The Bloomfield Bobcats are going to have a prominent new face among the chase pack.
The two-time defending Class 4A state football champions open 2026 strongly poised to earn a three-peat. St. Pius, the team Bloomfield beat in the last two finals, remains a prominent challenger as the Sartans go after their first title in 10 years.
And other faces are hunting on the Bobcat trail. Taos and Bernalillo, for example. Perhaps also the Belen Eagles, a Class 5A quarterfinal team a year ago.
But the one most noticeable addition to the 4A division is the Lovington Wildcats, a team that could very well end Bloomfield’s run.
“I think 4A is the most competitive classification,” Portales coach Jaime Ramirez said.
Starting with the Bobcats: Graduation ravaged their unstoppable offense that averaged more than 55 points a game last season. Bloomfield will be new at quarterback, the top four running backs are gone, and the team’s leading four receivers also graduated.
Not that coach Mike Kovacs’ pulse is quickening.
“I think our offensive line and our skill positions are fine,” he said. “We’ve got several kids who played in the playoffs; you want to be able to reload.”
Two sophomores, Wyatt Babcock and Kaison Meador, have been dueling to be the starting QB.
“I’ve been losing my quarterback since about 2012 every year,” Kovacs said with a laugh.
Some young running backs are expected to step in, including Lawrence Lucero and Julius Dixon.
Senior Johnny Yates is an all-state center for Bloomfield; he and tackle Marius Benally lead that group.
The Bobcats’ defense returns most of its line and secondary, led by Tayetum Callado, who had five interceptions in last year’s postseason. Yates also plays linebacker.
Bloomfield heads District 1-4A, a nine-team league that includes some holdovers like Taos, Bernalillo, Grants and Espanola Valley. There are some new teams, down from 5A, like Del Norte, Rio Grande and Valley, plus Manzano.
“I’m super excited about the new district,” Kovacs said.
District 2-4A will have seven teams, a strong group featuring St. Pius, Lovington, Belen, Albuquerque Academy, Portales, Santa Teresa (like Lovington, down from 5A) and Valencia. Rio Grande petitioned to change from 2-4A to 1-4A, thus the imbalance.
The Wildcats and Bloomfield have combined to win the last five 4A championships. Lovington was a 4A program the last time it won state, in 2023, then spent the last two years in 5A.
“I feel like we have a chance,” Lovington coach Josh Bailey said. “We feel good about what we’ve put together this summer.”
The Wildcats lost a close game last year in the 5A semifinals to rival Artesia. And while there are only four starters back on each side of the ball, Bailey is convinced the depth Lovington put together in 5A will pay benefits being back down in 4A. The Wildcats, he said, are close to being a full two-platoon team.
There is a major newcomer on this roster: senior edge Amryn Wheeler, a transfer from Hobbs. The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Wheeler is expected to be a huge impact player for Lovington.
“Very disruptive,” Bailey said. “He’s tremendous.”
Sophomore Miguel Perez is taking over at quarterback for Lovington. Another 10th grader, Jude Madrid, will be key at receiver and safety as the Wildcats replace nearly all their veteran skill-position athletes. That defense also features senior end Jaden Garcia and senior nose Daemyn Leyva.
St. Pius has not yet been able to solve Bloomfield in the playoffs, but the Sartans are absolutely geared up to make another serious run. This team features arguably the best collection of skill athletes in 4A, led by senior running back Hershul Olloway Jr. (1,930 yards, 28 TDs and committed to UNM) and senior QB Isaiah Carpenter, who has verballed to New Mexico State. Carpenter threw for 28 scores and nearly 2,500 yards a season ago.
But this offense goes beyond those two for sure, once you factor in senior Curtis Flakes III and junior Ezra Ocampo in the pass game, and an extremely promising newcomer in freshman slot Cy Saenz.
Others to watch for the Sartans are senior Chase Nelson at left tackle and the defensive line, and Lucas Saavedra at D-end. Flakes III adds a great presence in the secondary.
“For me,” coach Curtis Flakes said of how St. Pius gets over the playoff hump, “definitely it’s the numbers game, right? Most of our starters started both ways (last season), and … it caused wear and tear on the body. That’s one of the things we’ve been trying to work on this year, (gaining) a lot more depth.”
Academy suffered a horrible, last-minute quarterfinal loss to Taos last November; the Chargers feature one of 4A’s veteran QBs in senior William Braun (2,486 yards, 30 TDs last season). Most of Academy’s skill-position players graduated, but receiver Logan Hague (1,031 yards worth of catches and seven scores) is back, and he’s among the best at his position in this division.
This Academy team will be fielding a large number of sophomores, coach David Lee said, and it may take the Chargers a few weeks to iron out some wrinkles. But both lines are full of seniors, he added. The defense was hit even harder by graduation than the offense, Lee said.
Belen and Bernalillo expect to be playoff teams. The Eagles were in the final eight in 5A last year, and the Spartans were in the 4A quarters.
Belen brings back an excellent QB in senior Gonzalo Cano, who rushed for more yards last season (1,383, 15 TDs) than he threw for (1,242, 16 TDs).
All-state tight end Ethan Haldeman will be an additional weapon on offense. This team only had eight seniors last season, so the Eagles will field a veteran group.
Bernalillo senior Ulisses Castro, the team’s QB, is one of the most effective athletes in 4A and combined for 21 passing/rushing touchdowns last season. He, coach John Cobos said, “is our big gun.”
In the backfield, the Spartans will turn to juniors Teo Martinez y Marr and Davontae Richards.
Bernalillo’s defense, including Castro at end, is deep along the line.
“The sky is the limit. That’s the one thing I’ve been telling this team,” Cobos said. He has led Bernalillo to nine straight playoff berths.
Taos, like Bernalillo, was ousted in last year’s playoffs by Bloomfield. The Tigers lost 17 seniors and this will be a young group that coach Johnny Olguin wants to protect as they mature into their roles this year and into future seasons.
Players to watch include senior receiver Alejandro Ortega, who caught the game-winning TD pass at the end of that aforementioned quarterfinal win over Academy, and corner/receiver Max Maes.
Portales, Valencia and Santa Teresa round out seven-team 2-4A.
The Rams qualified for state at 2-8 last year with an extraordinarily young roster filled with ninth- and 10th-graders. This is a team on the rise with an extra year of experience, although talented young QB Kingston Lee left the program to join his dad, Kelley, at 3A Silver.
Lee’s replacement is junior Jacoby Bamforth. Junior Slade Segovia (858 yards, 9 TDs) returns, as does the team’s only senior skill athlete, receiver Tommy Salgado, who also is an outside linebacker.
Valencia was a first-round playoff loser last season, and the Jaguars graduated a majority of their starters. The Jaguars hope to find some stability at QB with senior Santino Mares, who struggled somewhat last year. He’ll be working behind a line that has been rebuilt and are all underclassmen.
Senior safety Mario Santiago and junior linebacker Malachi McCoy (the team’s leading tackler), plus all-state linebacker Aiden Farless, will be important on that Valencia defense.
Santa Teresa is hoping a move down from 5A to 4A will serve the Desert Warriors well, as they were 0-10 last season.
Inside Bloomfield’s district, the metro area is heavily represented. In addition to Bernalillo, there is Valley, Manzano, Rio Grande and Del Norte.
Valley, with 27 seniors, ought to be a serious player in 1-4A, what with returning eight starters on both sides of the ball. Senior receiver Gabriel Gonzales (66 catches for 1,058 yards) and senior tailback Zach Perez will help fuel this offense, which has all but one O-lineman returning.
Jonathan Silva, a linebacker, led the team in tackles last season and will be a huge piece on defense for the Vikings.
Manzano has a new coach in Michael Holguin, a former Las Cruces Bulldawg player, and the Monarchs are coming off consecutive playoff berths.
Manzano features one of the metro’s more elite defenders in senior Vinny Varela (6-2, 225), who can play end and linebacker, and he’s also a tight end. This will be an anchor piece for the Monarchs. Junior Broden Price was an all-state performer at running back last year, but he’ll be a Swiss Army knife for Manzano, filling multiple positions.
The move to 4A should be beneficial for Del Norte and Rio Grande, who combined to go 1-19 last season as 5A programs.
The Knights return many of their skill-position athletes, although they are young up front, which will be a concern. Players to watch include junior tackle Noah Onomoto and junior receiver/safety Kordell Erby.
The Ravens’ participation numbers have nearly doubled from last year, coach Christopher Smalls said, an encouraging sign as Rio Grande looks to snap a 21-game losing streak dating to the end of the 2023 season. Senior linebacker Sammy Padilla is one of the Ravens’ veteran players.
“We have the pieces to go out there and win two, three, maybe four games,” Smalls said.
Like Manzano, Grants and Espanola Valley open the 2026 season with new head coaches. The Pirates reached the 4A quarters last year, but coach Steve Brown resigned earlier this year. Gene Reidinger was promoted from within to become head coach.
The Sundevils will have their third head coach in as many seasons, with Frank Galvan taking over.
James Yodice covers prep sports for the Journal. You can reach him at jyodice@abqjournal.com or via X at @JamesDYodice.