BLOOMFIELD – The cliches are easily identifiable, and they all fit.
The defending Class 4A state football champion Bloomfield Bobcats have a target on their backs. Everyone is gunning for them and their opponents for this upcoming season are looking to take down the top dog.
Head coach Mike Kovacs is fully aware that winning a state championship comes with a greater sense of attention to detail as the team makes plans to defend its first New Mexico Activities Association’s football championship in 56 years.
“We have to approach everything right now like we know they’re all coming after us,” Kovacs said. “And the guys know that. Any time you come off a state run, you know everyone is coming to compete against you.”
The Bobcats took part in light contact 7-on-7 team drills last week with several area and local teams in hopes of learning how far along the team is heading into the summer. Kovacs was happy with what he saw, even without some of his expected roster on the field.
“I’ve still got half my guys playing baseball. And I know some people call 7-on-7 football like basketball on turf,” Kovacs said. “I was worried we’d be a little behind in some areas but looking at some positions, we’re actually on track if not a little further ahead of schedule. Mainly what we’re looking for is camaraderie and teamwork.”
The Bobcats won the Class 4A title in November, beating Silver by a final of 13-7 in an emotional contest at Bobcat Stadium. The win avenged a loss earlier that season on the road to the Fighting Colts and ended a title drought that dated back to 1966.
The victory might also have silenced those who remain steadfast in the idea that high school football in the northern end of New Mexico doesn’t measure up to their rivals in the south.
It wasn’t just Bloomfield beating Silver for the state title that has begun to change the narrative. Last season, Farmington topped Carlsbad in a Class 6A playoff game. Piedra Vista defeated Goddard in the regular season before knocking off Roswell in the postseason on its way to the Class 5A title game.
“I think we’ve got coaches in these programs around here who know what it takes to beat the teams from the south,” Kovacs said. “One of the mystiques that a lot of are used to is that you have to run through the south to win a state title. Now that’s not so much a thing.”
There will be several returning starters to the Bobcats roster this season, including senior wide receiver Drew Perez, who led the team with 60 catches for more than 1,100 yards and 17 touchdowns. Those numbers placed Perez as one of the top playmakers in the state last year.
Perez, who has been busy this summer competing in Connie Mack city league baseball action as part of the Frackers, will be hoping to catch passes this fall from junior quarterback Blake Spencer, who takes over the role of starter with Ryan Sharpe having recently graduated.
Spencer appeared in eight games last season for the Bobcats, completing 50 of 93 passes for 674 yards and eight touchdowns.
“ (Spencer) has matured a lot since last season, and he’s progressed really nicely,” Kovacs said. “And now, with him taking the majority of the snaps, he’s getting that timing down which is really important.”
Senior Jesse Seitzinger, who recorded 1,300 all-purpose yards while scoring 19 touchdowns, will be back on the field for the Bobcats when the season opens at home Friday, Aug. 18 against St. Pius.
The highlight games on the Bobcats schedule this season include a rematch of last season’s championship game against Silver, with the Bobcats scheduled to make the long road trip for that contest.
Just after that, Bloomfield will open its District 1-4A campaign with a home game against Kirtland Central, followed by a road trip to longtime rival Aztec before closing out the regular season on the road against Gallup.
Back-to-back games midway through the season against highly ranked Class 4A programs like Albuquerque Academy and Valencia make for a treacherous road for the state titleholders.
The Bobcats beat both of those teams last season on its way to the state title, including a 55-13 blowout win against Valencia, a game in which Perez and Seitzinger combined to score seven touchdowns.
“We know as a coaching staff and as a bunch of kids what’s at stake for us each and every week,” Kovacs said. “I think in a 10-game season, we’re going to see the best out all those teams.”
Bloomfield Bobcats 2023 Football Schedule
(Home games in ALL CAPS)
Friday, Aug. 18, 7 p.m. vs. ST. PIUS
Friday, Aug. 25, 7 p.m. @Pojoaque Valley
Friday, Sept. 1, 7 p.m. @Grants
Friday, Sept. 8, 7 p.m. vs. ALBUQUERQUE ACADEMY
Friday, Sept. 22, 7 p.m. @Valencia
Friday, Sept. 29, 7 p.m. vs. BAYFIELD
Friday, Oct. 7, 1 p.m. @Silver
Friday, Oct. 13, 7 p.m. vs. KIRTLAND CENTRAL
Friday, Oct. 20, 7 p.m. @Aztec
Friday, Oct. 27, 7 p.m. @Gallup
