{"id":28474,"date":"2014-09-04T17:43:29","date_gmt":"2014-09-04T22:43:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/?p=28474"},"modified":"2014-09-04T17:43:29","modified_gmt":"2014-09-04T22:43:29","slug":"new-mexico-school-for-the-deaf-roadrunners-field-few-players","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2014\/09\/04\/new-mexico-school-for-the-deaf-roadrunners-field-few-players\/","title":{"rendered":"New Mexico School for the Deaf: Roadrunners field few players"},"content":{"rendered":"

New Mexico School for the Deaf: Roadrunners field few players<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tour of Northern New Mexico school for the Deaf: Roadrunners field few players this season<\/p>\n

August 23, 2014<\/p>\n

By James Barron<\/p>\n

The New Mexican<\/p>\n

Robert Huizar has a numbers problem, but it\u2019s going to get better \u2014 eventually.<\/p>\n

As the head football coach at New Mexico School for the Deaf heads into his 16th year in that position, and his 20th as a coach at the school, he is watching his program toil in an unprecedented player drought. When two-a-days began on Aug. 4, there were no more than three players at practice.<\/p>\n

The number rose to five the following week, then seven by the start of the third week of practice.<\/p>\n

However, he hasn\u2019t had more than five or six players at practice, with doctor\u2019s appointments, injuries or other things happening to keep a full team on the field.<\/p>\n

Huizar, though, is not surprised by these developments. He expected a decline in the roster size as his middle school program did not churn out players like it had before. He also points to the enrollment at the School for the Deaf, which is skewed more toward the elementary students than middle- and high-school<\/span> ones.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have 70 elementary school kids and only 30 or 40 high school kids for sure,\u201d Huizar said. \u201cWe have 130 kids [the School for the Deaf], but out elementary school is huge. The school is growing, but our high school boys are small [in numbers].\u201d<\/p>\n

Huizar did get some unexpected help in a transfer student from Capital who showed up on Thursday. He was so new, Huizar only knew his first name \u2014 JoJo.<\/p>\n

If the Roadrunners can get through this season, Huizar has hope that his numbers will increase once again. He has about four eighth graders who can play at the varsity level, but only one, Deven Thompson, is big enough for Huizar to consider the jump.<\/p>\n

Thompson, who is 6-feet-4, was nursing sore feet and sat on the bench during practice because he was not accustomed to the conditioning needed to play at the varsity level.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s not used to running so much, so his heels hurt,\u201d Huizar said.<\/p>\n

With the roster so<\/span> small, the School for the Deaf elected to cancel its season opener against three-time reigning 6-man champion Lake Arthur on Aug. 29. That didn\u2019t sit well with his veteran players \u2014 wait, make that player.<\/p>\n

Junior Eloy Garcia was disappointed that the game was canceled, but understood why it happened. Still, he let Huizar know he was ready to go.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel ready,\u201d Garcia said through an interpreter.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally?\u201d Huizar signed in reply. \u201cYou feel ready?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I feel ready,\u201d Garcia retorted. \u201cJust saying. We should have played it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Garcia\u2019s enthusiasm is infectious, but it might wane in the weight of expectations for the 5-foot-10 junior. He will be the quarterback and running back for the Roadrunners, as Huizar wants him to touch the ball as much as possible because he is the lone returner.<\/p>\n

However, Garcia was more of an apprentice as seniors Mark Chavez and Fernando Silva handled the bulk of the offensive load. While he is not as fast as Chavez or Silva, his size will make him hard to tackle in the open field. Even though Garcia will be a marked man by opposing defenses, Huizar said one player can do a lot of damage in 6-man football.<\/p>\n

\u201cRemember that guy from San Jon [Danny Shetters, who played from 2004-06]?\u201d Huizar said. \u201cHe ran the team, and had all the touchdowns for the team. I don\u2019t have the caliber of player like him, but it can happen. You can have a star player run the team.\u201d<\/p>\n

What can\u2019t happen this season are injuries. That was an issue early last season, and NMSD had to forfeit a game against the Grady\/San Jon co-op team because of a lack of players. Huizar said he considered perhaps fielding a co-op team with another Class A school that didn\u2019t have football in the Santa Fe area, but couldn\u2019t make it happen.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t think about talking to Waldorf, so I didn\u2019t take any action,\u201d Huizar said. \u201cI think we should have. Five of them there and five of us here, it would have made for a great team.\u201d<\/p>\n

All Huizar and the Roadrunners can do this season is hope for good health and wait for next year, because help is on the way.<\/p>\n

SOURCE:<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.santafenewmexican.com\/sports\/high_school\/tour-of-northern-new-mexico-school-for-the-deaf-roadrunners\/article_704942b6-b42c-5f8d-b6f8-a830f9683ded.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

New Mexico School for the Deaf: Roadrunners field few players Tour of Northern New Mexico school for the Deaf: Roadrunners field few players this season August 23, 2014 By James Barron The New Mexican Robert Huizar has a numbers problem,…<\/p>\n

Read more →<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[4621,22278,22279,18885,2672,16757,18887,22276,22277,18302],"class_list":["post-28474","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deaf-news","tag-article","tag-danny-shetters","tag-eloy-garcia","tag-james-barron","tag-new-mexico","tag-new-mexico-school-for-the-deaf","tag-nmsd","tag-roadrunners","tag-robert-huizar","tag-santa-fe"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p752R-7pg","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":27825,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2014\/06\/25\/more-than-hoops-camp-new-mexico\/","url_meta":{"origin":28474,"position":0},"title":"More than hoops camp – New Mexico","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"June 25, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"More than hoops camp Fort Lewis College, school for deaf learn how to communicate June 15, 2014 Deven Thompson halted his dribble and quickly pushed up a 15-foot shot over camp coach Matthias Weissl during a one-on-one drill. A bit later in a different part of Whalen Gym, FLC men\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":23394,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2013\/06\/11\/deaf-student-overcomes-cultural-emotional-barriers-with-help-of-family-school-and-sports\/","url_meta":{"origin":28474,"position":1},"title":"Deaf student overcomes cultural, emotional barriers with help of family, school and sports","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"June 11, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0Deaf student overcomes cultural, emotional barriers with help of family, school and sports June 8, 2013 By James Barron The New Mexican In American Sign Language, Immanuel Neubauer introduces himself as \u201cImmanuel 12.\u201d In his first year as a student at New Mexico School for the Deaf in 2006, it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Classic New Mexico magnet","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/Classic-New-Mexico-magnet-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":23349,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2013\/06\/05\/new-mexico-school-for-the-deaf-educator-puts-school-on-the-map\/","url_meta":{"origin":28474,"position":2},"title":"New Mexico School for the Deaf educator puts \u2018school on the map\u2019","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"June 5, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"School for the Deaf educator puts \u2018school on the map\u2019 June 4, 2013 By Robert Nott The New Mexican Kimberly Hand has always enjoyed working with children, even in her early days growing up in rural Michigan. \u201cI enjoyed watching them grow and being motivated to learn,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Classic New Mexico magnet","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/Classic-New-Mexico-magnet-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":23902,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2013\/07\/18\/track-field-athletes-train-in-austin-en-route-to-2013-deaflympic-games-in-sofia-bulgaria\/","url_meta":{"origin":28474,"position":3},"title":"Track & Field Athletes Train in Austin, En Route to 2013 Deaflympic Games in Sofia, Bulgaria","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"July 18, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"TEXAS SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF PRESS RELEASE Contact: Keena Miller Phone: 512-462-5328, cell: 512-658-4444 Email: Keena.miller@tsd.state.tx.us \u00a0 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ON THE ROAD TO 2013 DEAFLYMPIC GAMES IN BULGARIA USA TRACK & FIELD ATHLETES MAKE FINAL TRAINING STOP IN TEXAS Austin, Texas \u2013 July 18, 2013 \u00a0More than 20 track\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"tsd-logo-180x180","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/04\/tsd-logo-180x180.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":35068,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2017\/02\/09\/woodrow-wilson-high-school-partially-deaf-football-recruit-announces-college-commitment\/","url_meta":{"origin":28474,"position":4},"title":"Woodrow Wilson High School: Partially Deaf Football Recruit Announces College Commitment","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"February 9, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Partially Deaf Football Recruit Announces College Commitment By Todd L. Davis February 1, 2017 A partially-deaf North Texas high school football player will take the next step toward fulfilling his dream of playing college football when he signs his National Letter of Intent Wednesday morning. Woodrow Wilson High School's Darrion\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/darrion-green.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":25275,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2013\/11\/07\/okla-school-for-the-deaf-helping-students-shine-in-the-classroom-and-on-the-field\/","url_meta":{"origin":28474,"position":5},"title":"Okla. school for the deaf helping students shine in the classroom and on the field","author":"Grant Laird Jr","date":"November 7, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Okla. school for the deaf helping students shine in the classroom and on the field By: Ashley Park October 03, 2013 SULPHUR, OK -- Whenever Head Coach, Tommy Varner, is standing on the sidelines during football games, he's doing more than just telling his team what plays they should run...\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/category\/deaf-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28474","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28474"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28474\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28476,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28474\/revisions\/28476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28474"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28474"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28474"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}