Monthly Recruiting Roundup: August

Nobody – player, coach or administrator - connected with New Mexico high school football had a better August than 2021 Cleveland (Rio Rancho) Storm defensive back [player_tooltip player_id="26163" first="Trey" last="Ortega"]. Ortega, hoping to help lead Cleveland to back-to-back state championships in the spring, concluded the month with 18 offers, some of them from Ivy League institutions. He added seven offers in August. “Trey constantly gets it done on the classroom,” Cleveland head coach Heath Ridenour told Prep Redzone Mexico. “That has been one of his biggest selling points.” Approaching 20 offers, Ortega is generating serious consideration from colleges at a heightened rate rarely seen in New Mexico. He combines football acumen with lofty academic achievement. “Trey has advocated for himself and his future,” Ridenour said. “He wants to go to an Ivy League school. His dad went to an Ivy League school. He reached out and sold himself. So many players can learn from what Trey did. He’s getting offers from schools that don’t recruit New Mexico too often. That’s a compliment to him.” Last season, Ortega played a number of positions for Cleveland. He filled in at quarterback when starter [player_tooltip player_id="26185" first="Jeff" last="Davison"] was sidelined for several weeks because of an injury, completing 57 percent of his passes for 773 yards and 8 touchdowns. He also rushed for 346 yards on 41 carries, third most on the team. In addition, Ortega caught 6 passes for 143 yards and 3 touchdowns and made 28 tackles on defense. <strong>COMMITS</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id="26157" first="Jaden" last="Phillips"], Clovis: New Mexico (Recommit) <strong>RECENT OFFERS</strong>: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26201" first="Walker" last="Wenzel"]</strong>, Silver: Western New Mexico <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26174" first="Jalen" last="Washington"]</strong>, Cleveland: Eastern New Mexico <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26163" first="Trey" last="Ortega"]</strong>, Cleveland: Butler, Colgate, Delaware State, Fordham, Georgetown, Lehigh, St. Thomas University, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26177" first="David" last="Mapalo"]</strong>, Sandia: Trine <strong>Johnny Herrera</strong>, Volcano Vista: Macalester College, Kenyon <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26161" first="Ja’Shon" last="Lowery"]</strong>, La Cueva: UNLV https://twitter.com/O12Trey/status/1300577267177803776 https://twitter.com/O12Trey/status/1298068479132577792 https://twitter.com/johnny_ix/status/1295524492014485505 https://twitter.com/JashonLowery1/status/1293645087717486592