November Madness: Top Performers in First Playoff Round
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The first round of the 2021 New Mexico High School football playoffs was filled with plenty of exceptional performances. Here are some of the top performers (in alphabetical order): Diego Avila, Belen: Putting the exclamation point on an 11-carry, 167-yard…
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Continue ReadingThe first round of the 2021 New Mexico High School football playoffs was filled with plenty of exceptional performances. Here are some of the top performers (in alphabetical order):
Diego Avila, Belen: Putting the exclamation point on an 11-carry, 167-yard rushing performance, Avila scored the winning TD in the fourth quarter on a 19-yard run as the Eagled nipped Deming, 25-21.
Juan Badillo, NMMI: Badillo completed 7-of-8 passes for 173 yards and 3 TD and rushed 7 times for 60 yards to lead NMMI to a 48-8 victory over Thoreau in Class 3A action.
Dallas Boyd Dallas Boyd 5'10" | 175 lbs | QB Las Cruces | 2022 State NM , Las Cruces: The Bulldawgs star is one of the top dual threat quarterbacks in the state. In a convincing 42-7 victory over Clovis, Boyd ran for two TD and passed for another to help the Bulldawgs secure a rematch with Centennial in the Class 6A quarterfinals.
Alexavier Carreon Alexavier Carreon 6'1" | RB Jal | 2023 State NM , Jal: Carreon, younger brother of Boise State commit OL Roger Carreon Roger Carreon 6'5" | 305 lbs | OL Jal | 2022 State NM , scored three TD in the first quarter as Jal jumped out to a 29-0 lead and cruised home from there in a 50-0 mercy rule win over Estancia.
Aden Chavez Aden Chavez 6'5" | 210 lbs | QB Cibola | 2023 State NM , Cibola: The junior QB for the Cougars is having a sensational season, more than living up to the preseason hype, and that continued against Sandia in the first round. Chavez completed 17-of-23 passes for 348 yards and 4 TD as the Cougars spotted the Matadors an early lead before rolling to a 41-15 victory.
Damien Gallegos Damien Gallegos 5'8" | RB West Las Vegas | 2022 State NM , West Las Vegas: If Raton’s Cayden Walton Cayden Walton 5'9" | 180 lbs | RB Raton | 2023 State NM is the top RB in Class 3A, Gallegos is a close second. Saturday, he ripped through the Cobre defense for 279 yards and 3 TD on a workhorse 35 carries as the Dons posted a 48-28 win. He added 76 receiving yards for 355 total yards of offense.
Rey Garcia, Valencia: The Jaguars’ senior QB led an explosive offense in Valencia’s 53-23 win over Taos. Garcia ran 33 yards for the first TD of the game before connecting with Jacob Farley for the second TD. His second rushing TD of the first half came on a 10-yard run and gave Valencia a 28-7 lead.
Kellan Gehres Kellan Gehres 5'10" | 150 lbs | WR Albuquerque Academy | 2023 State NM , Albuq. Academy: Again exhibiting a strong connection with Chargers QB A.J. Rivera A.J. Rivera 6'2" | 195 lbs | QB Albuquerque Academy | 2023 State NM , Gehres caught 8 passes for 108 yards, including a 32-yard Td reception in the first half. Gehres now has 61 receptions for 1,062 yards and 12 TD on the season.
Josh Gerardo Josh Gerardo 6'1" | QB Volcano Vista | 2022 State NM , Volcano Vista: Gerardo eclipsed the 290-yard passing park for the fifth time this season as he threw for 381 yards and 4 TD in Volcano Vista’s 49-17 victory over Carlsbad. For the season, he has 2,510 passing yards + 24 TD.
Colton Graham Colton Graham 5'10" | 165 lbs | QB Hobbs | 2022 State NM , Hobbs: The Eagles QB threw for 141 yards and 3 TD on an efficient 11-of-16 passing as Hobbs beat Eldorado, 36-2, and advanced to face No. 1 seed Cleveland Saturday afternoon in Rio Rancho.
Zakye Hawkins, Las Cruces: The sophomore has proven all season he’s one of the top 2024 prospects in the state. Against Clovis, he scored three touchdowns, one on a 40-yard catch and two on the ground, including a 52-yarder.
Angel Hernandez, Santa Teresa: Hernandez rushed for 122 yards on 13 carries to help lead the Desert Warriors past Piedra Vista, 21-0, in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs. Santa Teresa has rushed for over 3,200 yards this season.
James Jenkins James Jenkins 6'0" | WR Hope Christian | 2022 State NM , Hope Christian: In the highest scoring game of the first round, Jenkins rushed for 325 yards (17.1 yards per attempt) and 4 TD, combining with Brent Miller Brent Miller DB Hope Christian | 2023 State NM for a devastating ground assault, as the Huskies outscored Navajo Prep, 57-36 in a 3A playoff game. Hope Christian finished with 463 rushing yards.
Tyler Martinez Tyler Martinez 6'1" | 180 lbs | DB Volcano Vista | 2022 State NM , Volcano Vista: Second in the state in tackles, Martinez led the Hawk’s strong defensive effort against Carlsbad with 14 tackles, including 11 solo. He now has 135 tackles in 11 games, and leads the state in solo tackles with 90 by a wide margin.
Jose Montoya Jose Montoya 5'8" | RB Mayfield | 2022 State NM , Mayfield: Montoya led Mayfield’s offense in the 49-3 rout of Los Alamos by scoring three touchdowns. He had two TD on the ground in the first half and caught a 25-yard TD for the lone score of the second half.
Darrell Ochieng, NMMI: Ochieng caught 2 passes for 101 yards, rushed for 49 yards and returned kicks, accounting for 170 total yards in NMMI’s lopsided win over Thoreau.
Conagher Pierce Conagher Pierce 5'11" | 190 lbs | RB Eunice | 2022 State NM , Eunice: Pierce completed 17-of-32 passes for 365 yards and 7 TD as Eunice pounded Hagerman, 54-3, to advance to the semifinals of the Class 2A playoffs vs. Tularosa. Pierce also rushed for 79 yards.
Cooper Pritchett, Ruidoso: The Warriors’ QB threw a 78-yard TD pass and ran for another in Ruidoso’s 35-7 victory over Aztec. Pritchett also led a 15-play, 7-minute drive in the second quarter that produced a TD for a 21-7 Warriors lead.
Adrian Rodriguez Adrian Rodriguez 5'9" | RB Santa Teresa | 2022 State NM , Santa Teresa: The senior RB rushed for 148 yards on 17 carries to help lift the Desert Warriors to a 21-0 Class 5A victory over Piedra Vista. Rodriguez scored one TD and also had a 62-yard scamper late in the second quarter. Rodriguez now has 829 yards rushing on the season.
Kenyon Singleton Kenyon Singleton 5'10" | 160 lbs | LB Hobbs | 2022 State NM , Hobbs: The Eagles defense stonewalled Eldorado’s running game in Hobbs’ 36-2 victory and Singleton was a major reason why the Eagles were so dominant on defense. He finished with 13 tackles. He now has 126 tackles on the season, third most in the state.
Kaden Trevino Kaden Trevino 5'11" | 175 lbs | WR Hobbs | 2023 State NM , Hobbs: Trevino is one of the top 2023 receivers in the state and against Eldorado three of his six receptions went for touchdowns. He totaled 101 receiving yards. Watching Trevino battle the Cleveland secondary will be worth the price of admission.
Kaden Valdez Kaden Valdez 5'11" | 175 lbs | WR Volcano Vista | 2022 State NM , Volcano Vista: Our Player of the Week brought his ‘A’ game to Community Stadium. He caught 2 long TD passes in the second quarter to stun Carlsbad and finished with 6 receptions for 151 yards. He also displayed excellent footwork along the sidelines on a couple other catches.
Adrian Vega, Goddard: Appearing in his first game since the season opener, Vega led the Goddard offense to a big night in a 56-14 victory over Valley at the Wool Bowl. Vega ran for the first TD of the game and never looked back.
Marcus Wilson, Cibola: Wilson was QB Aden Chavez Aden Chavez 6'5" | 210 lbs | QB Cibola | 2023 State NM ’s favorite target against Sandia as he caught 5 passes for 112 yards and 2 TD. He also ran 10 yards for a TD.
Thank you @PrepRedzoneNM
For the mention@cibolafootball @CoachRodWill @IBthecoach @PlayBookAthlete https://t.co/lSgZIzdFTk pic.twitter.com/o091IEz1IB— Aden Chavez (@AdenChavez08) November 8, 2021
First playoff win since 2012‼️ 8 receptions for 108 receiving yards, 1 TD and 1 Interception, also 166 All-Purpose yards‼️ Check out my highlight – https://t.co/z0C4RnBJ2X @PrepRedzoneNM @JordanSom_UNM @nmpreps @NMrecruits @Rude_WUBearcats
— Kellan “KG” Gehres (@KellanGehres23) November 7, 2021
https://t.co/IAsh9xllJR 27 receptions, 368 yards (13.6 yards per reception) 3 carries , 16 yards, 4 ints, 16 solo tackles 25 assists. I had a great senior season couldn’t have done it without my team @dez1130 @cavemenstrong @NMrecruits @PrepRedzoneNM
— jonathan.fuentesii (@jonathanfu2nt2s) November 7, 2021
First round playoff win highlights‼️Score: 14-6 ABQ. Academy. Onto Moriarty next week!! Stats: 3 tackles, 2 TFL, 1 hurry, 2 pancakes. https://t.co/uhwDLBMnJT @PrepRedzoneNM @NMrecruits @CoachGehres @LoboManRay @JamesDYodice @SebastianNoel47 @nmpreps @CoachGonzUNM @JHaywoodUNM
— ⛓Brody Whitaker⛓ (@BrodyWhitaker54) November 6, 2021
End of regular season stats!
60 tackles
9 sacks
22 Qb hurries
11 TFL’s
1 interception
6 forced fumbles
1 fumble recovery/for Td1st Team all district DE@UTEPFB @CoachLongUNM @JHaywoodUNM @coacharchiemac @coachmumford @FBCoachHurley @PrepRedzoneNM @RamarWatson @HiattENMU
— Deven Dyer (@5ive5iveDE) November 5, 2021