2022 Team Preview: Hope Christian Huskies

<strong>Hope Christian 2022 Preview</strong> <strong>Head Coach</strong>: Fernando Salinas <strong>Mascot</strong>: Huskies <strong>Twitter</strong>: @coachsalinas_ <strong>Colors</strong>: Green and Gold <strong>2021 Record</strong>: 7-5 (Class 3A Quarterfinals) <strong>Overview</strong>: The Huskies face the difficult task of replacing dynamic dual threat quarterback James Jenkins, who accounted for 2,184 total yards and 21 touchdowns in 2021. Salinas has thrown open the door of competition with senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138082" first="Brent" last="Miller"]</strong> and sophomore <strong>Tristan Ellis</strong> vying for the spot. Miller rushed for nearly 1,000 yards last season and 11 TD on  offense and made 120+ tackles on defense, so he was a major contributor on both sides of the ball. This season, Miller will likely move to safety to replace Jenkins. Ellis played JV last year before suffering an injury but runs well. If Miller is the QB, the starting RB will likely be senior <strong>Cade Johnston</strong>, a three-year starter on offense. He played mostly slot receiver and outside linebacker in 2021. Sophomore <strong>Mason Hohsfield</strong>, who begins his third year on the varsity, will compete with Johnston for the starting job. Johnston could line up at WR in addition to RB, while <strong>Deven Fujimoto</strong> brings good speed to the WR position. Six-foot-2 sophomore <strong>Ronnie</strong> <strong>Gilletti</strong> will contribute at WR as well. <strong>Kaleb</strong> <strong>Boatman</strong> will be a weapon at tight end. Hope Christian utilizes a lot of TE sets with the mobile Boatman. The Huskies return three starters on an offensive line led by All-State center <strong>Jacob  Baca </strong>with <strong>Dillon Rodgers</strong> and <strong>Zach LaPierre</strong> back as well. Defensively, like many 3A schools, Hope Christian relies heavily on a two-platoon system. Baca is also an outstanding defensive lineman and he’ll lead the Huskies along the defensive front with Boatman. Rodgers will play linebacker and serve as the primary defensive play-caller. Miller will line up in the secondary with physical safety <strong>Mathias Gantner</strong>. The tall Gilletti will be one of the cornerbacks. <strong>Schedule</strong>: Hope Christian begins the season with four of the first six games on the road, although two will be played in Albuquerque (at Albuq. Academy, at Highland). Roads trips to Tucumcari and Ruidoso close out the regular season schedule. Aug. 20 McCURDY Aug.  26 at Hatch Valley Sept. 3 at Albuquerque Academy Sept. 10 SOCORRO Sept. 16 at Grants Sept. 22 at Highland (Thur.) Oct. 1 NMMI* Oct. 8 DEXTER* Oct. 14 at Tucumcari* Oct. 21 at Ruidoso* Oct. 29 Bye * District Game <strong>Top Storyline</strong>: How will Hope Christian fare with a new quarterback directing the offense? <strong>Final Thoughts</strong>: Hope Christian has been one of the top Class 3A programs over the past four seasons, compiling an impressive mark of 33-9 during that stretch. The Huskies won the state title in 2019. Despite the loss of Jenkins, Hope Christian has some nice talent returning in 2022 and should again qualify for the playoffs. <strong>Coach’s Comments</strong>: “Without a doubt, losing James Jenkins to graduation was a huge loss. So, we’re trying to find a quarterback. Right now, we’re trying to figure out what we’ve got and how it all fits and what we’re going to do. But we have three starters coming back on the O-Line, so we’ll have some veterans there. ” – Hope Christian coach Fernando Salinas. https://twitter.com/coachsalinas_/status/1535699583434690561 &nbsp;