The Chicago Bulls had Jordan and Pippen, but it was role players like Steve Kerr and John Paxson that hit the game-winning shots.

The New York Yankees might have paid obscene amounts of money to numerous future Hall of Famers this season, but it was unheralded Hideki Matsui who was the World Series MVP.

And in football, there is no shortage of key players who take a back seat in newspaper print and media attention to the quarterbacks and running backs.

Pojoaque Valley safety Josh Ortiz is one of those player.

"We aren't in the playoffs if it isn't for Josh Ortiz," said Pojoaque head coach Quevin Redding, whose Elks play at Albuquerque Academy today at 1 p.m. in the first round of the Class AAA state playoffs.

"Mikey (Garcia), our quarterback, and some others on offense, they get their names in the paper every week, but we don't win six games if he isn't leading our defense."

Ortiz, who is 5-foot-10 and 165 pounds, doesn't exactly strike fear in opponents when he steps off the bus, but it doesn't take long before the other team knows he's there.

"It doesn't bother me that the offense always gets the attention," Ortiz said. "I just try to do my thing when I'm on defense and help the team however I can. And I love to hit."

Ortiz's two-sack, 11-tackle, three pass-breakup game against Class A playoff team McCurdy was the best example of Ortiz's dominance.

"When we're watching film, he's everywhere," Redding said. "It's every game and just about every play. He's right there around the ball and doing those things we need someone on our defense to be doing."

• • •

At St. Michael's, getting to the playoffs might be the norm, but the Horsemen machine doesn't operate on running backs and quarterbacks alone.

"This year, its guys like Mick and Mack, Mack and Mick, that are really doing the dirty work for us," said coach Joey Fernandez said, referring to senior left tackle Mack Basham and senior defensive end Mick Gonzales.

The pair of first time starters say their role is simple.

"Work hard and do the things that help us win games," Basham said. "That's what's expected here every year and that's what we worked at for three years, waiting for this chance as seniors."

The pair has flourished this season, even if it has gone largely unnoticed to the casual fan.

"Those guys may not be in the paper after each game, but we aren't the same team without them," Fernandez said.

But don't think the senior duo are without a few highlight-reel games of their own.

Basham was the anchor of an offensive line that paved the way to a record-setting 491-yard rushing performance against Portales on Oct. 10 and Gonzales notched a career-high 15 tackles last week against Pojoaque.

"I think we still have a few games like that left in us," Gonzales said. "This team, we're working hard and the way we've come together since the (Oct. 31) Robertson loss, I really think we can make a good run in the playoffs."

If the Horsemen do, Mick and Mack may not grab the headlines, but they'll be a big part of the story.

Contact Geoff Grammer at 986-3060 or ggrammer@sfnewmexican.com. Read his blog at grammerschoolblog.com.