2025 Team Preview: Los Lunas Tigers

2025 LOS LUNAS PREVIEW   OVERVIEW   Months after winning the Class 5A state championship in 2021, Los Lunas moved to Class 6A, going head-to-head against many of the ‘big boys' in New Mexico high school football for the past three seasons. For the most part, the Tigers have held their own, compiling a combined total record of 22-12 and a district record of 13-2. Last fall, Los Lunas edged Piedra Vista in the first round of the playoffs before being mercy-ruled by eventual state champion Cleveland in the quarterfinals.   “We talk all the time with our players about creating belief through our actions, meaning putting in the work and making the sacrifices you need to make,” Los Lunas head coach Greg Henington told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “We have that strong belief to compete and try to beat those top tier teams. There are four of five of them. Our guys have responded well. They have worked extremely hard. We've had great gains in the weight room.”   Los Lunas relied extensively on the run last season as they kept it on the ground 74.1 percent of the time (446 runs, 156 passes). Henington doesn't plan to alter the Tigers' offensive philosophy.   “That's our mentality, run first,” Henington said. “But  it usually depends on the quarterback. If we had a guy who could really sling it, we'd use that to our advantage. Our starting quarterback last season was a good runner, so we used a lot of play action and big plays.”             OFFENSE   3 Players To Watch: [player_tooltip player_id='1137088' first='Kaiden' last='Reese'] (QB), [player_tooltip player_id='1604956' first='Jagger' last='Casillas'] (RB), [player_tooltip player_id='1749242' first='Alejandro' last='Casas'] (OL).   Rising senior dual threat quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1137088' first='Kaiden' last='Reese'] is back after throwing for over 1,000 yards and rushing for a team-high 769 yards and 8 TD. Reese was one of THREE Los Lunas ball carriers last season with 700+ rushing yards. Two are returning in 2025.   “Kaiden needs to go out there and be the anchor of the offense,” Henington said. “That's his role this year. He has all the tools to do that. We're excited for him.”   Rising junior [player_tooltip player_id='1787301' first='Luke' last='Cieremans'], younger brother of former Los Lunas state title winning QB Paul Cieremans (he's still at New Mexico State), will compete for the starting job. He's enjoyed a solid spring in team workouts. Henington didn't rule out utilizing both QBs this season, something he has done in the past. However, Reese and Cieremans have different skill sets with the latter being more of a pocket passer.   Rising junior RB [player_tooltip player_id='1604956' first='Jagger' last='Casillas'] leads the ground attack after rushing for 703 yards and 4 TD in 2024. Rising sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1826009' first='Diego' last='Parra'] is slated to compete for the No. 2 RB role after gaining valuable varsity experience last season. He played primarily JV last season. Rising senior Martin Cordova (39 carries in 2024) will also be involved in the competition.       “We're very excited about Jagger,” Henington said. “He's not the biggest guy, but he's tough as nails. We're fired up about him. Diego is still a puppy but he has good size and run downhill hard. He still has a lot to learn.”   Graduated senior J'den Howard was the Tigers' leading receiver in 2024 by a wide margin. In fact, he was the only pass catcher with double digit receptions. Rising senior Robert Pino will play the slot while rising junior Tayson Gaxiola and rising senior Tegan Gallegos (24.1 yards per reception in 2024) will compete for playing time on the outside.   “We need Robert to have a great year,” Henington said. “He has all the tools. He's ready. He's been working hard all spring. He's ready to go shine. The slot position is usually our big play guy. He does multiple things. Tayson has all the tools to really be something special down the road.”   The Los Lunas offensive line will be anchored by 6-foot-2, 250-pound rising senior center [player_tooltip player_id='1749242' first='Alejandro' last='Casas']. Rising junior Santiago Hurbina also returns. The tackles are expected to be rising seniors Robert Diaz and Nestor Lopez. The Tigers could have as many as four seniors starting along the offensive line. The next wave of offensive linemen are largely freshmen, Henington said.   “Everything runs through Alex at center,” Henington said, adding that several colleges are looking at Casas. “He's the big dog and he's pretty darn good.”                          DEFENSE   3 Players To Watch: [player_tooltip player_id='1606069' first='Brad' last='Mallory'] (LB), Andres Aguilar (LB), [player_tooltip player_id='1749281' first='Isaiah' last='Barela'] (DB).   Los Lunas returns four of its top five tacklers from last season: ILB [player_tooltip player_id='1606069' first='Brad' last='Mallory'], LB [player_tooltip player_id='1749304' first='Andres' last='Romero'], CB [player_tooltip player_id='1686314' first='Angel' last='Aguilar'] and SS/FS [player_tooltip player_id='1749281' first='Isaiah' last='Barela'].   Mallory, a rising junior, finished second on the Tigers in tackles last season with 69. [player_tooltip player_id='1788672' first='Bryant' last='Baca'] started at LB as a sophomore and the coaches expect him to show tremendous growth this season.      Barela and Aguilar will be joined in the secondary by rising junior safety Malaki Maestas. The lone returning defensive lineman is Eric Pedro. However, Anthony Castillo is expected to have a huge role on the DL in 2024 in addition to fullback and tight end on offense.           2025 Los Lunas Football Schedule:   Aug. 22 at Roswell       Aug. 29 CLEVELAND      Sept. 5 at Farmington      Sept. 11 ELDORADO*       Sept. 19 at West Mesa*       Sept. 26 Bye      Oct. 3 at Albuquerque High*      Oct. 10 LA CUEVA*      Oct. 17 SANTA FE*     Oct. 24 ATRISCO HERITAGE*       Oct. 31 at Sandia*      * District 6A-2 Game   <blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Our Tiger boys getting more recognition for their hard work this season!! Coming at you with their All-Metro Awards!! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PROVEIT?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PROVEIT</a> <a href="https://t.co/xcmayCiN6M">pic.twitter.com/xcmayCiN6M</a>— Los Lunas Tigers Football (@LosLunasFB) <a href="https://twitter.com/LosLunasFB/status/1863401946054320243?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2024</a></blockquote>   <blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Congratulations to our boys on their District Runner-Up accomplishment! They were second in 6A District 2! They have worked hard this season and ended with a 7-2 record overall! Good job, Tigers! On to State! Let's take down PV and keep going! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PROVEIT?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PROVEIT</a> <a href="https://t.co/We7RzDEwfd">pic.twitter.com/We7RzDEwfd</a>— Los Lunas Tigers Football (@LosLunasFB) <a href="https://twitter.com/LosLunasFB/status/1853097421708161271?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 3, 2024</a></blockquote>   <blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Our Tiger boys getting more recognition for their hard work this season!! Coming at you with their All-Metro Awards!! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PROVEIT?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PROVEIT</a> <a href="https://t.co/ls3qQvgkDC">pic.twitter.com/ls3qQvgkDC</a>— Los Lunas Tigers Football (@LosLunasFB) <a href="https://twitter.com/LosLunasFB/status/1863401672535347493?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2024</a></blockquote>   <blockquote class="twitter-tweet">All-District results are in! Congratulations to our boys on their achievements! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PROVEIT?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PROVEIT</a> <a href="https://t.co/7T2EhK08H8">pic.twitter.com/7T2EhK08H8</a>— Los Lunas Tigers Football (@LosLunasFB) <a href="https://twitter.com/LosLunasFB/status/1854272182127570984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 6, 2024</a></blockquote>

2025 LOS LUNAS PREVIEW