Turf war adds fire to Santa Fe High-St. Michael's rivalry before teams take field

Aug. 31—If a seat at the annual Santa Fe High-St. Michael's football game wasn't the hottest ticket in town on the same night Old Man Gloom goes up in smoke, it certainly will be now that Northern New Mexico's most storied high school football rivalry is moving to Saturday and a much smaller venue.

Athletic officials from St. Michael's and Santa Fe High announced Tuesday the 90th annual meeting between their teams will be played at noon Saturday at the 1,350-seat Christian Brothers Athletic Complex — a shift from a Friday night contest traditionally held at the spacious 6,000-seat Ivan Head Stadium on Santa Fe High's campus.

"Our kids, their kids, the coaches and, I think, everyone wanted this game to be played at Ivan Head, but they left us no choice," said St. Michael's football coach Joey Fernandez. "If you play football in Santa Fe, you just want your big games to be at Ivan Head. I know our kids look forward to it."

At the center of this week's simmering controversy over the game's site is a dispute over revenue. Administrators from both schools met several times over the last few days to hammer out a plan that would have kept the game at Ivan Head, but St. Michael's athletic director Joshua Griñe indicated Tuesday his school could not accept terms that called for Santa Fe High to pocket at least half of the game day receipts.

The schools have used Ivan Head all but once since renewing their football rivalry a quarter-century ago. The designated home team alternates from year to year, and St. Michael's was the host for this week's game.

The sides reached an impasse when Santa Fe Public Schools proposed a revenue-sharing plan that would essentially split ticket and concession sales from a game that Fernandez said typically generates $5,000 in profit for St. Michael's. Santa Fe High would have kept the money from ticket and concessions sales from patrons entering the east side of the stadium, while St. Michael's would pocket the profits generated from fans entering the facility on the smaller west side.

Santa Fe Public Schools athletic director Marc Ducharme said the school district — contrary to rumors floating around all week — has never exercised a rental fee that is usually standard for use of Ivan Head Stadium.

"This is how much we've charged them in the past: nothing," he said. "This is the best place for a game like this, and it's the best deal a team like that will ever get."

Negotiations for basketball and football games between the schools are a regular thing, Ducharme added. The expense of manning Ivan Head even in years when St. Michael's is the host pushed the discussion in a direction where Santa Fe High got at least a portion of the revenue.

All discussions, he insisted, were in good faith.

"We met in a collaborative manner to clear up some of the misinformation going around out there," Ducharme said. "We have to act in a fiscally responsible manner in situations like this. What we all want to happen here is have an equitable solution that allows us to put the focus on keeping the game here but making it fair for both sides."

Griñe said St. Michael's will not sell tickets online. Pregame cash-only sales begin at 10 a.m. Saturday, at $5 per seat.

All sales, he said, are, "first come, first served."

Both coaches said the Demons-Horsemen game typically is the biggest draw for either team. With the attention garnered from the venue change, they expect this year's crowd to have even more energy than usual.

"There's a lot being said this week, and I think it's getting this game a lot of attention we don't normally get," Fernandez said. "We want to be in big games, and this is a big one. We'll have a good crowd and there's nothing better than playing on your own field against a team like that. All we want is what's best for the kids."

Students from St. Michael's are letting their voices be heard. They launched an petition on Change.org to keep the game at Ivan Head. It gained traction by circulating on Twitter and as of Tuesday afternoon it had more than 900 signatures.

"I think it's obvious how important this game is to people here," said Demons coach Andrew Martinez. "It's the biggest game of the year for a lot of people. We'll play it anywhere, even if it's not where everyone seems to want it."

Griñe said St. Michael's is looking into hiring additional security for what should be a capacity crowd of fans shoehorned into a single section of concrete bleachers. There also are about 20 parking spots available in a lot that overlooks the east end zone, as well as a few dozen spots in portable bleachers on the visitor's sideline.

"I'd like to say things are normal in a rivalry like this, but sometimes you just can't come to an agreement," Griñe said.