Curry County Cats football capsule - April 15

El Paso Raiders (1-3)

at Curry County Cats (5-2)

2 p.m. today, Leon Williams Stadium

Last time out: Two weeks ago, the Cats scored a 33-0 victory over the Alamogordo Desert Dawgs March 31.

The Raiders are coming off of their second-straight hard-luck loss, 20-14 in overtime against the Las Cruces Kings. Both teams took last weekend off due to the Easter holiday.

Last meeting: March 25, Curry County posted a 29-27 victory. The Cats scored the go-ahead touchdown with 16 seconds left in regulation.

Raiders players to watch: WR Mando Alarcon, WR Eric Ramirez, QB Ricky Najera.

Keys to the game: Both coaches note turnovers are key.

Lopez noted that against the Raiders the first time, the Cats lost a pair of fumbles inside their own 20, and El Paso scored touchdowns on both red-zone chances.

"That's been our biggest issue, and we just need to clean that up," Lopez said. "We can compete with anybody if we clean those up.

Same thing for the Raiders, who have little margin for error.

"If we make one small mistake, good teams take advantage."

Men of many hats: Lopez is certainly busy as head coach, owner and general manager of the Cats. But Ortiz has him beat, as he takes all three of those roles with the Raiders and plays middle linebacker.

Notables: Lopez said that running back Manuel Robles has made a quicker recovery than expected on his ankle and should see time Sunday. However, most of his time will likely be spent at cornerback — partially to take advantage of his speed on defense and partially to avoid the hits he'll take as the primary running back.

— Compiled by Kevin Wilson