One week after Manzano running back Jordan Byrd sat out the second half against Clovis due to concerns about a possible concussion, he took the field as quarterback and led the Monarchs to a 32-10 win over Eldorado (4-4, 1-2).
Byrd finished the night with three touchdowns and 290 rushing yards in his first full game under center.
“It felt good,” he said. “I just wanted to help my team.”
Manzano coach Chad Adcox said he planned for Byrd to start at quarterback all week, and that the junior provided a better run option against Eldorado.
“I thought that our offense needed a spark,” Adcox said. “We needed something to kind of get us going, and I think he gives us that.”
After Manzano’s defense forced the Eagles to punt on their opening drive, Byrd scored on an 86-yard run on the Monarchs’ first play from scrimmage to give them a 7-0 lead less than three minutes into the game.
Early in the second quarter, Manzano (6-2, 3-0) tackled Eldorado quarterback Matt Denis in the end zone for a safety, and then a 26-yard field goal by kicker Joshua Soliz made the lead 12-0. Eldorado got on the board midway through the second quarter with a 60-yard pass play from Denis to Trenton Gaither to narrow the lead to 12-7, but Byrd answered with an 81-yard score to make it 19-7. An interception by Eldorado freshman Keith Alvarado with 28 seconds remaining set up a 42-yard field goal for kicker Andrew Shelley, bringing the halftime score to 19-10.
Eldorado had 10 yards of total offense in the third quarter, in which Manzano running back Xavier Ivey-saud's 11-yard touchdown run was the only score. Byrd capped off the scoring in the fourth quarter with a 12-yard run to make it 32-10.
Eldorado finished the game with 159 passing yards to Manzano’s 15, but what the Monarchs lacked in the air, they more than made up for on the ground. Manzano rushed for 401 yards and limited Eldorado to 68.
Manzano will face Santa Fe (0-8, 0-3) and Sandia (3-5, 1-2) with the chance to clinch District 2-6A, but Byrd and Adcox said they won’t change their mindset.
“Our mentality is to keep grinding like we have been all year,” Adcox said. “We tell our kids one day at a time, and our slogan this year is ‘one play at a time for 48 minutes,’ and that’s what we do.”
Meanwhile, Eldorado will meet rival La Cueva (5-3, 2-1) next week in a game that could decide a playoff berth for both teams.
