Building Blocks: New Football Post-Grad Program Set To Begin

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It all started with a conversation at the Blue-Grey All America game in Dallas in early December.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There, Carlos Perea, a former New Mexico Highlands assistant and father of record-setting former West Las Vegas quarterback C.J. Perea, met the founder of the Georgia Warhawks prep school in Lawrenceville, Ga. One thing led to another and they soon had a name for a new sports academy in the Land of Enchantment – the New Mexico Academy of Football.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When Perea returned home, things moved quickly. Soon, he had a business license, twitter account, nickname (Outlaws), lease from the city to take over an abandoned middle school in Las Vegas for office space, weight room and practice fields, logo, conference membership, partial schedule, travel buses and color scheme and uniforms.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Noting that about 65-70 New Mexico prospects have signed letters of intent to play at the next level, Perea said an important mission of the academy is to give overlooked players an opportunity to continue their careers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Just this year (2025 class), I've seen a lot of players get overlooked that are very good players,” Perea said. “We have about 700 high school senior football players in New Mexico. We've been talking to some players and reaching out to others. We're going to try to fill that gap and give players another chance and keep their football and academic dreams alive.” &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He also had a new name for his fledgling entity: New Mexico Academy of Sports.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Perea, who will serve as head coach, has started hiring assistant coaches. Former NM Highlands OL Robert Salgado will be the O-Line coach and run game coordinator. LeRoy Tafoya will also be an assistant.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Most importantly, Perea has started the recruiting process by extending offers to numerous players inside and outside the state. Perea says NMAS has generated considerable interest from players beyond the New Mexico borders, even as far away as the East Coast.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“We won't turn away any players that want to come here and play, and keep their dream alive,” Perea said. “If we make it, I believe our program will be a great asset for New Mexico players.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Robertson DL [player_tooltip player_id='1119084' first='Orlando' last='Romero'] is the first commitment.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Perea plans to have a full roster in place by July. NMAS will scrimmage NMMI on Aug. 16 before embarking on a 10-game regular season schedule, mostly on the road.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>NMAS has joined the Pac-West Post-Grad Conference in football and power lifting.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Players will attend classes at nearby New Mexico Highlands or Luna Community College and earn credits towards an associate degree. In the future, Perea hopes to convert a part of the middle school into dormitories to house the athletes. Those players who choose to take classes at Highlands can, of course, stay in the dorms on the NMHU campus.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tuition at NMAS will start at about $17,000, but Perea hopes grants and scholarships will reduce out-of-pocket cost to about $10,000 for in-state players. Tuition will cover coaching salaries, insurance, the school lease, equipment, uniforms, food and road trips, among other things.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Perea has adopted an ‘everybody plays' philosophy. Thus, if NMAS takes 60 players to a road game, everybody will get a chance to see action.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“All of our guys are going to play right away,” Perea said. “If we have five quarterbacks on the roster, all five will play during the game. Our focus is to develop players, get them playing time and get them a scholarship at the next level rather than the scoreboard. Our No. 1 goal isn't to win the Post-Grad national championship. We'll be playing at a junior college level, for sure. The wins will come when we train the same and get everybody on the same page.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Players will report in July.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Outlaws Football 2025 schedule <br>August 16th at NMMI scrimmage <br>Sept 6th Oklahoma Wildcats<br>Sept 14th at Diamond Celtics<br>Sept 18th at Eastern NM JV TBA<br>Sept 25th at Air Force Academy Prep<br>Oct 4th at St George <br>Oct 25 at Goodyear Wranglers <br>Nov 8th at Oklahoma <br>We have open Dates</p>&mdash; New Mexico Academy of Sports (@NMAcademySports) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMAcademySports/status/1888064815400116585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 8, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Robertson Cardinals [player_tooltip player_id='1119084' first='Orlando' last='Romero'] has committed to New Mexico Academy of Sports. He will play NoseTackle on the football team and be part of the powerlifting team. LETS GO OUTLAW FAMILY TIME TO GROW <a href="https://t.co/X1mukNMbQ4">pic.twitter.com/X1mukNMbQ4</a></p>&mdash; New Mexico Academy of Sports (@NMAcademySports) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMAcademySports/status/1887026278437650526?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We are working a deal to make these 2 our travel buses. <a href="https://t.co/myJhAvfFJP">pic.twitter.com/myJhAvfFJP</a></p>&mdash; New Mexico Academy of Sports (@NMAcademySports) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMAcademySports/status/1884257305455386687?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We decided that we are going to try to join the PacWest Post Grad Conference. <a href="https://t.co/v52k7kwu7v">pic.twitter.com/v52k7kwu7v</a></p>&mdash; New Mexico Academy of Sports (@NMAcademySports) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMAcademySports/status/1882644879177814068?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 24, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Going to turn this old Library into a top weightroom and conditioning area.. <a href="https://t.co/hUvKrz6QZy">pic.twitter.com/hUvKrz6QZy</a></p>&mdash; New Mexico Academy of Sports (@NMAcademySports) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMAcademySports/status/1882243775520731389?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 23, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The new Football Uniforms.. <a href="https://t.co/Rb5JAaRnLT">pic.twitter.com/Rb5JAaRnLT</a></p>&mdash; New Mexico Academy of Sports (@NMAcademySports) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMAcademySports/status/1881345788716241208?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html -->