Top 10 Contenders for the New Mexico Heisman

Player of the Year? Boring. We’ll leave bland descriptions to the good folks at Gatorade. We wanted to bring a little pizzazz to our award honoring the best player in the state of New Mexico. So, we’ve glamorously dubbed it ‘The New Mexico Heisman.’ After Week 7, here are our Top 10 candidates for our newly named award: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26256" first="Adam" last="Aguilera"], Lovington</strong>:  Aguilera has been a force on Lovington’s offense so far this season, averaging over 6 receptions per game. Through 7 contests, he has 43 receptions for 747 yards (most in the state) and 8 touchdowns. Utilizing his speed, Aguilera is averaging 17.4 yards per catch. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="137862" first="Aidan" last="Armenta"], La Cueva</strong>: Hours after Rio Rancho mercy-ruled La Cueva in Week 2, Armenta posted on Twitter: “The response will be greater than the failure, I can promise you that.” Promise kept. Since then, the Bears offense has averaged 40 points per game during their current 5-game winning streak. Based on its remaining schedule, La Cueva will likely be the No. 3 seed for the Class 6A playoffs. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="137861" first="Aden" last="Chavez"], Cibola</strong>: Our No. 1 prospect for the 2023 class has lived up to the preseason hype. Chavez has completed 60 percent of his passes (113-186) for 1,509 yards and 16 touchdowns. The Cougars have played just five actual games (Highland forfeited), so Chavez is on track to throw for nearly 3,000 yards in the regular season. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="137885" first="Paul" last="Cieremans"], Los Lunas</strong>: Cieremans has established himself as arguably the state’s top dynamic threat quarterback, throwing for 810 yards and 12 touchdowns while rushing for 763 yards 4 100+ yards games) and 10 TDs. Los Lunas is 7-0 and likely to finish the regular season with an undefeated record, putting them on the cusp of the No. 1 seed for the Class 5A playoffs. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26232" first="Brandon" last="Furbee"], Farmington</strong>: Which team is Los Lunas’ primary competition for the No. 1 seed? Farmington. Furbee transferred to Farmington from Grants prior to the season and so far it’s been a match made in heaven. The Scorpions are likewise 7-0 and likely to finish the regular season unbeaten. Furbee, often playing just a half or a little more, is averaging over 200 passing yards per game. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26247" first="Josh" last="Gerardo"], Volcano Vista</strong>: The Hawks possess one of the most explosive offenses in Class 6A, and Gerardo has taken full advantage of his array of receivers. Through 6 games, he has thrown for a state-leading 1,717 yards and 14 TDs. In his last two games, he has passed for 397 and 337 yards against Sandia and West Mesa, respectively. After the Week 8 matchup with Atrisco Heritage, the final three games are against Cleveland, Rio Rancho and Cibola. Intriguing matchups all, and those games will tell us a lot about Gerardo and the Volcano Vista offense. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26265" first="Martell" last="Mora"], Santa Fe</strong>: The Demons have slipped a bit since district play began but Mora, who played through an ankle injury last weekend against Sandia, remains one of the top players in the state. After 7 games, Mora has already eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing barrier with 15 touchdowns, and caught 12 passes for 277 yards. He has amassed 1,572 all-purpose yards. The Demons need him healthy if they want to make a Class 6A playoff run. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="26227" first="Zach" last="Vigil"], Rio Rancho</strong>: The Rams had already lost a pair of games to Covid when the Week 8 battle with West Mesa was cancelled as well. Regardless, Vigil has posted some impressive numbers. Last week, he ran for over 300 yards and 4 touchdowns against Cibola, earning him our Player of the Week honor. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138053" first="Cayden" last="Walton"], Raton</strong>: Walton’s importance to Raton was highlighted in last week’s hard-fought 14-7 win at West Las Vegas when the Raton rose his tough running to the game-winning TD. Walton has already rushed for over 1,200 yards and with three games remaining, could crack the 1,600-yard mark before the regular season is done. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="139521" first="Evan" last="Wysong"], Cleveland</strong>: The No. 1 QB on arguably the No. 1 team in the state (we’ll find out Oct. 30 when the Storm face city rival Rio Rancho) has thrived in his first full season in his role. Through 6 games, he has passed for 747 yards and 7 TDs while rushing for 308 yards and 5 TDs. He’s also lined up at WR and caught 3 passes. New Mexico has offered. <strong>Honorable Mention</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="26253" first="Dallas" last="Boyd"], Las Cruces [player_tooltip player_id="26267" first="Ian" last="Lopez"], Centennial [player_tooltip player_id="26264" first="Jacob" last="Barrera"], Artesia [player_tooltip player_id="134963" first="Nathan" last="Lopez"], Cibola [player_tooltip player_id="198052" first="Kieran" last="Cordova"], Volcano Vista [player_tooltip player_id="137884" first="A.J." last="Rivera"], Albuq. Academy [player_tooltip player_id="198250" first="Dominic" last="Esquibel"], Pojoaque Valley [player_tooltip player_id="26257" first="Marco" last="Ybarra"], St. Pius X [player_tooltip player_id="137928" first="Kellan" last="Gehres"], Albuq. Academy [player_tooltip player_id="26233" first="Isaac" last="Hinson"], Lovington [player_tooltip player_id="26269" first="Damien" last="Gallegos"], West Las Vegas https://twitter.com/rick_tripp58/status/1445578526980128778