Signing Day Aftermath: NMHU Pulls Off NSD Stunner (Part 1)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>This is Part 1 of a Multi-Part Series </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>New Mexico Highlands head coach Kurt Taufa'asau and his staff pulled off a 2026 National Signing Day shocker when they convinced 6-foot-4, 225-pound Cleveland defensive end/edge <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1230420' first='Elijah' last='Richards']</strong>, a one-time New Mexico commitment, to flip his NSD pledge from FCS North Alabama to the home state Cowboys.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Richards' decision to stay home and sign with NMSU was arguably the top story on National Signing Day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Taufa'asau explained to Prep Redzone New Mexico how NMHU managed to convince Richards to sign with the Cowboys. The process – as it usually does in recruiting - started with a four-hour round trip from Rio Rancho to the NMHU campus in Las Vegas. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“We brought Elijah here for a visit the weekend before Signing Day,” Taufa'asau said. “We gave him a tour and had an extensive meeting with him. We let him know that we believe we're the premier program in the state and we wanted to develop him. We built a great relationship with him. He updated us on how things were going for him. Ultimately, he felt at home with us. When things didn't work out at UNM, he felt New Mexico Highland was his next best home.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Taufa'asau credited Cowboys assistant coach Gage Guardiola with staying in contact with Richards and communicating the football program's message.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Coach Gage did a good job of pushing the envelope and letting Elijah know what we're building and telling him he could be a huge part of it,” Taufa'asau said. “Ultimately, he felt comfortable at our place and felt like he belonged here.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“The biggest thing was getting him on campus so he could meet our staff and the school president. It was important for him to see the type of environment he was getting himself into. There was a lot of sports going on the weekend he camp up for his visit, so he got to meet a lot of administration folks.” &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Richards was one of 16 2026 New Mexico prospects to sign with New Mexico Highlands, marking another strong in-state class for Taufa'asau. Those prospects came from throughout the state, too. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Our goal is always to find the best kids from New Mexico and try to get them to come to Las Vegas,” Taufa'asau said. “Our coaches have done a good job of identifying the best guys and bringing them to our campus for a visit. We've also made the effort to go out and see them on home visits. Our goal is to continue building our foundation with New Mexico players.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Five players who competed in the Class 6A state championship game between Cleveland and Las Cruces. The Bulldawgs' talented trio of RB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1137388' first='Daniel' last='Amaro']</strong>, WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1142363' first='Francisco' last='Winnikoff']</strong> and DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1266523' first='Isaac' last='Gomez']</strong> joined Storm OL/TE <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1671759' first='Nathaniel' last='Gutierrez']</strong> by signing with the Cowboys.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“We started with the Las Cruces guys when they were juniors,” Taufa'asau said. “They came up for our Junior Day and then during the season they came up a couple more times. Fortunately, when they came up, we beat some good teams. They felt comfortable with the environment and loved the energy. They felt right at home.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Again, Guardiola was the point man in the recruitment of the Las Cruces trio based on his connections to the Bulldawgs program. He graduated from Las Cruces High and is the older brother for former Bulldawgs QB [player_tooltip player_id='853029' first='Gunnar' last='Guardiola'], who signed with hometown New Mexico State in baseball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“Coach Gage has ties down there and he did a great job staying connected with those guys,” Taufa'asau said. “He made sure they were up-to-date on how things were going. When they came for their last visit, they sat down with their position coaches and we told them how they would be involved in our schemes.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">✍️Welcome to Las Vegas!<br><br>🤠 | [player_tooltip player_id='1230420' first='Elijah' last='Richards']<br>🏈 | Defensive End<br>🟣 | Cleveland High School<br>⚪️ | Rio Rancho, New Mexico <br>🐦 | <a href="https://twitter.com/E_Richards22?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@E_Richards22</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheNewHighlands?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheNewHighlands</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LA2VE6AS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LA2VE6AS</a> <a href="https://t.co/V52QZVrL8U">pic.twitter.com/V52QZVrL8U</a></p>&mdash; NMHU Football (@NMHUFootball) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMHUFootball/status/2019552932287639902?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2026</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">✍️Welcome to Las Vegas!<br><br>🤠 | [player_tooltip player_id='1266523' first='Isaac' last='Gomez']<br>🏈 | DefensiveBack<br>🟣 | Las Cruces High School<br>⚪️ | Las Cruces, New Mexico<br>🐦 | <a href="https://twitter.com/IsaacGom_32?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@IsaacGom_32</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheNewHighlands?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheNewHighlands</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LA2VE6AS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LA2VE6AS</a> <a href="https://t.co/kFSZcpMNn9">pic.twitter.com/kFSZcpMNn9</a></p>&mdash; NMHU Football (@NMHUFootball) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMHUFootball/status/2019435717961871758?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2026</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">✍️Welcome to Las Vegas!<br><br>🤠 | [player_tooltip player_id='1137388' first='Daniel' last='Amaro']<br>🏈 | Running Back<br>🟣 | Las Cruces High School<br>⚪️ | Las Cruces, New Mexico<br>🐦 | <a href="https://twitter.com/AmaroDaniel22?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AmaroDaniel22</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheNewHighlands?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheNewHighlands</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LA2VE6AS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LA2VE6AS</a> <a href="https://t.co/38e87ojjM7">pic.twitter.com/38e87ojjM7</a></p>&mdash; NMHU Football (@NMHUFootball) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMHUFootball/status/2019179237920625025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2026</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">✍️Welcome to Las Vegas!<br><br>🤠 | [player_tooltip player_id='1671759' first='Nathaniel' last='Gutierrez'] <br>🏈 | Tight End<br>🟣 | Cleveland High School<br>⚪️ | Rio Rancho, New Mexico <br>🐦 | <a href="https://twitter.com/NathanielG54321?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NathanielG54321</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheNewHighlands?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheNewHighlands</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LA2VE6AS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LA2VE6AS</a> <a href="https://t.co/qrEPdBfrQP">pic.twitter.com/qrEPdBfrQP</a></p>&mdash; NMHU Football (@NMHUFootball) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMHUFootball/status/2019149801955422292?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2026</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:html --> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">✍️Welcome to Las Vegas!<br><br>🤠 | [player_tooltip player_id='1142363' first='Francisco' last='Winnikoff'] <br>🏈 | Wide Receiver<br>🟣 | Las Cruces High School<br>⚪️ | Las Cruces, New Mexico <br>🐦 | <a href="https://twitter.com/Sisco2x__?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Sisco2x__</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheNewHighlands?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheNewHighlands</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LA2VE6AS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LA2VE6AS</a> <a href="https://t.co/2gzv5MwUHY">pic.twitter.com/2gzv5MwUHY</a></p>&mdash; NMHU Football (@NMHUFootball) <a href="https://twitter.com/NMHUFootball/status/2019134387523346899?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2026</a></blockquote> <!-- /wp:html --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>  </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>                       </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->