Another Gauntlet Schedule for CHS Football

By Don Eskins

The 2026 gridiron season promises to bring with it yet another exciting year of prep football for Carlsbad High sports fans.

Coming off a 6-6 season, a 35-13 upset victory over the sixth-seeded Rio Rancho Rams during first-round play of the state tournament, and a Class 6A No. 8 ranking in 2025, CHS’s hopes for a deep run into this year’s state playoffs couldn’t be higher.

But, while CHS will see some new faces alongside this season’s returnees (with possibly a few tweaks on both sides of the football), one thing remains unchanged. Carlsbad’s strength of schedule, once again, looks to be one of the toughest in the state.

The Cavemen will open up against three Class 5A teams this season. But, as most Carlsbad fans will agree, Artesia, Goddard, and Lovington aren’t just any Class 5A teams.

Last year, during a 12-1 run, Artesia downed the Roswell Coyotes 25-24 to capture the 2025 state championship. In doing so, they closed out the season as the Class 5A No. 1-ranked team once again.

Lovington, which lost to Artesia by just five points, 35-30, was 7-5 and finished the year as the third-best team in Class 5A.

Goddard, ranked sixth in Class 5A football in 2025, was also 7-5. They, like Lovington, lost a close-fought contest to Artesia, 28-14.

New District Alignment for CHS

A new district alignment in Class 6A football will definitely upgrade what was already one of the toughest schedules in New Mexico for CHS.

The Cavemen, now competing in District 2, will be dropping the Cibola Cougars off this year’s pre-district schedule and the Alamogordo Tigers off this year’s district schedule, both teams that CHS beat last year.

In their place, Carlsbad will pick up the Volcano Vista Hawks, always one of the state’s top competitors in big school football, and the Eldorado Eagles.

During 2025, the Hawks, 8-4, were ranked sixth in Class 6A football. The Eagles, 5-6, were ranked 14th.

Also competing in District 2A will be a cast of familiar faces like the Las Cruces Bulldawgs, 12-1 and ranked second by MaxPreps in 2025; the Hobbs Eagles, 9-3 and ranked third; the Centennial Hawks, 7-4 and ranked sixth; the Clovis Wildcats, 3-7 and ranked 13th; and the Organ Mt. Knights, 2-8 and ranked 20th.Tough Challenge for Sanders’ Charges

Despite Carlsbad’s gauntlet schedule, Cavemen head coach Cale Sanders says his kids are ready for the challenges obviously ahead.

“It is a tough schedule, but there’s not a lot we can do about it. It’s filled with quality teams and improving Clovis and Organ Mt. programs,” he said. “It is what is, though, and we’ll focus on playing it, as we should, one game at a time.

“The success we enjoyed last year should definitely carry over for us,” said the CHS coach. “Getting an invitation back to last year’s state playoffs and downing Rio Rancho in their house during round first-round play has given our kids a big boost of confidence.”

Currently, the Cavemen have about 160 athletes competing in their summer program. Offensively, CHS has five starters returning; defensively, four.

The Cavemen have made steady progress under Sanders. In 2023, they were 2-8; in 2024, 4-6; and in 2025, 6-6.