Good Stuff To Know For Week 8

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We're heading into Week 8 of the 2025 New Mexico High School Football season. Here are some things you will likely find interesting as the regular season hist the homestretch:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>THURSDAY NIGHT'S TEAM</strong>: Three of Rio Rancho's first six games of the regular season have been played on Thursday night, with two more on the schedule. That means the Rams will play exactly 50 percent of their 10 regular season games on Thursday night. Last Thursday, the Rams beat Cibola, 25-15, in the District 6A-1 for both teams. They head to Piedra Vista this Thursday. The annual battle with cross-town rival Cleveland will be played on Thursday, Oct. 30.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Against Cibola, the Rams defense brought its ‘A' game, allowing just a single TD by the Cougars. It was a welcome sight for Rio Rancho players, coaches and fans after they allowed 140 points during a three-game losing streak preceding the Cibola win.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“We challenged our defensive guys to step up and rise to the occasion,” Pino said. “We gave up just one score late. They competed their tails off. We played a tough non-district schedule and I think that prepared us for this moment. Our district is a gauntlet. We finished strong. We knew it was going to be a fight.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Offensively, Rio Rancho's top two offensive players – QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1604705' first='Micah' last='Takahashi']</strong> and WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1266408' first='Parker' last='Miller']</strong> – both made big plays. Takahashi ripped off a 96-yard TD run in the fourth quarter and Miller made two fabulous TD grabs in the second half.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Parker is dynamic,” Pino said. “Those guys are our dudes. We have a lot of guys that can make plays on different night. Parker has been consistent. Micah got his legs going. He's been throwing the ball great.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Rio Rancho QB [player_tooltip player_id='1604705' first='Micah' last='Takahashi'] with the backbreaking 96-yard scamper to give the Rams a 25-9 lead.<br><br>3:50 left. <a href="https://t.co/GQBqz4q5ug">pic.twitter.com/GQBqz4q5ug</a></p>&mdash; Prep Redzone New Mexico (@PrepRedzoneNM) <a href="https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM/status/1974314112625803520?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>SEASON'S BEST STORY</strong>: Is there a better story in New Mexico high school football than the rise of the Chaparral Lobos? Doubtful. Thirteen months ago, Chaparral snapped a 40+ game losing streak extending back to 2018. Now they're 6-1 and atop the highly competitive District 4A-2 with a 3-0 mark. Their next two games are on the road at Silver and St. Pius X. The latter matchup could decide the district title. Chaparral currently leads Portales (2-1 in district) by one game in the standings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Why is Chaparral winning? It always begins with players, of course. The offense is explosive. Quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='851884' first='Israel' last='Nieto']</strong> is a dynamic dual threat with 1,279 passing yards and 16 TD + 431 rushing yards through 7 games. He has accounted for 24 touchdowns. Running back <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1155082' first='Raul' last='Lopez']</strong> has emerged as one of the top players at his position in the state with 723 yards and 9 TD on 112 carries. Talented receiver <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1155065' first='Tyvin' last='Howard']</strong> has 23 receptions for 353 yards and 4 TD. Deep threat <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='854303' first='Aaron' last='Eliserio']</strong> is averaging a staggering 36.4 yards on his 12 receptions. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Great game against Valencia in WK 7 40-10<br>13/15 completions 250 yds 4 tds<br>6 carries 23 yards<br>273 total yds<br>166 QBR<a href="https://twitter.com/CoachWhite215?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachWhite215</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachSmithQB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachSmithQB</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachLamb_?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachLamb_</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachGCasteel?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachGCasteel</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachRRod70?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachRRod70</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachTwelveGage?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CoachTwelveGage</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://t.co/DoUjXHvmmG">https://t.co/DoUjXHvmmG</a></p>&mdash; [player_tooltip player_id='851884' first='Israel' last='Nieto'] (@israelnieto01) <a href="https://twitter.com/israelnieto01/status/1974884196377100727?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>CLASS 5A SHOWDOWN LOOMS</strong>: We've said multiple times in the past that unless somebody in Class 5A steps up and beats Artesia or Roswell, the road to the state title runs through those two schools. This year looks no different. The Bulldogs and Rockets are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 by MaxPreps and it will likely stay that way when those two teams clash Oct. 17 at the historic Wool Bowl in Roswell. The winner will likely earn the No. 1 seed for the Class 5A playoffs while the loser will receive the No. 2 seed. Goddard, which has shown significant improvement this season, faces Artesia and Roswell in the final two weeks of the regular season.       </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>BEST BACKFIELD DUOS</strong>: Going into Week 8, four ball carriers have already eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1604744' first='Jordan' last='Herrera']</strong> (Los Alamos), <strong>Jasper Nelson</strong> (Santa Fe), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1605033' first='Dailen' last='Ramirez']</strong> (Centennial) and <strong>Devon Chavez</strong> (Estancia). &nbsp;Individually, they've all enjoyed fantastic seasons to date. Herrera is currently the state's top rusher with 1,144 yards in 6 games. Who are the most productive rushing duos? Our deep dive into the current MaxPreps stats produced these top four teams:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Alamogordo</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id='1600835' first='Nathanael' last='Best'] (867 yards) + [player_tooltip player_id='1605059' first='Bryson' last='Bloom'] (681) = 1,548 yards</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Estancia</strong>: Devon Chavez (1,037) + Juan Cuevas (555) = 1,592 yards</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Highland</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id='1137423' first='Jose' last='Tapia'] (849) + [player_tooltip player_id='1688720' first='William' last='Anchondo'] (452) = 1,301 yards</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hobbs</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id='1605057' first='Junior' last='Medrano'] (759) + Demarcus Hill (511) = 1,270 yards</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top 10 Rushers Entering Week 8</strong>:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1940547,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-08-at-10-48-06-New-Mexico-Football-2025-Rushing-Yards-Stat-Leaders.png?w=612" alt="" class="wp-image-1940547" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: MaxPreps</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>NEARING 10,000 PASSING YARDS</strong>: Eunice quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='854273' first='Elijah' last='Melancon']</strong>'s remarkable career with the Cardinals is approaching the end, but he's still got plenty of time to achieve some significant milestones. Through Week 7, Melancon has thrown for 1,375 yards and 21 TD in 6 games. His TD Pass-to-INT ratio of 21-3 is an impressive 7-to-1.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With four regular season games remaining, Melancon has thrown for 9,419 yards and 136 TD. He is now 6^th on New Mexico's all-time passing yardage list and second all-time in passing touchdowns. Impressively, Melancon has also rushed for 1,784 yards in his career, so he's more than just a pocket passer. He can tuck it and run for significant yardage as well. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='854273' first='Elijah' last='Melancon']'s Career Statistics (Through Week 7)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1940549,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-08-at-16-45-19-Elijah-Melancons-High-School-Football-Stats.png?w=609" alt="" class="wp-image-1940549" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: MaxPreps</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>    </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>  </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>   </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->