Week 4 Whiparound: Top Performances, Best Games and Fun Stuff

Week 4 of the 2024 New Mexico High School football season is complete. Here is our fourth edition of the Weekly Whiparound, our deep dive into everything that happened on the field:   Teams of the Week: Organ Mountain (6A); Lovington (5A); Portales (4A); St. Michael's (3A); Texico (2A).   Organ Mountain finally won its first game under second-year head coach Kenenth Sanchez as the Knights beat St. Pius X, 49-16, at Field of Dreams Saturday night in the final game of Week 4. Rushing TDs by [player_tooltip player_id='1680049' first='Jaden' last='Gonzales'] and Jullian Mata gave the Knights a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. The Knights built the the lead to 28-0 in the second quarter on a pair of rushing TDs by [player_tooltip player_id='1613370' first='Romeo' last='Jones']. They led, 35-7, at halftime and clinched the win in the second half.   Lovington jumped out to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter and cruised past Roswell, 35-21, in a clash between the top two ranked teams in Class 5A. QB Mathew Prudencio masterfully led the Wildcats' explosive offense by completing 15-of-21 passes for 245 yards and 2 TD. RB [player_tooltip player_id='615565' first='Ondalis' last='Cardenas'] ran for 85 yards and 3 short TD runs, all in the first quarter. Trailing 35-6, Roswell scored a couple of TDs in the 4th quarter but fell short for their first loss of the season.   Two weeks after dynamic QB [player_tooltip player_id='615523' first='Paxton' last='Culpepper'] suffered a season-ending knee injury, Portales gutted out a 21-14 victory over West Las Vegas with [player_tooltip player_id='1594674' first='Tommy' last='Lopez'] excelling on offense and LB [player_tooltip player_id='613053' first='Manny' last='Chavez'] leading the defense.   St. Michael's again showed they're a Class 3A championship contender by overpowering 4A Albuquerque Academy in the second half of a 48-7 win, spoiling the Chargers Homecoming festivities. The Horsemen led, 14-7, at halftime before completely dominating the second half on both sides of the ball, starting with their stable of running backs. The Horsemen have one of the deepest RB corps in the state, regardless of classification. And that defense is pretty good too.         Players of the Week: Cheeto Lumbrera, La Cueva  (6A), [player_tooltip player_id='615673' first='Alfredo' last='Andrade'], Gadsden (5A); [player_tooltip player_id='1258970' first='James' last='Vautier'], Manzano (4A), Jesse James Gonzalez (3A), [player_tooltip player_id='854281' first='Bobby' last='Parraz'], Loving (2A).   Gadsden QB [player_tooltip player_id='615673' first='Alfredo' last='Andrade'] edged out Lovington QB Mathew Prudencio for Class 5A Player of the Week by rushing for 200 yards and 2 TD on a workhorse 30 carries in the Panthers' 28-20 victory over Mayfield that kept the Panthers unbeaten at 4-0. Andrade's 10-yard TD run in the 4th quarter gave Gadsden a 26-14 lead. A successful 2-point conversion made it 28-14. Mayfield scored only 1 more time. QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119637' first='Adrian' last='Munoz'] supported Andrade by completing 11-of-17 passes for 170 yards and 2 TD.      Best Team Offensive Performance: Dexter. The Demons amassed 403 total yards on just 29 offensive plays in a 54-0 home trouncing of previously unbeaten Pojoaque Valley. QB [player_tooltip player_id='1155032' first='CJ' last='Granados'] threw for 176 yards on 5-of-6 passing. Dexter rushed for 227 yards on 23 carries, averaging 9.9 yards per attempt. Overall, Dexter averaged 13.9 yards per play. WR [player_tooltip player_id='1119120' first='Kaesn' last='George'] totaled 90 yards on 2 receptions.        Best Team Defensive Performance: Bernalillo. The Spartans aggressive ‘Goon Squad' defense shut down Moriarty's vaunted triple option rushing attack in a 42-0 victory at home, keeping Bernalillo unbeaten at 4-0. Moriarty had averaged 355 rushing yards in their first 3 games but they were blanked by the Spartans. After a bye week, Bernalillo's next game is Sept. 27 against Espanola Valley, another team that loves to run the football and hardly throws. It could be a battle of unbeatens.              Best Game: Alamogordo 36, Piedra Vista 35 (2 OT). The Tigers won their first game of the season in dramatic fashion. Alamogordo rallied from a 28-14 deficit in the fourth quarter to even the score on a 65-yard TD run by QB [player_tooltip player_id='1600835' first='Nathanael' last='Best'] and a 3-yard run by [player_tooltip player_id='1259080' first='Dylan' last='Hergenreder']. Piedra Vista got the ball first in OT and scored a TD, taking a 35-28 lead. Needing a TD, Alamogordo got it when Best connected with Marcus Bryant Jr. for the score. The Tigers chose to go for 2 and the win, and they made it as Best scored on a QB keeper. Piedra Vista lost despite 250 rushing yards and 4 TD by RB [player_tooltip player_id='1566538' first='Brig' last='Keiser'].      Playoff Atmosphere At Field of Dreams: Two mega-matchups involving four Class 6A schools at the Field of Dreams had a playoff feel to them. Thursday, Cleveland scored the final two TDs of the game in the fourth quarter to pull out a 35-25 victory over Las Cruces. The Storm took the lead for good when [player_tooltip player_id='836902' first='Jon' last='Baca']'s interception on a deflected pass and 34-yard return quickly led to [player_tooltip player_id='611120' first='Juan' last='Munoz']'s 6-yard TD run and a 28-25 lead with just under 5 minutes remaining. Cleveland's defense then stopped the Bulldawgs on 4th down at the LC 37. [player_tooltip player_id='1595801' first='Isaiah' last='Yannis'] promptly ripped off a 32-yard run to the 5 and he carried the ball into the end zone on the next play. The most important play of the game may have come at the conclusion of the second quarter when Cleveland's goal line stand stopped Las Cruces RB Danny Amaro on fourth down at the 1-yard line in the final seconds. . .Friday, Centennial QB [player_tooltip player_id='613746' first='Zaiden' last='Davis'] followed up his exceptional performance against Artesia in Week 3 by rushing for 4 TD in the Hawks' 49-27 victory over Rio Rancho. Davis had 2 TD in the first half as Centennial led, 21-7, at halftime. His third TD pushed the lead to 28-7 in the third quarter. After Rio Rancho QB [player_tooltip player_id='1604705' first='Micah' last='Takahashi'] scored, Centennial sophomore RB [player_tooltip player_id='1605033' first='Dailen' last='Ramirez'] ripped off a 50-yard TD run. Ahead 35-21, the Hawks pulled away in the 4th quarter on a Pick-6 by DB [player_tooltip player_id='837021' first='Omar' last='Terrones'] and Davis' 4th rushing TD of the game.               Class 6A Roundup: La Cueva's dynamic offensive backfield duo of QB [player_tooltip player_id='611098' first='Cameron' last='Dyer'] and RB Cheeto Lumbrera had big games as the Bears beat Sandia, 42-19, following a bye week. Dyer threw for 300+ yards and Lumbrera rushed for 175 yards and 4 TD in the win. He also had a long 71-yard TD reception on the game‘s first play. La Cueva, which amassed 500+ yards in total offense and led, 35-7, at halftime, is 3-0 with Farmington coming to Wilson Stadium in Week 5. . .Hobbs QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119255' first='Brock' last='Beaty'] completed 17-of-30 passes for 290 yards and 5 TD as the Eagles beat El Paso (X) Parkland, 41-37, in a shootout Friday night at Watson Memorial Stadium. Younger brother [player_tooltip player_id='1600876' first='Braddock' last='Beaty'] had 6 receptions for 102 yards and 2 TD. Hobbs struggled to run the football, averaging less than 2 yards per carry, but more than made for it through the air. Hobbs linebackers [player_tooltip player_id='1119266' first='Tristan' last='Davis'] and Gustavo Diaz-Castro combined for 45 tackles. . .Volcano Vista (3-1) outscored West Mesa, 28-0, in the second half in a 35-7 victory for the Hawks at Community Stadium. Hawks QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119623' first='Ilijah' last='Hansen'] threw for 241 yard and 2 TD and freshman RB [player_tooltip player_id='1423739' first='D'Angelo' last='Mitchell'] rushed for 58 yards and 1 TD on 10 carries to lift the offense. Senior WR Devin Dunkin had 4 receptions for 79 yards and 2 TD. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='1594106' first='Daniel' last='Rios'] had 11 tackles to lead Volcano Vista's defense, which held West Mesa to just a second quarter TD. . .Carlsbad QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119650' first='Kason' last='Perez'] threw for 170 yards and 2 TD and sophomore RB [player_tooltip player_id='1605005' first='Brock' last='Wright'] rushed for 145 yards and 1 TD as the Cavemen beat Cibola, 35-6, at home. Carlsbad led, 21-0, after the 1st quarter and never looked back. . .Los Lunas outlasted Eldorado, 14-6, in a defensive struggle Thur. night at Wilson Stadium. Two of Tiger QB [player_tooltip player_id='1137088' first='Kaiden' last='Reese']'s 7 completions went for TDs and he rushed for 82 yards on 10 carries to spark the offense. Dynamic sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1604956' first='Jagger' last='Casillas'] rushed for 75 yards on 13 carries. Five Los Lunas defenders had 6+ tackles. Eldorado didn't score until the final moments of the game. . .Albuquerque High (3-1) pulled away from Santa Fe in the second half for a 50-21 victory at Milne Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Bulldogs RB [player_tooltip player_id='1266534' first='Alberto' last='Landeros'] had a 60+ yard TD run to open the second half. Albuquerque High jumped out to a 14-0 lead before the Demons battled back to make it a game at halftime. The Bulldogs, who rushed for 330+ yards, have won three consecutive games after dropping the opener to Cibola in overtime. . .Farmington beat Falcon (CO), 40-6, in the Four Corners. The Scorpions travel to Albuquerque in Week 5 to face nemesis La Cueva.   Class 5A Roundup: Artesia evened its record at 2-2 with an emphatic 64-27 victory over Deming at the Bulldog Bowl. Speedster [player_tooltip player_id='1139144' first='Bryce' last='Parra'] returned the opening kickoff 91 yards for the TD to get Artesia on the board early. QB [player_tooltip player_id='1432984' first='Izac' last='Cazares'] scored on a 7-yard TD run for a 12-0 Bulldogs lead after the 1st quarter. Following an interception, Artesia made it 19-0 on a Cazares-to-[player_tooltip player_id='1118257' first='Ethan' last='Conn'] 36-yard TD pass. A field goal made it 22-0. Artesia led, 29-12, at halftime and scored 35 points in the second half for the win. Deming scored 1st in the third quarter to slice the deficit to 10 points but it was all Artesia after that. . .Belen picked up its first victory of the season by beating Valley, 31-20 on Thursday. The Eagles RB tandem of Jasode Harris (101 yards) and Elijah Schaffino (96 yards) combined for 197 yards and 3 TD on just 13 carries. Belen threw the ball only seven times, rushing for 303 yards total.  Valley QB [player_tooltip player_id='1600815' first='Jose' last='Jaramillo'] threw for 308 yards in his first start at QB. . .Miyamura mercy-ruled Rio Grande, 53-3. . .Goddard improved to 2-2 in Arturo Bolanos' first season as head coach with a 42-6 win over Santa Teresa in the district opener for both teams. Rockets QB Izaiah Montoya ran for 2 TD in the first half, which ended with Goddard holding a 22-6 lead. They added a TD in the 3rd quarter for a 28-6 lead and added pair of TDs in the fourth by Xavier Perez and [player_tooltip player_id='1604684' first='Ryan' last='Romero']. Santa Teresa QB Nichola Vierra had 211 total yards for the Desert Warriors. . .Los Alamos won for the first time this season, 69-40, over Highland in the district opener for both teams. Highland QB [player_tooltip player_id='615426' first='Alex' last='Lopez'] rushed for 118 yards on 15 carries for the Hornets. . .Capital celebrated the return of starting QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119613' first='Deaven' last='Montano'] to action with a 55-11 victory over Del Norte at Milne Stadium. It was the first win for Jaguars head coach John Michael Salazar. Montano was 11-of-20 passing for 167 yards and 2 TD.                         Class 4A Roundup: Espanola Valley doesn't do anything fancy on offense but their powerful rushing attack has catapulted them to a 4-0 start. The Sundevils rushed 52 times for 289 yards in a hard-fought 14-7 victory over Grants. Junior RB [player_tooltip player_id='1752753' first='Michael' last='Maestas'] had 99 yards rushing on 13 carries for Espanola Valley. The Sundevils average 51 rushing attempts per game. [player_tooltip player_id='613060' first='Andres' last='Lazos'] led the Grants defense with 10 tackles. . .Bloomfield (4-0) opened district play with a convincing 55-0 victory over local rival Kirtland Central as QB [player_tooltip player_id='615635' first='Blake' last='Spencer'] continued his strong start to the season by completing 18-of-25 passes for 262 yards and 4 TD. The Bobcats amassed 474 yards in total offense, 300+ in the first half when they built a commanding 43-0 lead. RB [player_tooltip player_id='853022' first='Peyton' last='Duncan'] rushed for 106 yards and 2 TD. The Bloomfield defense forced 3 turnovers and held Kirtland Central to 52 yards in the first half. . .Bernalillo QB [player_tooltip player_id='615632' first='Uriel' last='Castro'] completed  14-of-17 passes for 317 yards and 3 TD while rushing for 3 TD in the Spartans' 42-0 win over Moriarty. Castro accounted for all 6 TD by Bernalillo, which had 3 receivers with 60+ yards. . .Playing their 2nd game without [player_tooltip player_id='615523' first='Paxton' last='Culpepper'], Portales won, 21-14, over West Las Vegas at Greyhound Stadium. QB [player_tooltip player_id='1594674' first='Tommy' last='Lopez'] rushed for 105 yards and 2 TD on 17 carries to lift Portales. [player_tooltip player_id='613053' first='Manny' last='Chavez'] had 20 tackles for the Rams defense. . .Silver mercy-ruled Cobre, 54-0, in a rivalry game. . .Manzano QB [player_tooltip player_id='1258970' first='James' last='Vautier'] passed for 396 yards and 6 TD as the Monarchs improved to 3-1 overall with a 40-14 victory over Hope Christian. Junior WR [player_tooltip player_id='1137881' first='Aiden' last='Erickson'] caught 11 passes for 264 yards and 3 TD for the Monarchs. He had a kickoff return for a TD. . .Taos built a 35-0 halftime lead and went on to trounce Aztec, 42-0, at home. . .Valencia traveled to 2A Cuba and walloped the Rams, 54-0.                                Class 3A Roundup: Robertson's exceptional offensive backfield combination of senior QB Jesse James Gonzalez and freshman RB [player_tooltip player_id='1613284' first='George' last='Smith'] did it again for the Cardinals in a 68-13 victory over Ruidoso. Gonzales was a perfect 9-fot-9 passing for 220 yards while rushing for 117 yards on 6 carries. Smith, emerging as one of the top young ball carriers in the state, rushed for 117 yards on 5 carries. Smith has 100+ yards rushing in 2 of his first 3 games . . .Hatch Valley finished non-district play with a 3-1 record after beating Laguna Acoma, 28-12. [player_tooltip player_id='1595769' first='Derek' last='Victorino Jr.'] rushed for 109 yards and 2 TD on 15 carries for the Hawks. . .Zuni beat Keams Canyon (AZ) Hopi, 24-0. . .Socorro improved to 3-1 with a 44-6 victory over Estancia at home. [player_tooltip player_id='1672586' first='Leon' last='Maxwell-Priesen'] rushed for 109 yards on 20 carries for Estancia. . .Averaging almost 9 yards per carry, NMMI rushed for 269 yards in a 43-0 victory over Chaparral. QB [player_tooltip player_id='1089649' first='Cole' last='Seidenberger'] led the way with 77 yards rushing and completing 5-of-7 passes for 79 yards.        Class 2A Roundup: Unbeaten Texico (4-0) won its third straight game over a Texas school with an 18-13 win at Olton (TX). Dynamic playmaker [player_tooltip player_id='1119205' first='Alex' last='Fuentes'] rushed for a TD late in the 1st quarter to give the Wolverines a 6-0 lead. It stayed that way until late in the 2Q when Olton tied it at 6-6 on a 28-yard pass. Fuentes' 65-yard TD run in the 3rd quarter gave Texico a 12-6 lead. Olton took a 13-12 lead on a 44-yard TD pass with 10 minutes left in the 4th quarter. But Texico took the lead for good on Fuentes' third rushing TD of the night, a 43-yarder with about 7 minutes left. Olton had a final opportunity after recovering a Texico fumble, but Wolverines DB [player_tooltip player_id='1600127' first='Maverick' last='Hawkins'] intercepted a pass with about 1 minute left to seal the victory. . .Eunice also improved to 4-0 with a 38-26 victory over Morton (TX). Stellar junior QB Elijan Melancon threw for 337 yards and 3 TD on 15-of-30 passing. Two Cardinals receivers had 100+ yards – [player_tooltip player_id='837204' first='Jaen' last='Castro'] (6 receptions for 106 yards, 1 TD) and [player_tooltip player_id='613708' first='Maddox' last='Mata'] (4 for 101, 1 TD). . .Legacy Academy (4-0) stayed unbeaten in their first season of 11-man football by crushing Santa Fe Indian School, 55-0, in Santa Fe. The Silverbacks needed only 25 offensive plays to mercy rule the Braves. QB [player_tooltip player_id='1600087' first='Lorenzo' last='Sedillo-Urban'] completed 7-of-12 passes for 163 yards and 6 TD. . .Newcomb struggled to run the football but they managed just enough in an 8-6 defensive slugfest win over Tohatchi. Both TDs in the game were scored in the fourth quarter. Trailing 6-0, Newcomb launched a TD drive when QB LaDainian John connected on a 49-yard touchdown pass to [player_tooltip player_id='1259065' first='Kinjii' last='Natonabah']. RB [player_tooltip player_id='1595671' first='Landon' last='Noble'] ran for the 2-point conversion and the Skyhawks hung on in the final 5 minutes. . .Loving RBs [player_tooltip player_id='854281' first='Bobby' last='Parraz'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1137875' first='Tristen' last='Onsurez'] combined for 279 rushing yards as the Falcons went on the road and won, 44-3, at Tucumcari. Onsurez had 200 total yards, including 78 yards in punt returns. . .Jal QB [player_tooltip player_id='1600830' first='Daniel' last='Ornelas'] threw for 247 yards as the Panthers routed Van Horn (TX), 55-6for their first victory of the season. RB Andre Rodruguez rushed for 199 yards on 12 carries. . .Navajo Prep QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119659' first='Xavier' last='Nez'] threw for 3 TD and ran for another as the Eagles won, 34-28, at Crownpoint. . .McCurdy beat Wingate, 50-7.                                                Week 5 Top Games (Sept. 19-21)   Farmington at La Cueva   Las Cruces at Hobbs   Volcano Vista at Eldorado   Gadsden at Artesia   Roswell at Deming   Lovington at Goddard   Carlsbad at Centennial (Thur.)   West Mesa at Los Lunas   Espanola Valley at Moriarty   Cleveland at El Paso (TX) Pebble Hills   Raton at Robertson   Albuquerque Academy at Chaparral   Silver at Valencia   Portales at Manzano   St. Michael's at Eunice   Hot Springs at Socorro   El Paso (TX) Eastlake at Rio Rancho   McCurdy at Legacy Academy illsHoil   Hozho Academy at Pojoaque Valley   NMMI at Hatch Valley   Cobre at Dexter   <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/1835112637119582440 </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/1834816340097393018 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/09/Screenshot-2024-09-15-at-20-27-23-21-Prep-Redzone-New-Mexico-@PrepRedzoneNM-_-X.png?w=590" alt="" class="wp-image-1453192" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: Twitter</figcaption></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/1834821198162604522 </div></figure>

Week 4 of the 2024 New Mexico High School football season is complete. Here is our fourth edition of the Weekly Whiparound, our deep dive into everything that happened on the field: