Knights looking for playoff success

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - After a sluggish 3-5 start, the Del Norte Knights are riding high.

The men in turquoise and black won their last two games against district foes to earn their second consecutive District 5-4A crown.

"We won the first district championship last year, [the first one] in 15 years, and we weren’t satisfied," Knights' receiver/strong safety Deion Medina said.

Medina credits the late season turnaround to Del Norte Head Coach Chris Howe. According to players, Howe helped the team realize that their title and their time on the football field were slipping away.

"It's more of a personality of just coming out and every game is a big game, and just give everything you have and leave everything on the field," linebacker Bobby Johnston said.

Howe came to Del Norte four years ago. At the time, they had the longest losing streak in the state, but he said they snapped that in year one and started to believe.

"The kids starting believing we could do it. Basically the last couple of years we won back-to-back district titles," Howe said. "And now they believe us."

Medina said Del Norte football now is about seeking contact and giving everything you got.

"We want to be the hammer and not the nail," Medina said "We're always the underdogs, we're always undersized but everyone loves the game."

This team rallies behind the motto 'hokahey' which loosely translates to treat each play as if it's your last, each game as if it's your last.

With the playoffs upcoming, their motto is especially poignant.

The Knights will square off against the Farmington Scorpions Friday night at Wilson Stadium. Earlier in the season the Knights topped the Scorps 21-14.