Signing Day Aftermath: NMHU Enjoys Historic Recruiting Haul

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The tweet sums it up best..</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The day after National Signing Day on Feb. 5, the New Mexico Highlands football program tweeted out a reminder that the Cowboys were back to work after ‘one of the greatest Signing Days in NMHU history.'</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Indeed, it was.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As of today, NMHU has signed 20 prospects from New Mexico, including some of the best players at their position. Don't be surprised if they sign more prospects over the next few months or so until the August 1 deadline for Division II schools.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Belief by our administration and my coaching staff in the vision I laid out when I was hired came to fruition,” NMHU head coach Kurt Taufa'asau told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “My staff put in a lot of hard work to make the connections and establish the relationships we built during the recruiting process. Our goal is to change the narrative of New Mexico Highlands football and establish a culture that players gravitate towards.” &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A position of priority for NMHU was quarterback. Four NM quarterbacks signed with the Cowboys, although one, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1257289' first='Luke' last='Linnan']</strong> of Mayfield, was signed to play wide receiver.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The other three – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='837197' first='Ryan' last='Alfaro']</strong> (Deming), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='613752' first='JJ' last='Arellano']</strong> (Rio Rancho) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1119597' first='Kyle' last='Evenhus']</strong> (Los Alamos) – will compete for the starting job along with several other candidates this summer and during preseason camp.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“One of our goals was to address our quarterback room,” Taufa'asau said. “These guys are going to make each other better and elevate our level of quarterback play. We weren't that deep last year. So, we wanted to sign a few young, athletic quarterbacks to come in and bring the experience and quality of play we're looking for.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>All three aforementioned quarterbacks are accurately described as dual threat quarterbacks. That's not a coincidence, Taufa'asau said.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Our offensive coordinator Drew Thatcher has always had dual threat quarterbacks,” Taufa'asau said. “Our plan going into recruiting was to find dual threat guys that could sling the ball around and make plays with their legs.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thatcher was the offensive coordinator at Army in 2023 before being hired by New Mexico Highlands.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>NMHU also signed two of the state's top running backs in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='615673' first='Alfredo' last='Andrade']</strong> (Gadsden) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='611120' first='Juan' last='Munoz']</strong> (Cleveland), who starred in the Class 6A state championship game. Andrade rushed for over 1,600 yards for Gadsden.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Signing Alfredo and Juan really boosted the depth of our running back room heading into the fall,” Taufa'asau said.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>NMHU also signed one of the state's top receivers in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='280925' first='Jordan' last='Lucas']</strong> of Centennial.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Coming from Centennial, Jordan is going to bring some grit and toughness to our team,”&nbsp; Taufa'asau said. “We felt we had a good conversation with Jordan and his parents when they came up for an official visit. We're definitely excited to have Jordan join our wide receiver room and come in and compete.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lucas was one of nearly a dozen players from southern New Mexico that signed with the Cowboys as NMHU enjoyed unprecedented success in that region of the state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Recruiting the southern region definitely went the way we wanted,” Taufa'asau said. “They play some of the best football in the state. They bring a different attitude. Our coaches did a tremendous job down there in building the relationships throughout the process. We started building some of those relationships when we were at New Mexico Military Institute.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>NM Highlands had issues in the trenches last season. But the Cowboys took a major step towards improving at both offensive and defensive line by signing OL <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1119551' first='Javier' last='Filerio']</strong> (Gadsden), one of the top O-Linemen in the state, OL/DL <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1594079' first='Brenden' last='Franco']</strong> (Las Cruces), DE <strong>Ke'Maurion Morrall</strong> (Alamogordo), OL <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258924' first='Estevan' last='Baca']</strong> (Albuquerque High), OL <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1248670' first='Ethyn' last='Boyd']</strong> (Pojoaque Valley) and massive OL <strong>Adrius Vigil</strong> (Tularosa).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“We knew both lines needed help,” Taufa'asau said. “Getting guys like Javier and Brenden and the others was huge. We needed to add some beef up front. The guys we signed are big bodies that are going to help us tremendously. We're still trying to sign more guys, too.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At linebacker, NMHU signed <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258077' first='Grant' last='Johnson']</strong> from Artesia along with several ‘athletes' such as <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1248665' first='Cru' last='Wilder']</strong> (Espanola Valley), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1119512' first='Orrin' last='Russell']</strong> (Hatch Valley), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='837201' first='Patrick' last='Rodriguez'] Jr.</strong> (West Las Vegas) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1258907' first='Isaac' last='Houlihan']</strong> (Albuquerque High). DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1118058' first='Alex' last='Serrano']</strong> of Farmington signed with NMHU on Wednesday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Long snapper <strong>Davis Coyle</strong> from Mesilla Valley Christian in Las Cruces also signed with NMHU.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Spring practice for NMHU begins March 24. The annual spring game is scheduled for Saturday, April 26 at 2 p.m.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🏈 <a href="https://twitter.com/NMHUFootball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NMHUFootball</a> Signing Day 2025 Recap<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ThisIsHighlands?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ThisIsHighlands</a> <a href="https://t.co/vehkQbopQB">https://t.co/vehkQbopQB</a></p>&mdash; NMHU Athletics (@NMHU_Athletics) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMHU_Athletics/status/1889460131945128248?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>   </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">After one of the greatest Signing Days in NMHU history ✅ <br><br>This is a reminder that we're coming for EVERYTHING in 2025 and it starts with showing up to WORK!!!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ThisIsHighlands?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ThisIsHighlands</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CowboyTough?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CowboyTough</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LA2VEGA5?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LA2VEGA5</a> <a href="https://t.co/K6gdAGQ7BU">pic.twitter.com/K6gdAGQ7BU</a></p>&mdash; NMHU Football (@NMHUFootball) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMHUFootball/status/1887607795396321606?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 6, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="eu" dir="ltr">Iron Sharpens Iron..<a href="https://twitter.com/NMHUFootball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NMHUFootball</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CowboyTough?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CowboyTough</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ThisIsHighlands?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ThisIsHighlands</a> <a href="https://t.co/4P9W98oMse">pic.twitter.com/4P9W98oMse</a></p>&mdash; Gage Guardiola (@CoachTwelveGage) <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachTwelveGage/status/1890428112896184649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 14, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html -->