Four years ago, someone had the bright idea to inaugurate “The Cibola Bowl,” a soon-to-be-annual gridiron grudge match pitting Cibola County, N.M., rivals the Laguna-Acoma Hawks and the Grants Pirates. About that same time, the folks at the Cibola County Beacon had an idea of their own.
This month, for the fifth year in a row, the newspaper serving both communities offered a point-counterpoint on one of the biggest high school football games of the year. Mark Teshima told readers why he’s picking the Hawks. Ron Gonzales sided with the Pirates.
“Scott Ford, the Pirates sportswriter, and myself came up with the idea together,” recalls Beacon Publisher Donald Jaramillo. “The game is the biggest of the year for the underdog and smaller school, (the) Hawks, and has become a huge rivalry. We simply add to the fire which I think is good for sports in some cases.” …
Sports should be fun. It’s important to be fair in coverage of high school sports — and no one wants to run down the kids — but there isn’t any reason why knowledgeable reporters can’t deliver an opinion.
