New Legends: Moon goes from walk-on to Lobos’ leading tackler
Cody Moon took the stairs to the top. A Volcano Vista High graduate, Moon began his career with New Mexico as a walk-on in 2020, the season the Lobos spent entirely out of state due to Covid restrictions imposed by…
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Continue ReadingCody Moon took the stairs to the top.
A Volcano Vista High graduate, Moon began his career with New Mexico as a walk-on in 2020, the season the Lobos spent entirely out of state due to Covid restrictions imposed by the government.
But he was soon placed on full scholarship, and now he’s earning every penny of the cost of his free education.
After serving as a backup linebacker in 2021 and recording 44 tackles, most for any player on the Lobos that didn’t start a game, Moon entered the 2022 season as backup again. But injuries and other factors lifted him into the starting OLB role by Game 3.
By midseason the 6-foot-3,205-pound Moon had become one of the Lobos’ top defensive players. Every game he did something that made fans (and perhaps the media too) go, “Wow!”
When the season ended nearly two weeks ago, Moon, an experienced bull rider (in case you were wondering how tough he was), had become the first UNM defender to reach 100 tackles in a single season since Dakota Cox in 2014. He finished with 105 tackles and, in addition, led the Lobos in tackles for loss (9.5) and sacks (4.5). He also tied for third in pass breakups with 4.
“Cody Moon is a stud,” UNM coach Danny Gonzales said following the Lobos’ final game of the season at Colorado State. “Getting over 100 tackles is awesome. He’s exactly the New Mexico player I talk about all the time. He arrived here as a 180-pound defensive lineman. We saw he had potential and athletic ability to be something. We put him at linebacker and he has put on 20 pounds.
“He needs to put on 20 more. If he does that, he’ll be the best linebacker in this league. Statistically, what he does for his size is unbelievable. He plays the game the right way. We’re going to find multiple players like him from this state. We have some committed to us in recruiting and we already have some like him on our team.”
Moon was just a redshirt sophomore in 2022 with two more years of eligibility. Translation: the sky is the limit for arguably the Lobos’ best and most productive homegrown player this past season.
Here are four more homegrown standouts for the 2022 season:
Luke Wysong, WR (Cleveland): Led the Lobos with 34 receptions for 291 yards and 1 TD. UNM struggled throwing the football all season long for a variety of reasons, but Wysong was a bright spot, especially since Arizona State transfer Geordon Porter missed several games with an injury. He also served as the Lobos’ primary punt returner.
Dion Hunter, LB (Cleveland): After making 39 tackles as a redshirt freshman in 2021, Hunter followed up with a better season in 2022, finishing fourth on the Lobos in tackles with 69. He added 3 TFL and 2 sacks.
Bryce Santana, DE (Los Lunas): After appearing in 6 games with 3 starts in 2021, Santana made a significant leap in 2022 with 24 tackles, 3 TFL and 3 sacks. He has impressive at 6-foot-3, 275 pounds.
Jaden Phillips, DE (Clovis): Phillips’ career as a Lobo is off to an encouraging start. He made 15 tackles as a freshman in 2021. This season, he had 20 tackles, 3 TFL and 1 sack.