Second quarter dooms Rattlers in finale

A young and inexperienced Tucumcari High School football team failed to earn a win this season, but the second half of a 54-16 home loss Friday to district foe New Mexico Military Institute may have provided a glimpse of brighter days ahead.

After a disastrous second quarter where the Colts (5-5) scored five touchdowns on assorted Rattler turnovers or mistakes, Tucumcari (0-10) regrouped in the second half with its offense scoring two rushing touchdowns and its defense intercepting two passes and stopping two other drives.

For the Rattlers, Daymion Urioste, Jordan Rincones and Kameron Apodaca combined for 220 yards rushing and two scores, with Rincones leading with 95 yards on 13 carries. All are underclassmen who should be back next season.

Tucumcari struggled with growing pains this season, and its schedule did it no favors. Eight of the team's 10 opponents were state-ranked last week, and NMMI had been ranked until a four-game losing streak dropped it just out of the top 10.

Tucumcari first-year coach Donnie Garcia took extra time to talk to his team on the field after the game.

"All I can say is I'm proud of each and every one of them," he said. "They went through the schedule from hell, and they gave me everything they had.

"Like I told them, I'm going to take a break for a couple of weeks, and then we're going to hit the weight room and build on what we started this year."

Garcia said half of the battle of getting his returning players to improve is building their confidence.

"They've got to believe," he said. "We're going to continue to try to encourage them, that they can do it. Every ounce of my body tells me they can do it. I just got to get them to believe it, too."

For NMMI, Juan Badillo totaled 192 yards rushing and three touchdowns in 15 carries.

For Colts coach Randy Montoya, the win Friday halted a four-game losing streak. NMMI went from a 4-1 record and being a district contender to a team that failed to make the playoffs.

"For our seniors, I was just happy they were able to come away with a victory," he said. "It's a good way to end our season.

"Hat's off to Tucumcari," he added. "They're always a class act. The coaches always do a good job."

The Rattlers trailed only 7-0 after one quarter. The Colts scored on an Badillo's 8-yard run midway through the period.

Almost everything that could go wrong for the Rattlers seemingly did in the second quarter:

• NMMI finished an 11-play drive with Badillo's 26-yard TD run barely a minute into the period.

• The Colts blocked a punt and recovered at the Tucumcari 36. Three plays later, Badillo scored on a 28-yard touchdown run with 6:10 left in the half.

• Despite Tucumcari's coaches warning their players about the possibility, NMMI recovered an onside kickoff later. That set up Jonathan Cuellar's 5-yard TD run.

• Tucumcari quarterback Nicholas Romero's pass was tipped near the line of scrimmage. NMMI's Leonardo Lopez intercepted it and returned it for a 41-yard touchdown with 3:07 left.

• Apodaca lost a fumble near midfield, and NMMI scored three plays later for a 41-0 lead with two minutes remaining in the half.

As bad as the quarter was for the Rattlers, it could have been worse. On one possession, Romero wasn't able to handle a high shotgun snap, and the Colts recovered the fumble. But the turnover didn't produce any damage. Tucumcari's defense held, and Badillo's 47-yard field goal attempt was wide left.

Early the second half, Tucumcari's defense stopped NMMI on a fourth-down running bid.

Two plays later, Rincones burst through for a 33-yard touchdown run. Apodaca caught the two-point pass from Romero for a 41-8 margin.

Tucumcari stopped another Colts drive on fourth down, this time near the goal line.

Rattlers defensive backs Santiago Montano and Luis Archuleta also defused successive Colts possessions with interceptions deep in Rattler territory.

With 4:26 left, Urioste broke through the line and streaked down the sideline for a 62-yard touchdown run. On the PAT, Tucumcari faked a kick, and Romero threw a sideline pass to Xzander Garcia, who scampered into the end zone for two points, making it 48-16.

The Colts also scored two touchdowns in the second half, but Tucumcari edged them 16-13 in points during that span.

Before the game during a ceremony, Tucumcari seniors give flowers and gift bags to their parents. Senior football players who were honored were Jordan Pena, Xzander Garcia, Andres Jimenez, Dulce Rodriguez, Santiago Montano and Dezmon Pacheco.

"I had a good group of seniors," coach Garcia said. "They gave every effort they could and played positions they were asked to, even if they didn't know how to play it. They made the adjustments, and they work well together and supported each other. They're all pretty good kids."

Other seniors honored were cross country runner Tyrus Jones and cheer team members D'Naylie Rivera and Brandon Quintana.

At halftime, local breast cancer survivors and current cancer patients were honored as part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The same people were honored earlier in October during the Tucumcari volleyball team's Think Pink game.