The Roswell Coyotes football team will face the Mayfield Trojans at 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, at the Field of Dreams in Las Cruces.
The Coyotes (7-1, 5-0 District 2-5A) enter the matchup after a 62-36 demolition of Artesia (4-4, 4-1) on Oct. 16 at the Bulldog Bowl. Mayfield (2-6, 2-3) is coming off a 35-0 loss to the Goddard Rockets (4-4, 3-2) at the Wool Bowl.
The formula is simple for Roswell: shut down the run and force Mayfield into predictable passing situations.
“I really feel that if we can just stop the run and force Mayfield to be one-dimensional, we’ve got a really good chance to play well,” Roswell head coach Jeff Lynn said.
The Coyotes offense has been a balanced attack as of late. In the victory over Artesia, linebacker Jonathan Ellis, running back Luis Rodriguez and wide receivers Izaic Gonzales and Danny Castro each scored two touchdowns.
“We’re really hard to defend,” Lynn said. “We’ve got some talented receivers and we’ve got good running backs. There’s not just one guy to focus on, so that applies pressure.”
Roswell also features a dual-threat quarterback in Andruw Fuentez. Against the Bulldogs, he completed 12 of 17 passes for 377 yards and four touchdowns with one interception. He is also second on the team in rushing touchdowns with five, trailing Rodriguez with seven.
The Trojans bring plenty of offensive power of their own. Through the first eight games, wide receiver Israel Cabañas caught 37 passes for 518 yards and seven touchdowns. Nathaniel Gomez added 11 receptions for 281 yards and three touchdowns.
“Mayfield’s receivers are quick and they can run,” Lynn said. “They really stand out to me and I think it’s really important that we handle the pressure.”
Both teams have plenty at stake. The Trojans can improve to 3-3 in district play with an upset, while Roswell can maintain its perfect district record and continue building momentum.
Marshall Mecham can be reached at (915) 232-1793 or on X @mecham_marshall. Mecham serves with the New Mexico Local News Fellowship, which places emerging journalists in newsrooms across the state. Learn more at www.newmexicolocalnewsfellowships.org.
