State Championship Football brackets are out!

ALBUQUERQUE (Nov. 3, 2024) - The NMAA Football Selection show aired on Sunday and the brackets are set for the coming State Championship.

CLEVELAND STORM (3)

In 6A, Centennial garnered a 3-seed and a first-round bye after a 9-1 season... which ended with a nine-game winning streak. That means the Storm get the week to rest and recover.

The Storm will face the winner of (6) Los Lunas versus (11) Piedra Vista, which kicks off Nov. 8 at 6 p.m. at Los Lunas. Cleveland will face the winner of that match on Nov. 15 at Lightning Bolt Stadium.

Cleveland hasn’t lost since Aug. 23 (a home loss in the season opener to Centennial) and only surrendered 15 points in district play. Speaking of district play, the Storm had three straight district games in which they scored over 50 points and allowed 0.

Los Lunas is no push-over. They went 7-2 this season and finished 2nd in 6A-2, behind the overall top seed La Cueva Bears.

Piedra Vista is a feisty team, but the Storm played them in Farmington on Oct. 18 and won by Mercy Rule, 54-0.

RIO RANCHO RAMS (7)

Hometown 6A rivals, the Rio Rancho Rams earned a 7-seed and will face off this Friday against the Sandia Matadors at Rams Stadium. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.

Sandia has a win against Cibola and played a tight game against Eldorado (14-10) but have struggled to find their footing all season. They finished 4th in district 6A-2.

Anything can happen in the State Championship, but if the Rams win on Friday, they’ll head back down to Las Cruces to once again take on Centennial. The Rams took a hard-fought loss to the juggernaut Hawks on Sept. 13 in Cruces, 43-27.

That game would take place on Nov. 15.

BERNALLILO SPARTANS (4)

In 4A, Bernalillo just squeaked into the top tier, grabbing a 4-seed and also earning a first-round bye this week.

They’ll face the winner of (5) Portales versus (12) Chaparral, who face off on Friday at 7 p.m. at Greyhound Stadium in Portales. Bernalillo will face the of that match on Nov. 15 at Bernalillo High School.

Bernalillo dropped two of their final three games, but their season also included a seven-game winning streak and have been a force in 4A-1 this season under head coach John Cobos.

A lot will depend on the Castro brothers, Uriel and Ulisses. Uriel, the team’s quarterback, has a 93.2 Quarterback Rating (QBR) and Ulisses is a team leader on the other side of the ball, racking up 10 QB hurries and 8 sacks over 10 games.

The Spartans will also need top receiver Joseph Duran and runningback Nathan Encinas to open the offense, while ball-hawk Ivan Ruiz will be hunting for his fifth interception of the season.