New Quarterbacks You Need To Know For 2021

One of the major storylines for the much-anticipated 2021 high school season in New Mexico is that several of the most prominent programs in the state will have new quarterbacks, including (in alphabetical order) Artesia, Centennial, Clovis, Cleveland, Las Cruces, La Cueva, Lovington, Rio Rancho and Volcano Vista. Several others will have new quarterbacks as well. Some of the aforementioned schools already know who the starting quarterback will be. Other schools plan spirited competitions in  preseason camp to see who wins the job. Here is how the quarterback situation breaks down around the state: <strong>STARTING QB DECIDED</strong>: <strong>Centennial – [player_tooltip player_id="26267" first="Ian" last="Lopez"]</strong>. Lopez saw action this spring behind dual threat [player_tooltip player_id="26168" first="Karsten" last="Rueckner"], who signed with Eastern New Mexico, but now the job is Lopez’s on a full-time basis. Lopez threw a 54-yard TD pass in the spring opening win over Onate. “Ian actually played well at times,” Centennial coach Aaron Ocampo told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “In our last two games, due to some injuries, whoever wasn’t playing quarterback between Karsten and Ian played running back. We feel really good about Ian’s leadership and his knowledge of the system. He has that moxy to him. We’re excited about that.” <strong>Clovis - [player_tooltip player_id="134999" first="Milo" last="Acosta"]</strong>. The Wildcats’ QB situation was in a state of flux throughout the spring after 2019 All-State signal caller [player_tooltip player_id="26155" first="Chance" last="Harris"] chose to enroll early at Colorado State. Acosta was one of three Clovis quarterbacks to see action, throwing for 666 yards and five touchdowns. “Milo’s biggest strengths are his toughness and leadership,” Clovis coach Cal Fullerton told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “Obviously, we will be young on offense and we’ll have to grow up fast. We have to take care of the football and make great decisions to help ourselves out.” <strong>Las Cruces - [player_tooltip player_id="26253" first="Dallas" last="Boyd"]</strong>. Filling  the very large shoes of dynamic [player_tooltip player_id="26160" first="Marcos" last="Lopez"] (signed with Eastern New Mexico) will be difficult, but Bulldawgs coach Mark Lopez believes Boyd is up to the task. “He’s going to be a good one. Tough kid,” Lopez told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “He’s an athlete. He’s going to be able to keep our offense balanced. He runs the ball well. He’s got a good arm and once he gets a full grasp of the offense he’ll be dangerous throwing as well. Overall, we should be pretty darn good offensively.” <strong>La Cueva - [player_tooltip player_id="132442" first="Aidan" last="Armenta"]</strong>. This time next year, we could be talking about Armenta, a rising junior, as one of the top quarterbacks in the state. Yeah, he’s that good. We caught a glimpse of Armenta in La Cueva’s final game of the spring. The Bears scored just 41 points in 3 games, so look for Armenta to revive the La Cueva offense. He was sensational at a camp in Phoenix in January, earning accolades as one of the top performers there. Pencil in the 6-foot-3, 185-pounder as La Cueva’s starting QB for 2021 and 2022. He’ll play at the next level too. <strong>Rio Rancho - Dominick Priddy</strong>. A rising senior, Priddy is a two-sport standout and is currently playing baseball for the Rams. Priddy served as Rio Rancho’s backup QB behind [player_tooltip player_id="26198" first="Joey" last="Cave"] in the fall and saw action on fourth downs. Behind Priddy is a trio of talented rising sophomores - Rayce Ramirez, Noah Nelson and Dominic Valencia – and rising freshman Cam Dyer. Priddy will benefit from a great ground game led by Zack Vigil, the state’s 2022 top running back, and solid offensive line anchored by tackle [player_tooltip player_id="26229" first="Cayden" last="Romero"] (No. 3 overall 2022 prospect), who has already been offered by New Mexico. “Dom is a gritty athlete and a great leader,” Rio Rancho coach Gerry Pannoni told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “The QB room is crowded, but competition breeds success. The rest of the offense looks explosive. The offensive line will be very good, big and strong. Our wide outs will be explosive with speed and good hands.” <strong>UNDECIDED</strong>: <strong>Cleveland</strong> – Replacing one of the most successful quarterbacks in recent memory ([player_tooltip player_id="26185" first="Jeff" last="Davison"]) will be challenging, which is why Storm coach Heath Ridenour is taking his time. He hasn’t named a starter yet and likely won’t until August. “I am looking forward to seeing the guys work and ultimately determine who wins the job,” Ridenour told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “Regardless of who wins the job, the Storm will be in great hands.” <strong>Volcano Vista - </strong>Johnny Herrera, who plans to play college football, enjoyed a sensational spring after playing wide receiver in previous seasons, throwing for over 1,000 yards and 12 touchdowns in three games. His successor will likely be [player_tooltip player_id="26247" first="Josh" last="Gerardo"], who saw limited action as Herrera’s backup, or rising junior Elliot Pasket-Bell. They will engage in a preseason camp battle. <strong>Lovington – </strong>Junior Ashton Aranda and freshman Wyatt Gomez will battle it out this summer and into fall camp before we know the winner. Aranda was Jared Jeffrey’s backup this spring, while Gomez started for the Lovington JV team in the spring as a freshman. “Those are two very talented and hard working young men,” Lovington coach Anthony Gonzales told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “Both of them have a chance to be very special.” <strong>Grants</strong> – The Pirates saw their starting quarterback ([player_tooltip player_id="26232" first="Brandon" last="Furbee"]) transfer to Farmington. Who’s got next? Good question. Right now, nobody knows. We’ll see who rises up and claims the spot in preseason camp. <strong>Artesia</strong> – The Bulldogs will have a new coach (Jeremy Maupin) and a new quarterback (TBA) in the fall. [player_tooltip player_id="26223" first="Cord" last="Cox"] only got an opportunity to quarterback the Artesia offense for five games. The only other Artesia QB to throw a pass in the spring was rising junior [player_tooltip player_id="137915" first="Corbin" last="Farrar"]. <strong>Portales</strong> – Baylor Diaz was one of the top dual threat quarterbacks in Class 4A. Will his successor match his production in 2021? <strong>Silver - </strong>Who succeeds [player_tooltip player_id="26201" first="Walker" last="Wenzel"]? The new Fighting Colts QB will most likely be rising senior [player_tooltip player_id="135301" first="Regan" last="Carbajal"] or rising junior [player_tooltip player_id="138079" first="Emiliano" last="Jimenez"]. https://twitter.com/chs_wildcats/status/1388138025557762048 https://twitter.com/AidanArmenta/status/1384311507127660544 https://twitter.com/Coach_Ridenour/status/1378586052210868226 &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;