Thursday Throwdown: Rio Rancho Rolls To Win (Video and Recap)

<p><strong>ALBUQUERQUE</strong> – Displaying impressive depth at the offensive skill positions, Rio Rancho rolled to a 54-15 victory over Atrisco Heritage at Community Stadium on the first night of the 2024 New Mexico high school football season.</p>   <p>Rams quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='613752' first='JJ' last='Arellano']</strong> threw four TD passes to four different receivers as he started his senior season on a high note. Arellano, showcasing his dual threat skill, also ran for a TD.</p>   <p>“JJ has been our quarterback for three years now,” Rio Rancho head coach Nate Pino told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “He definitely has a lot more control post-snap as far as getting us in the right spots. He has weapons and he did a good job of not focusing on just one guy and going through his progressions.”  </p>   <p>Wide receivers <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1266408' first='Parker' last='Miller']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1259000' first='Jace' last='Pitt']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258861' first='Bode' last='Victor']</strong> as well as tight end <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1198532' first='David' last='Butler']</strong> all caught TD passes from Arellano, who scored his first rushing TD of the season late in the second quarter to give the Rams a 26-7 halftime lead. Arellano threw for nearly 200 yards in the first half.</p>   <p>“We have some players on the outside and we have an athletic tight end,” Pino said. “Bode plays in the slot and he does everything for us. We have athletic guys with ball skills and it makes our job calling plays a lot easier. Atrisco had seven defenders in the box, so the open grass was on the outside. We were able to throw the ball a little bit and take advantage of that.”   </p>   <p>Rio Rancho added two TDs in the third quarter for a 40-7 lead going into the final 12 minutes. The first one came when Arellano hit a wide open Butler over the middle for an easy pitch-and-catch score. After Atrisco Heritage fumbled inside the red zone, the Rams launched a quick drive down the field that produced Arellano's TD pass to a leaping Pitt with just under a minute left in the third quarter.</p>   <p>The game shifted into running clock mode when the Rams scored less than two minutes into the fourth quarter for a 47-7 lead.</p>   <p>Atrisco Heritage actually scored the first points of the game on its first possession of the season when Jaguars QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1021201' first='Landon' last='Griego']</strong> connected with promising sophomore WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1272752' first='J'ven' last='Smith']</strong> on a fourth-and-9 pass. Griego stared down a ferocious pass rush and delivered a strike to Smith.</p>   <p>Rio Rancho quickly responded with a 70-yard TD drive capped by Arellano's 20-yard scoring pass to Miller. When penalties and a short Atrisco Heritage punt gave Rio Rancho the ball just outside the red zone, the Rams took a lead they would never relinquish on sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1272737' first='James' last='Barreras']'</strong> bulldozing 3-yard run through the middle.</p>   <p>When Barreras (nickname is ‘Juice') and junior RB <strong>Ethan Rolon</strong> suffered ankle injuries in the first half, sophomore backup QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1604705' first='Micah' last='Takahashi']</strong> filled in admirably at running back and had several productive carries. He was definitely one of Rio Rancho's unsung heroes on the night.</p>   <p>“He's a stud,” Pino said of Takahashi. “He's going to be a special player for us, too. He was essentially our running back in the second half and weathered the storm for us. We were very comfortable with Micah back there.”    </p>   <p>Rio Rancho led, 13-7, after the first quarter. Early in the second quarter, Arellano committed one of his few mistakes when his pass inside the red zone was intercepted by Atrisco DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1749078' first='Isaiah' last='Montoya']</strong>.  </p>   <p>Atrisco Heritage WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='611116' first='Latavious' last='Morris']</strong> showcased his lightning fast speed on a couple of occasions.</p>   <p>Following the early score by the Jaguars, the Rams defense shut down the Atrisco Heritage offense over the final 3-1.2 quarters, allowing only a harmless TD late in the game when the outcome had already been decided.</p>   <p>Six-foot-3, 190-pound Rio Rancho safety <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='837118' first='Hector' last='Jasiah Estrada']</strong> had a solid game in the secondary along with senior defensive lineman <strong>Tegan Friedland</strong>, Pino said.</p>   <p>“We may not have superstars on our defense right now, but we have 11 dudes that play hard and play together,” Pino said                   </p>   <p>If there's one common takeaway for both teams, it was the considerable number of penalties. They combined for nearly 30 penalties, many of them avoidable or self-inflicted. First game jitters? Perhaps. Plenty of teaching moments for the coaches of both teams this week as they prepare for Week 2.</p>   <p>“Our guys played with great effort, but there were more penalties than I would have liked,” Pino said. “The penalties hurt us in some key situations.  Offensively, we played pretty well except for a botched snap and the interception. Defensively, we flew around and played fast. We pursued the ball. We can tackle better. We have to wrap up better.”</p>   <p>Rio Rancho travels to Clovis for a Week 2 showdown next Friday night between two blue blood programs. Atrisco Heritage hosts Centennial next Saturday afternoon at Community Stadium. </p>   <p><strong>VIDEO 1: Run Out and Coin Toss</strong></p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/0grJKJH91Nw?si=gNb7fdINbxTNyKgz </div></figure>   <p><strong>VIDEO 2: Opening Kickoff</strong></p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/jtC2-9ZlGag?si=ow94uopop3Zh_GN9 </div></figure>   <p><strong>VIDEO 3: Rio Rancho 1st Possession and Atrisco Heritage TD </strong> </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/p660FXFpxQM?si=t8RZK6CKdKodXXMg </div></figure>   <p><strong>VIDEO 4: Two Rio Rancho TDs in First Quarter </strong></p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/09p5eVYJMqU?si=mx0p0caBM1E192i1 </div></figure>   <p><strong>VIDEO 5: Atrisco Heritage's Interception</strong></p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/oVPk3mBf6Vo?si=hQx5pcX__dfc7Aeq </div></figure>   <p><strong>VIDEO 6: Early Third Quarter Action</strong></p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/8_uYqQ-pTRE?si=J4IXBvz5lZmwFQhe </div></figure>   <p><strong>VIDEO 7: Late Third Quarter Action</strong> </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/V40-bMGgcco?si=hypdJtai2HPbMO8I </div></figure>   <p><strong>BEST OF SOCIAL MEDIA</strong></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/PrepRedzoneNM/status/1826782094799810794 </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/JewlsJulian/status/1826988369475215737 </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/PrepRedzoneNM/status/1826843565982417137 </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/turkeyboyphoto/status/1826828916834927091 </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/PrepRedzoneNM/status/1826990105451532368 </div></figure>

ALBUQUERQUE – Displaying impressive depth at the offensive skill positions, Rio Rancho rolled to a 54-15 victory over Atrisco Heritage at Community Stadium on the first night of the 2024 New Mexico high school football season.