and-1 at the Texico 38.

"That was very important," Figg said of the defensive stand. "We talked about being able to do that (during) halftime."

Two interceptions were also key - Bender picked off Duran and returned it 43 yards to the Dexter 2, setting up a second-quarter tally, while senior cornerback Jahvon Askew got one against Fuentes early in the final stanza and brought it back 51 yards to the Demons' 34.

Collins, who also plays linebacker on defense, said the Wolverines emphasized that side of the ball in practice this week.

"We really wanted to hold them to as low a score as we could," he said. "I think we struggled in the second quarter, but (after halftime) we all came out and did our jobs."

Gilbreath said the defense made the Demons work for what they got.

"It's going to be a growth process," he said of the platoon. "We're not where we want to be. It's just going to be a development process."

Meantime, Figg finished with 141 yards rushing, and Collins added 119.

"Those big boys up front did a great job for us in the second half," Collins said.

Fuentes also had 141 yards and ran for three TDs for the Demons, but he did most of his damage on three runs totaling 104 yards. He also had a 23-yard scoring pass to junior Joel Venegas just before halftime.

Texico returns to the road on Friday night, facing New Mexico Military in Roswell.