Under The Radar: 10 Breakout Candidates For 2024 (Part 1)

<p>Kickoff to the 2024 New Mexico high school football season is still five months away but some of the storylines are beginning to crystallize. One of them is who will be the breakout performers. Names of players who fans might not  be familiar with now but they likely will be by the end of November. Today, in Part 1 of a periodic series, we offer 10 names:</p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1137388' first='Daniel' last='Amaro'], Las Cruces</strong>: What he lacks in height, Amaro more than makes up for in heart and determination. He is a fearless and physical running back. He gave the La Cueva defense fits in last season's 6A semifinal. The Bulldawgs have the potential for a very prolific offensive attack in 2024 with Amaro likely having a key role. You know he's excited for the season to begin since he attended his first camp in January. </p>   <p><strong>Mikey Beck, Farmington</strong>: Flying under the radar for a while, the 6-foot-3 Beck is tall, fast, athletic and blessed with soft hands. Last year he quietly caught 73 passes for 1,139 yards and 17 TD. He'll have a new QB in 2024 but expect Beck to be great again. College coaches are taking notice, with New Mexico, Eastern New Mexico, New Mexico Highlands, Fort Lewis College and West Texas A&M extending junior day invitations. </p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1198251' first='Ryan' last='Garcia'], Capital</strong>: Garcia has been on a steep upward trajectory in the past couple of months. The 6-foot-4, 260-pounder has attracted significant recruiting interest with Junior Day invitations from Eastern New Mexico, University of Rochester, Peru (NE) State, Wagner, Carroll University, Minot State, Marist, Saint Anselm, Princeton and a spring game invitation from UNLV.   </p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1118370' first='Kaden' last='Grantham'], Artesia</strong>:  The 6-foot-4, 220-pound Grantham saw his first significant varsity action last season for the Bulldogs. He finished with 48 tackles and 8.0 TFL. His senior season should be even better. Considering his size, if he chooses to play at the next level, there should be plenty of college coaches willing to give him an opportunity.    </p>   <p><strong>Cheeto Lumbrera, La Cueva</strong>: When at least three players on your championship-winning team seem destined to play Power 5 football, you're probably going to get overshadowed a bit. Lumbrera became La Cueva's No. 1 RB in the second half of last season and looks to be the No. 1 RB from the first day of preseason camp. With la Cueva returning most of its O-Line, Lumbrera should have plenty of holes to run through.      </p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='851903' first='Jacob' last='Maldonado'], Cleveland</strong>: Even though he's still a sophomore, Maldonado has been on our radar for a couple of years based on his performance at summer camps. He transferred to Cleveland last summer but NMAA rules limited him to playing for the Storm JV team. Now he's ready for the big time.  He's fast (under 4.6 seconds in the 40) and a great athlete. He should make an impact for Cleveland immediately.</p>   <p><strong>Thomas-James Pettus, Volcano Vista</strong>: The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Pettus has exploded onto the scene in the last month or so following an impressive performance at a ‘You Are Athlete' camp in Phoenix. He earned All-Camp Team honors. He quickly earned Junior Day invitations from Eastern New Mexico and West Texas A&M. Pettus made 29 tackles, 3.0 TFL, 2 INT and 7 pass breakups for the Hawks last season as an OLB.      </p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1259081' first='Omar' last='Sanchez'], Centennial</strong>: With [player_tooltip player_id='274702' first='John' last='Sierra'] (signed with New Mexico) and [player_tooltip player_id='340299' first='David' last='Beasley'] graduating, along with several other key seniors, Sanchez will be one of the leaders of the Centennial defense in 2024. He brings great size to the DB position (6-1, 175). He has also played some WR.  Made 45 tackles in 2023.      </p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1194194' first='Ricky' last='Scroggins'], Manzano</strong>: Because Manzano struggled last season, the 6-foot-1, 280-pound Scroggins flew under the radar even though he was a two-way standout in the trenches for the Monarchs. He recently visited New Mexico Highlands and earned his first offer from the Cowboys. ENMU extended a Junior Day invitation.  </p>   <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='837220' first='Juan' last='Vigil'], Valley</strong>: Vigil stands out with his massive size (6-5, 285). He earned Second-Team All-State honors as a junior. Eastern New Mexico has extended a Junior Day invitation. Wherever he goes to play college football, he'll anchor the defensive line. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/AmaroDaniel22/status/1751796610743570531?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/mikeybeck12/status/1727067733659988098?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/RyanGarcia70/status/1719549395773919444?s=20 </div></figure>   <p> </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ValleyFB54/status/1735330994620694664?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/kadengrantham25/status/1697474803719123315?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/hot_cheeto_abq/status/1735527089015570655?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/jakemaldonado08/status/1727889685748621560?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ThomasPettus23/status/1764402337332744436?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/omarsfb9/status/1724124976704364788?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/RickyS5071/status/1723552146145386914?s=20 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/Juanvigil_99/status/1763895831630090728?s=20 </div></figure>

Kickoff to the 2024 New Mexico high school football season is still five months away but some of the storylines are beginning to crystallize. One of them is who will be the breakout performers. Names of players who fans might not be familiar with now but they likely will be by the end of November. Today, in Part 1 of a periodic series, we offer 10 names: