Best high school mascot in New Mexico: Top 5 candidates

From Silverbacks to Alacranes, meet the best high school mascots in New Mexico

Gorillas are in New Mexico? Yep, and they're Silverbacks unique to Albuquerque.

Santa Fe counters with Alacranes, and Carlsbad (of course) features Cavemen.

SBLive Sports' love for unique mascots with interesting back stories has been well documented.

We've crowned Hodags and Imps the past couple of years in national high school mascot contests, and now we're taking a spin through every state.

Over the next couple of months we'll go from Alabama through Wyoming featuring each state's best high school mascots, and then give readers a chance to vote for their favorite. Our New Mexico poll will post Nov. 7 on highschool.si.com and stay open through Nov. 14.

Here are the top five high school mascots in New Mexico:

Carlsbad Cavemen

Similar to the Salem Witches in Massachusetts, Carlsbad's Cavemen score extra points over the other Cavemen in the country thanks to historical authenticity. Carlsbad Caverns National Park features more than 100 caves. 

Legacy Academy Silverbacks

Legacy Academy is connected to Legacy Church, which has locations throughout New Mexico. But the Silverbacks are in Albuquerque, and their 8-man football team made the playoffs this year in just their second year of existence. Their gorilla-head helmets are undoubtedly among the best in the country.

Moriarty Pintos

The high school mascot is the equine variety of the pinto, but the city of Moriarty also hosts an annual Pinto Bean Fiesta, which finishes every year with the coronation of a Pinto Bean Queen.

Santa Teresa Desert Warriors

Santa Teresa High School, located right across the border from both Texas and Mexico, boasts the only Desert Warriors in the country among U.S. high schools. Their mascot is a black warrior horse with some serious dance moves.

Tierra Encantada Alacranes

If Tierra Encantada Charter School called its teams the Scorpions, it would be the 25th high school in the U.S. with that mascot. But TECS is the Alacranes, Spanish for "scorpions," and the Santa Fe school boasts the only Alacranes in the country.

(Feature photo by Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports)

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-- Mike Swanson | swanson@scorebooklive.com | @sblivesports