Las Cruces, Mayfield meet in dream matchup for New Mexico 5A football title game

When it comes to high school football in Las Cruces, there's a Texas-sized feel to it.

Especially when crosstown rivals Las Cruces and Mayfield (Las Cruces) take the same field. In a dream matchup worthy of national coverage, the teams will play in New Mexico's 5A state championship game at 1 p.m. Saturday at New Mexico State University's Aggie Memorial Stadium.

"In my 16 years here, every time we've played Mayfield, I don't think there's been less than 20,000 people (in attendance)," Las Cruces coach Jim Miller said. "When we played them a month ago (for the 5A-District 3 championship), there were 25,000 people watching. This weekend we might get 30,000."

High school football might be king in Texas, but the folks in Las Cruces take their pigskin seriously, too. To wit: In 18 of the last 20 5A finals, either Las Cruces or Mayfield or both — as was the case in 2002 — reached the title contest. Two of the traditional state heavyweights, the No. 4 seed Bulldawgs (11-1) and No. 2 seed Trojans (11-1) have passionate fan bases, storied histories and programs that keep churning out winning seasons.

As if the storylines weren't great to begin with, Saturday's title tilt has an additional subplot: The defending state champion Bulldawgs are out to avenge their only loss of the season, a 28-20 defeat to their arch-rivals in the 5A-3 district championship game on Nov. 8.

Unlike a lot of coaches who tend to get robotic when talking to the media, Miller was forthright when talking about the opportunity for his players to get revenge on the biggest stage possible.

"I told our kids they couldn't have asked for anything more, and now they have an opportunity to avenge our only loss of the season," Miller said. "You definitely want to pay back a team that was the only one to beat you. To be able to play your rivals for the championship, it's an awesome opportunity. Things worked out well for both teams. Mayfield has an opportunity to beat us twice and make it hurt that much more."

See the MaxPreps New Mexico football playoff brackets

Mayfield's eight-point win a month ago sent shockwaves across the Land of Enchantment, as Las Cruces — once thought to be invincible and steamrolling toward an undefeated season — met its match in the Trojans, who simply beat the Bulldawgs where the game is usually won: At the line of scrimmage.

"It was a hard-fought battle the last time we played them, and I think they got the best of it in the trenches," Miller said. "Anyone who knows football knows that's where games are won, and we have to do a better job up front if we want a different result. We're averaging over 45 points a game, and we didn't even score in the second half."

Las Cruces and Mayfield are meeting in the championship game for the first time since 2002, when the Bulldawgs won 17-14 over a Mayfield squad coached by Jim Bradley, who is the father of Michael Bradley, the current Mayfield coach.
And how's this for a storyline: Jim Bradley coached Miller at Roswell from 1980-83.

Safe to say, the Millers and Bradleys know each other pretty well. Michael took the reins from his dad in 2006.

"Most of our (coaching) staffs have been together the whole time," Miller said. "We pretty much know what the other is going to do, save for a few wrinkles here and there. We're very cordial, but it's a rivalry for a reason."

Both teams reached the title contest in dramatically different ways. While Mayfield edged Cleveland (Rio Rancho), 34-33, Las Cruces hammered top-seeded Valley (Albuquerque), 68-36, rolling up a whopping 648 yards of total offense in the process.

Behind a powerful and stout offensive line, Bulldawgs tailback J.J Granados rushed for 237 yards on just 13 carries, including a 96-yard touchdown run, one of five scoring runs on the day for the elusive 5-foot-8 senior.

Mayfield, meanwhile, received another efficient performance from quarterback Kavika Johnson, who completed 6 of 9 passes for 115 yards while running for 156 more.

It's often said that styles make matchups, and perhaps Mayfield's greatest strengths — its offensive and defensive lines — match up particularly well with Las Cruces' line play. Either that or the Bulldawgs had an off game a month ago, something to consider since Las Cruces has beaten every other team by at least 20 points this season. In fact, the Bulldawgs' average margin of victory this season is an astounding 35 points.

"That's an interesting way of putting things, considering they are the only team to have beaten us," Miller said. "Give them credit the first time we played them. They were the more aggressive team as the game went on, and we didn't play to our potential. We didn't have continuity on offense due to their defense, our penalties, whatever. But that's a good thing. We were able to look at the film and correct our mistakes."

Simply put, for sheer drama and buildup, nothing can top Las Cruces vs. Mayfield for the state championship.

"When we play for the district championship, people don't realize how hard it is to overcome and recover from that game, win or lose," Miller said. "The magnitude and intensity of that game takes a toll on everyone. It's a huge game regardless, but now we're playing for the state title. After this, there's no Monday practice. No coming in for film. No tomorrow."