7×7: Legacy, Heat show improvement in second tourneys

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 7-on-7 winter season is beginning to gather momentum around the country, and the Land of Enchantment is no different.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two of the state's top travel teams – New Mexico Legacy and New Mexico Heat – have each competed in two tournaments in&nbsp; Texas and Arizona.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Each team plans to compete in five tournaments by the end of May.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last weekend, Heat were in El Paso, TX and reached the semifinals, compiling a 4-2 record in the process.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Everybody got better,” Heat head coach Isaiah Brown said. “You could definitely tell in our first tournament that a lot of our kids were just getting the jitters out. This last tournament, they were having more fun and were more comfortable, especially a lot of our new players. It was definitely fun. We really competed.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>According to Brown, the Heat's standout players included a trio of Eldorado teammates: 2025 RB <strong>Johnpaul Ludi</strong>,2024 WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='275436' first='Josiah' last='Mitchell'] </strong>and 2024 DB <strong>Erick Thomas</strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Johnpaul does a great job catching the football out of the backfield,” Brown said. “He did a great job on defense too. He's an athletic linebacker. He can run. Josiah can really high point the football. His ball skills are ridiculous. He's tall and can really jump out of the gym. He definitely surprised me.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thomas excelled as Heat's nickel back and usually blanketed one of the opponent's fastest receivers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“He's fast and quick,” Brown said. “He can guard the quicker receivers. His ball skills are very good. He is extremely talented and athletic.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2024 Bernalillo DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='275206' first='Mason' last='Espinda-McChriston']</strong>, who is listed at 6-foot-4, had several interceptions.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Mason is growing and figuring things out with every tournament,” Brown said. “I love his frame. He uses his body to cover ground. We put him at high safety and let him roam from sideline to sideline. I really like Mason. He's learning to become a leader.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ludi, Thomas, Espinda-McChriston and West Mesa <strong>LB [player_tooltip player_id='138090' first='Anthony' last='Rodriguez'] </strong>(visited NMMI on Sat.) highlighted a strong performance by the Heat defense in El Paso.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Our defense turned it up another notch in El Paso,” Brown said. “We had so many interceptions. [player_tooltip player_id='138090' first='Anthony' last='Rodriguez'] rotated at linebacker with Ludi and he was covering the fastest running backs. He really showed up.”&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While the Heat were in Far West Texas, Legacy participated in a Red Zone Elite tournament in Mesa, AZ.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Our guys are really coming along,” said Legacy coach Ramar Watson, the defensive coordinator at Manzano. “We have a lot more speed and athleticism than last year. So far, everything is going well.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Watson said 2025 Las Cruces QB <strong>Kelly Stevens</strong> continues to impress with his passing skills along with speedy 2025 WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='615840' first='Jordan' last='Choice']</strong> from Albuquerque High School. Choice has been timed in the 40 at 4.5 seconds.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Kelly has been a big time quarterback for us,” Watson said. “[player_tooltip player_id='615840' first='Jordan' last='Choice'] is fast. We saw that speed last weekend.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Defensively, 2025 Manzano DB <strong>Reggie Clark</strong> was one of the standouts. Clark had 28 tackles for the Monarchs as a sophomore in 2022.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Watson said Legacy will add multiple players to the roster when basketball season ends in a few weeks, including 2024 West Mesa DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='274992' first='Tavon' last='Archibald'], </strong>2024 West Mesa TE/DE <strong>Marcus Sharp </strong>and 2024 Cleveland RB/DB<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='274977' first='Andres' last='Aguirre'].</strong> &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“We're gaining a lot of notoriety from other teams,” Watson said. “When we were in Mesa, a lot of coaches were impressed by how respectful our team was. That's huge for our team.”&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>What's next for Heat and Legacy? Heat will travel to Houston the weekend of Feb. 25-26 for a tournament. They will return to Houston in April for another tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Legacy will travel to Las Vegas, NV on March 4-5 for the Cam Newton Foundation tournament before returning to Las Vegas in April for a Pylon tourney. In May, Legacy plans to go to Denver, CO for its final tournament of the spring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Our biggest challenges are coming these next two months,” Watson said. “Especially the Cam Newton Tournament in Las Vegas. That will be a huge test for us. A lot of national teams will be in Vegas for that tournament.” &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/nmheat_7v7/status/1623823753644834816","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/nmheat_7v7/status/1623823753644834816 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/rickymtz11_/status/1623157188637368320","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/rickymtz11_/status/1623157188637368320 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/NewMexicoLegacy/status/1622689788234186752","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/NewMexicoLegacy/status/1622689788234186752 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->