Updated 2025 Rankings: New Additions (Part 1)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We released the updated 2025 rankings on Tuesday. Here are 7 of the top New Additions:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='837117' first='Brendan' last='Cochrane'], Cleveland</strong>: Cochrane patiently waited his turn to start at linebacker for the Storm. He was a backup to Strat Shufelt and Isaac Medrano in 2023. He finally got his chance for significant playing time this past season and finished with 67 tackles, 6.0 TFL and 3.0 sacks. He was one of the leaders of a stout Storm defense that helped propel Cleveland to the 6A state championship.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1566538' first='Brig' last='Keiser'], Piedra Vista</strong>: Keiser served notice his senior year would be special when he led the Panthers to a Week 1 road win at Sandia by rushing for 233 yards and 2 TD on a workhorse 27 carries. It was one of 3 games Keiser rushed for 200+ yards this season. He finished with over 1,300 yards rushing on close to 200 carries.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1594208' first='Akim' last='Leija'], Los Alamos</strong>: The Hilltoppers rode a prolific offense to the Class 5A quarterfinals. Leija was the top receiver with 59 receptions for 1,083 yards and 14 TD and he earned Class 5A Second-Team All-State honors as a slot WR. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1120884' first='Christopher' last='Melendez'], Valley</strong>: Statistically, few two-way players in the state had a better season than Melendez. He caught 62 passes for 1,157 yards and 7 TD on the offensive side. Defensively, he led the state with 8 interceptions while making 48 tackles, 3.0 TFL and 5 passes defended. He also served as Valley's kick returner. Flew under the radar for most of the season. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1594261' first='Silver' last='Morales'], Gadsden</strong>: After decades of futility, Gadsden's metamorphosis into a Class 5A playoff contender has been one of the best stories in NM over the past three seasons. We didn't hear Morales' name much during the season, but he was a sparkplug for the Panthers' defense, totaling 36 tackles and 6 interceptions from his DB spot. Only two defenders had more interceptions than Morales. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1594191' first='Mathew' last='Prudencio'], Lovington</strong>: Prudencio is the latest in a long line of great Lovington quarterbacks. A year ago, we were wondering who would replace the irreplaceable Wyatt Gomez as the Wildcats' signal caller. Prudencio got the nod and led the charge into Class 5A by throwing for 2,791 yards and 33 TD while completing 67 percent of his passes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1593628' first='Kyle' last='Valdez'], Los Lunas</strong>: Valdez earned Class 6A First-Team All-State honors by anchoring an Los Lunas offensive line that paved the way for a productive Tigers ground game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Regular Season Highlights !!<br>9-1 Record District Champs ⚡️⚡️<br>24 solo tackles <br>28 assist<br>8 TFL<br>2 sacks<br>4 games over at half<a href="https://t.co/QKppteViO4">https://t.co/QKppteViO4</a><a href="https://twitter.com/Coach_RGarza?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Coach_RGarza</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachD84?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachD84</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzone?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepRedzone</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nmpreps?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmpreps</a></p>&mdash; [player_tooltip player_id='837117' first='Brendan' last='Cochrane'] (@BrenCochrane07) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrenCochrane07/status/1856156069598220448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 12, 2024</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Great job to both Chris Melendez and [player_tooltip player_id='837220' first='Juan' last='Vigil'] for representing the North Valley last night at the All-Star Game!!! Both players did outstanding! <a href="https://twitter.com/VikingsVhs?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@VikingsVhs</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Viking_BBall?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Viking_BBall</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachCobos77?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachCobos77</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/_CoachTrujillo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@_CoachTrujillo</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nmprepcosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmprepcosports</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/JamesDYodice?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JamesDYodice</a> <a href="https://t.co/7PhwRA4YQO">pic.twitter.com/7PhwRA4YQO</a></p>&mdash; Valley Football (@ValleyFB54) <a href="https://twitter.com/ValleyFB54/status/1865913879358030226?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2024</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">[player_tooltip player_id='1594191' first='Mathew' last='Prudencio'] New Mexico Class 5A 2nd Team All-State Quarterback <a href="https://twitter.com/Mathewpru8?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Mathewpru8</a> <a href="https://t.co/RLPMW3Appe">pic.twitter.com/RLPMW3Appe</a></p>&mdash; Wildcat Football (@lvtwildcatsfb) <a href="https://twitter.com/lvtwildcatsfb/status/1868677540174504289?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2024</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Congratulations to [player_tooltip player_id='1594261' first='Silver' last='Morales'] being named New Mexico Class 5A 1st TEAM ALL-STATE Secondary <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HailGadsden?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HailGadsden</a> <a href="https://t.co/p2k6gYxtE3">pic.twitter.com/p2k6gYxtE3</a></p>&mdash; Gadsden Football (@GadsdenPanthers) <a href="https://twitter.com/GadsdenPanthers/status/1871041510864818654?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 23, 2024</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html -->