Broncos down Mountainair in opener

FLOYD — In the quest to break his own record, Jerrod Long helped Floyd start the season with a perfect record.

Long intercepted a pair of Mountainair passes, returning both for touchdowns, and accounted for two more scores on offense Saturday as the Broncos held off the Mustangs 33-12.

Floyd (1-0) was in control throughout, leading 25-0 at one point in the second half.

The Broncos also got interceptions from Bryan Johnson and Kyle Kropf. Neither resulted in a touchdown, but they helped to keep the Mountainair offense from staying close to the Broncos, who had offensive problems of their own.

“We didn’t execute very well offensively,” Floyd coach Jeff Gillespie said. “We had too many turnovers.

“We played pretty well defensively, especially since we didn’t have a scouting report — they didn’t scrimmage anybody. To hold them to 12 points is pretty good.”

Floyd wasn’t the only team at a disadvantage due to Mountainair’s empty preseason, as Mustangs coach Robert Zamora could attest. Zamora felt his team was a little too inexperienced coming in.

“That’s pretty much what it looked like,” said Zamora. “We played defense OK.”

So did Long and the Broncos, who forced turnovers at key points. Long’s first interception stopped a late Mountainair drive, and his 59-yard touchdown return made it 19-0 in the final seconds of the first half.

His second interception came after Floyd was stopped on the opening drive of the third quarter, and his return put the game out of reach at 25-0.

“Jerrod’s goal is to beat his record of 13 picks (set last season),” Gillespie said, “and he’s off to a good start.”

Long also ran for a 76-yard score in the first quarter and hit Jonathan Martinez for a 59-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter. Johnson and Jason Martinez accounted for Floyd’s other score, a 36-yard pass from Johnson to Martinez in the second quarter.

The Broncos stay at home again on Saturday, hosting Tatum in a 1:30 p.m. contest. The Mustangs host Melrose on Saturday.