2025 Team Preview: Goddard Rockets
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<p><strong>2025 GODDARD ROCKETS PREVIEW</strong></p>
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<p><strong>OVERVIEW</strong></p>
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<p>Coming off a 2-9 season, Goddard second-year head coach Arturo Bolanos is still in the process of building the foundation for the new Rockets program. That's why Goddard's runner-up finish at last Friday's NMMI 7x7 Tournament was important. No, 7x7 isn't “real” football but the Rockets reaching the Big School championship game could be vital for ingraining a positive mindset into the Goddard players.</p>
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<p>“It's definitely something we're going to build off of,” Bolanos told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “We went 2-9 last season. We have to get better. So, we have to find some positive things to keep building the program. We've been doing that. Summer has been great for us.</p>
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<p>“The guys are doing a very good job showing up and being consistent. We ran a lot of base stuff last Friday (at NMMI). I was proud of our guys. We showed we can compete. We played a lot of close games. Just seeing our kids not freak out and show maturity was good for me to see.”</p>
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<p>Goddard was a young football team in 2024 with plenty of inexperienced players seeing the field. Bolanos says youth won't be an excuse in 2025.</p>
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<p>“We're not young anymore,” Bolanos said. “Last year we had some juniors start for us that didn't play their sophomore year. They were still young in many ways. We're bringing back some returning players. We have to grow up and be accountable.” </p>
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<p><strong>OFFENSE</strong></p>
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<p><strong>Top 3 Players: Izaiah Montoya </strong>(QB), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1751685' first='Zak' last='Arellano']</strong> (RB), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1248678' first='Josiah' last='Castillo']</strong> (WR)</p>
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<p>Three candidates are battling for the starting quarterback job. Going into preseason camp, rising junior <strong>Izaiah Montoya</strong> is the favorite to claim the job with rising sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1667558' first='Nate' last='Vazquez']</strong> and recent transfer <strong>Elijah Valdez</strong> in pursuit.</p>
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<p>“Izaiah is our starting quarterback until he's not the starter,” Bolanos said. “He was there last year. He's battle tested. He has the most experience. He has done a good job for us. He's a great athlete. We have some healthy competition at that spot.”</p>
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<p>Vazquez has been busy this summer developing his skills. He recently spent three days at the Manning Passing Academy and last Saturday camped at UT-Permian Basin.</p>
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<p>“Nate is a very smart kid and he's hard-working,” Bolanos said. “He loves football. He understands X's and O's. Elijah just got here from out of town. He's big, strong and very athletic.”</p>
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<p>Rising senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1751685' first='Zak' last='Arellano']</strong>, who missed all of last season with a foot injury, and rising senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1751689' first='Brady' last='Gibbs']</strong> are the running backs.</p>
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<p>“Zak is very excited to be back,” Bolanos said. “He does a very good job showing leadership for our team. He's hungry. He really didn't have a junior season. Brady will give us some depth. Both those guys look great. They have good energy.”</p>
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<p>Six-foot-3 rising senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1248678' first='Josiah' last='Castillo']</strong>, a four-year starter for the varsity, headlines the wide receiver corps. Four-sport standout <strong>Jose Porras </strong>should be the top slot receiver as a rising junior. He earned Honorable Mention All-State honors in 2024. Another rising junior, <strong>Noah Lujan</strong>, will be a contributor as well. Several candidates are battling for the H-Back spot. </p>
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<p>“Jose is as tough as nails,” Bolanos said.</p>
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<p>Three starters return on the Goddard offensive line. Rising senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1716167' first='Desmond' last='Sicre']</strong> will be the anchor along with rising senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1751693' first='Mark' last='Grajeola']</strong>. Rising junior <strong>Raes Nunez</strong> started most of last season before suffering an injury. Sicre and Nunez are expected to be the tackles with Grajeola filling one of the guard spots. Rising junior <strong>Lorenzo Lente</strong> is the favorite to fill the center spot.</p>
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<p><strong>DEFENSE</strong></p>
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<p><strong>Top 3 Players: [player_tooltip player_id='1137457' first='Taylen' last='Payne'] </strong>(LB), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1716685' first='Levi' last='Vizcarra']</strong> (DL), <strong>Jordan Chavez</strong> (DB).<strong> </strong></p>
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<p>Rising senior middle linebacker <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1137457' first='Taylen' last='Payne'] </strong>is the undisputed leader of the Goddard defense. Payne has been a tackling machine during his career with the Rockets, including last season when he made 116 tackles, 18.0 TFL and 7 sacks. He was an Honorable Mention All-State selection in 2024. </p>
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<p>“Taylen is full of heart,” Bolanos said. “He is a 100 percent football guy. He'll be the anchor of the defense. He's the heart and pride of our defense.”</p>
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<p>Rising senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1604684' first='Ryan' last='Romero']</strong> will be the WILL linebacker.</p>
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<p>The defensive line will be senior-heavy with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1716685' first='Levi' last='Vizcarra']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1751695' first='Jaciel' last='Perez']</strong> expected to start at DE. In the interior, <strong>Rodney Ward</strong> will be one of the defensive tackles. Several candidates are battling for the other DT spot.</p>
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<p>The secondary will feature several new faces<strong>. A Ziah Hunter</strong> will likely claim one of the CB spots in addition to seeing some action at WR. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1751699' first='Roman' last='Carabajal']</strong> should be the other CB opposite Hunter. Rising junior <strong>Catch Sisneros</strong> is competing for playing time.</p>
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<p>At safety, rising junior <strong>Deegan Gaston</strong> is competing for playing time, as is rising junior <strong>Josiah Thompson</strong>. <strong>Izaiah Montoya</strong>(see above) has also been working at safety. Rising junior <strong>Jordan Chavez</strong> will be the free safety. Jose <strong>Porras</strong> (see above) has been working there as well. </p>
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<p><strong>2025 Goddard Football Schedule:</strong></p>
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<p>Aug. 23 at Portales (Sat., 6 p.m.) </p>
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<p>Aug. 29 at Carlsbad (7 p.m.) </p>
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<p>Sept. 5 VALLEY (7 p.m.) </p>
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<p>Sept. 12 at Santa Teresa (7 p.m.)* </p>
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<p>Sept. 19 at Lovington (7 p.m.)* </p>
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<p>Sept. 26 GADSDEN (7 p.m.)* </p>
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<p>Oct. 3 DEMING (7 p.m.)* </p>
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<p>Oct. 10 Bye </p>
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<p>Oct. 16 at Mayfield (Thur., 7 p.m.)* </p>
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<p> Oct. 24 at Artesia (7 p.m.)* </p>
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<p>Oct. 31 ROSWELL (7 p.m.)* </p>
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<p>* District 4A-2 Game</p>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">[player_tooltip player_id='1137457' first='Taylen' last='Payne'], c/o 2026, ILB Junior Season Highlights<br>TOT - 116<br>SOLO - 27<br>AST - 89<br>SACK - 7<br>TFL - 18<br>FF - 1<br>PD - 2<a href="https://t.co/NQkvLPTQST">https://t.co/NQkvLPTQST</a><a href="https://twitter.com/GoddardRocketFB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GoddardRocketFB</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachBolanos?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachBolanos</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepRedzoneNM</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachKelleyLee?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachKelleyLee</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachPomfret?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachPomfret</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Coach_SBrown?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Coach_SBrown</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/coach_bhickman?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@coach_bhickman</a> @CoachRegionOLB <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachTaufaasau?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachTaufaasau</a>…</p>— [player_tooltip player_id='1137457' first='Taylen' last='Payne'] (@PayneTaylen) <a href="https://twitter.com/PayneTaylen/status/1859761969978335521?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 22, 2024</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Junior Szn highlights(played 5 games) <br>322 receiving yards <br>21 receptions <br>3 td's<a href="https://twitter.com/GoddardRocketFB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GoddardRocketFB</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepRedzoneNM</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachBolanos?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachBolanos</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/PayneTaylen?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PayneTaylen</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nmprepcosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmprepcosports</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nmpreps?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmpreps</a> <br><br>Check out my highlight - <a href="https://t.co/VZbaaE869e">https://t.co/VZbaaE869e</a></p>— [player_tooltip player_id='1248678' first='Josiah' last='Castillo'] (@Josiah_Casti11o) <a href="https://twitter.com/Josiah_Casti11o/status/1861990224189861911?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2024</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">🎯🎯 today at NMMI 7v7 <a href="https://twitter.com/GoddardRocketFB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GoddardRocketFB</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachBolanos?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachBolanos</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nmpreps?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmpreps</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepRedzoneNM</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nmmibroncos?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmmibroncos</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/osoukup?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@osoukup</a> <a href="https://t.co/WUNpOhADqk">pic.twitter.com/WUNpOhADqk</a></p>— [player_tooltip player_id='1667558' first='Nate' last='Vazquez'] (@NateVazquez08) <a href="https://twitter.com/NateVazquez08/status/1943871227199717510?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
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2025 GODDARD ROCKETS PREVIEW
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