Five Underrated Defenses You Need To Know For 2024

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When a winning team has a highly prolific offense, the defense sometimes goes unnoticed.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>That was probably the case last season for Lovington, which rolled to the Class 4A state championship behind a high-octane offense that scored 45+ points in six of its last seven games. The defense, meanwhile, didn't allow more than 26 points in any game during that stretch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This season, as Lovington prepares to host Hobbs Friday night, the Wildcats' defense led by defensive coordinator Josh Faith ranks among the most underrated in the state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“We definitely feel like our defense has been underrated in the past, but we're OK with that,” Lovington head coach Josh Bailey told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “We've played some great competition. I believe our defense this season is going to be as good as we have had. We have a lot of veterans. Our defense has been known for taking the ball away and making big plays. I'm hoping that doesn't change.” &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='613058' first='Valente' last='Herrera'], [player_tooltip player_id='853015' first='Alex' last='Rivera']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1118909' first='Damien' last='Munoz']</strong>, all of whom are also outstanding offensive linemen, will anchor Lovington's defensive line. Munoz will be the nose tackle. <strong>Jaden Garcia</strong> and <strong>Jose Juarez</strong> will rotate into the lineup.   </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1137465' first='Kyler' last='Reaves']</strong> was exceptional in 2023 and he'll be the middle linebacker for the Wildcats this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“[player_tooltip player_id='1137465' first='Kyler' last='Reaves'] is a very good middle linebacker,” Lovington head coach Josh Bailey told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “He already has a lot of experience as a junior. He's our defensive captain.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1118377' first='Patrick' last='Sanchez']</strong> moves from defensive end to linebacker, joining Reaves on the second level. He'll play a hybrid role, frequently shifting from OLB to DE. Senior <strong>Bronx Arreola</strong> has patiently waited for his turn to start and this season he finally get his opportunity. <strong>Ryan Weiser</strong> will shift between OLB and safety, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='613065' first='Camon' last='Ochoa']</strong>, a superb running back will play safety along with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1137475' first='Jayden' last='Gutierrez']</strong>. Both were All-State performers in 2023 with Ochoa earning First-Team honors.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>All-State honoree <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='615536' first='Alec' last='Holguin']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='615565' first='Ondalis' last='Cardenas']</strong> and <strong>Elijah Rovero</strong> are the cornerbacks. Most of the aforementioned players will play both ways for the Wildcats.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are four more defenses we believe are underrated going into the 2024 season:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Artesia</strong>: Artesia is well known for producing rifle-armed quarterbacks and piling up the passing yardage as they win a ton of games. In fact, the Bulldogs are going for the three-peat this season. But the defense was solid last season and that should again be the case in 2024. DE <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1118370' first='Kaden' last='Grantham']</strong>, DL <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258069' first='Rafael' last='Orozco']</strong>, LB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258077' first='Grant' last='Johnson']</strong>, LB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258081' first='Ayden' last='Huffman']</strong>, DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258085' first='Haden' last='Harcrow']</strong> and DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258083' first='Brody' last='McDonald']</strong> are all back. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Cibola</strong>: LB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='854199' first='Hayes' last='Baum']</strong> and DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1259063' first='Antonio' last='Salcido']</strong> are All-State caliber players. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1259026' first='Voltaire' last='Venegas']</strong> is a solid defensive lineman. The Cougars defense performed admirably at times last season (Cougars lost 10-6 to Sandia in the season finale), but were often put into bad spots by the struggling offense. Cibola is definitely a candidate for a major turnaround in 2024.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Gadsden</strong>: The Panthers secondary will have a lot of new faces in 2024, but the defensive front seven is experienced and productive, and should bring the heat. Junior DE <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='854198' first='Alexander' last='Lopez']</strong> has already shown flashes of his next level talent and he should again have a big season. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='615429' first='Daan' last='Cano']</strong> is one of the most underrated linebackers in the state. He has 238 tackles in the past two seasons. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Organ Mountain</strong>: Like Cibola, Organ Mountain went winless in 2023, but the defense performed respectfully at times. DT <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258875' first='Cody' last='Burk']</strong>, DL <strong>Dominic Reyes</strong>, DB <strong>Kendin Mangrum</strong> and DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258873' first='Julian' last='Gonzales']</strong> all impressed head coach Kenenth Sanchez last season. If the Knights find a few more players to add to the mix, their defense could be salty.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/KylerReavesLVT/status/1781067973421060468","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/KylerReavesLVT/status/1781067973421060468 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/The__Baum/status/1801969594757775576","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/The__Baum/status/1801969594757775576 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->