Tuesday's This and That: Some Things You Need To Know

Here's our second edition of Tuesday's This and That, where we dive more deeply into some of the developments from the previous weekend in New Mexico High School football:   RIO RANCHO'S OFFENSE FLYING HIGH: The Rio Rancho Rams head south on Thursday to face the Las Cruces Bulldawgs at the Field of Dreams. They're bringing with them an offense that scored 108 points in the first two games against Atrisco Heritage and Clovis. Junior QB [player_tooltip player_id='1604705' first='Micah' last='Takahashi'], RB Ethan Rolon and WR [player_tooltip player_id='1266408' first='Parker' last='Miller'] (combined 6 TD vs. Clovis) are the ‘Big Three' in the Rams' offense but they have plenty of talented players behind them.   “We're balanced offensively,” Rio Rancho head coach Nate Pino told Prep Redzone New Mexico following the Rams' 55-0 mercy-rule win over Clovis Friday night at Rams Stadium. “Micah puts us in good spots. He can run and throw.  Parker is explosive. We have a bunch of receivers that are solid. They can make plays. Ethan has been lights out between the tackles. We have a balanced attack and that helps. We don't just have one dude you can lock in on. The physicality of the offensive line was better in Week 2.”     Both defensively and on specials teams, the Rams created early turnovers against Clovis that led to short fields for the offense.       “We're playing at a high level,”. “We cleaned up some penalties. Our focus was details this week. I thought our guys did a great job with it. Anytime we can create turnovers, that's going to help out the offense. Our defense did a great job and our special teams stepped up for the second week in a row. That blocked punt right off the bat set the tone.””       Rio Rancho will certainly face a tougher defense on Thursday in Las Cruces, so that game should provide a better litmus test of where the Rams offense stands. Las Cruces allowed just 6 points to rival Mayfield in the opener and limited Volcano Vista to 20 points in Week 2. And everybody knows the explosiveness of the Bulldawgs offense.   “We're going to find out who we are because Las Cruces is a heckuva team,” Pino said. “They are a very talented and well coached team. It's a barometer for us on where we're at. They looked great against Volcano Vista. They've been building towards this year with that group.”   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/09/20250829_1946102-crop-704x463-1756858237.jpg?w=704" alt="" class="wp-image-1866173" /></figure>   WHO'S RANKED IN THE TOP 10?: MaxPreps has released their updated New Mexico state rankings. As expected, Cleveland and Las Cruces are ranked No. 1 and No. 2. Those teams square off in a much-anticipated ‘Clash of the Titans' in Week 4 (Sept. 12) at Lightning Bolt Stadium in Rio Rancho. Perhaps to the surprise of some, La Cueva is No. 3 even though they've lost their first two games, including a 44-0 setback to Phoenix (AZ) Pinnacle at Wilson Stadium in Week 2. Nine of the Top 10 teams are from Class 6A. The lone non-6A school is 5A Artesia at No. 5.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/09/Screenshot-2025-09-02-at-16-48-44-New-Mexico-Football-2025-Rankings.png?w=611" alt="" class="wp-image-1866171" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: Maxpreps</figcaption></figure>   A-TEAM BATTLE COMING FRIDAY: A pair of unbeaten teams – Alamogordo and Albuquerque High – clash Friday night at Milne Stadium in Albuquerque in a true A-Team cross-district 6A Battle. Alamogordo beat Deming and Roswell in the first two weeks, while Albuquerque High, seeking their first playoff berth in three decades, has posted victories over Cibola and Valley for their first 2-0 start since 2019.   “We told our guys that this group had a chance to be a very good football team because we returned so many starters from last year,” Alamogordo head coach AJ Cisco told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “We have guys with a lot of experience. They were young last year. We didn't know how to win games and finish games last year. It was  great offseason to get to this point. I'm happy for our players. We've played well for two weeks. We had to overcome some adversity last Friday against Roswell.”   Senior dual threat quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1600835' first='Nathanael' last='Best'] and junior RB/DB [player_tooltip player_id='1605059' first='Bryson' last='Bloom'] lead Alamogordo's offense and so far both have lived up to expectations from the Tigers coaching staff. The speedy Bloom (4.5 in 40) is developing into one of the top two-way players in the state.   “Nathanael is exactly the guy people knew he would be,” Cisco said. “He's the bell cow for us. He does everything. Our entire offense goes through him. Anytime he touches the ball, good things can happen. You don't get to coach guys like that very often. When you do, it's special and you'd better make the most of it. Bryson has had a good season so far offensively, but defensively he's been lights out. His growth and maturity has been impressive. Our entire defense has played extremely well so far. Our kids have bought into the mentality that we're going to fly around and attack the football and do what they've been taught.”     ALL FRESHMAN BACKFIELD IN ESTANCIA: According to MaxPreps, the top two freshman rushers after two games play for the same team: Estancia freshman QB Devon Chavez and Estancia RB Juan Cuevas. Raton RB [player_tooltip player_id='1865586' first='Harlem' last='Coley'] is third. Last Friday night, Chavez and Cuevas combined for 298 rushing yards on 41 carries in the Bears' near-upset of Eunice. Estancia plays at Tularosa on Friday. District 2A-2 suddenly looks very competitive with Estancia, Legacy Academy, Raton, Santa Rosa and Tucumcari vying for the district championship.   HOPE CHRISTIAN EYES 3-0 START: Hope Christian grinded out a 12-6 victory over Legacy Academy Saturday at Rio Rancho High School, and now prepare to face rival Albuquerque Academy Friday in the Chargers' lone night home game of the 2025 season.   It's one of SIX games on the Week 3 slate between 2-0 teams. Hope Christian dominated time of possession against Legacy Academy and were it not for some miscues in the red zone, would have won by a larger margin.   “We came out and just wanted it more,” Hope Christian quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1137124' first='RJ' last='Montoya'] told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “We came into this game with a good mindset and continued that throughout the game. We wanted to come out and be physical.”     Montoya threw for 306 yards in the Huskies opener against Del Norte. Friday, he'll face off with Albuquerque Academy QB [player_tooltip player_id='1369761' first='William' last='Braun'] in an intriguing battle between two of the best  signal callers in the Albuquerque Metro Region.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/09/20250830_1320352.jpg?w=781" alt="" class="wp-image-1866178" /></figure>

Here's our second edition of Tuesday's This and That, where we dive more deeply into some of the developments from the previous weekend in New Mexico High School football: