2026 Team Preview: Portales Rams

OVERVIEW   Portaleshad a very young roster in 2025, including a freshman starting quarterback, and felt the impact with a 2-9 record. However, head coach Jaime Ramirez is confident better days are ahead for the Rams.   “Nobody likes to have those type of seasons,” Ramirez told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “Since I've been here, we haven't had many losing seasons. Last season was tough. We were young. But I thought we made strides and got better. Our players worked hard and showed some grit throughout the season. We were just young and not as physical  or mature as we have been.”   Portales returns most of last season's starters on both sides of the ball. Seven starters are back on both offense and defense. The Rams expect to have about 10 seniors on the roster.   “This season, we come back with some experience,” Ramirez said. “I'm pleased with the progress I've seen in the weight room. We've focused on getting better this off-season.”                 OFFENSE   Rising junior dual threat [player_tooltip player_id='1826226' first='Jacoby' last='Bamforth'] will be the new starting quarterback for the Rams. He was mainly a receiver and defensive back last season. The backup is expected to be rising junior [player_tooltip player_id='1826233' first='Joseph' last='Keita'].   “I like how (Bamforth) has progressed,” Ramirez said. “He's been getting better every week.”   Rising junior [player_tooltip player_id='1613398' first='Slade' last='Segovia'], a two-way standout, has already rushed for nearly 1,300 yards in his first two years with the Rams varsity, including a team-high 858 yards and 9 TD last season. He returns as the No. 1 running back and has 1,000-yard potential. Rising sophomore Declan Martin, rising senior Ashton Radloff and rising sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='2114603' first='Donovan' last='Lucero'] are competing for the backup job.       [player_tooltip player_id='1826233' first='Joseph' last='Keita'] will play right slot receiver when he's not at quarterback. The left slot receiver spot is a competition between rising junior Nevan Cordova and rising sophomore Jacob Bustos. The two outside receivers will be rising junior [player_tooltip player_id='1826228' first='John' last='Bamforth'] (Jacoby's brother) and rising senior Thomas Salgado. Six of the seven receivers who caught a pass in 2025 return.   The Rams offensive line has some experience with rising seniors Isaac Foots,  Hugo Tostado and Colton Tomlinson.  The latter two will likely be the starting tackles. An intriguing new addition is 6-foot-2, 275-pound rising senior guard Kuandale Taylor, whose family moved to Portales in the spring. Rising juniors [player_tooltip player_id='1826239' first='Tripp' last='Hamilton'] (OG) and Arion Peterson will contribute as well along with rising sophomore Aaron Valdez and rising senior Andree Alvarado.           Key Players: [player_tooltip player_id='1826226' first='Jacoby' last='Bamforth'] (QB), [player_tooltip player_id='1613398' first='Slade' last='Segovia'] (RB),  [player_tooltip player_id='1826233' first='Joseph' last='Keita'] (WR), Colton Tomlinson (OL).   DEFENSE   The Rams return 13 of their top 14 tacklers from a season ago, so they've got plenty of experience coming back on the defensive side of the ball. In fact, four of their top six tacklers in 2025 were sophomores. The leader of the defense will be rising junior LB [player_tooltip player_id='2109724' first='Ace' last='Saiz'], who had a team-high 87 tackles in 2025.   [player_tooltip player_id='2114603' first='Donovan' last='Lucero'] (3rd leading tackler in 2025), Ashton Radloff and Declan Martin join him to anchor the ILB corps. The Outside LBs will be led by Thomas Salgado, a three-year starter at OLB, and [player_tooltip player_id='1613398' first='Slade' last='Segovia']. In the mix is Nevan Cordova.   The cornerbacks will be [player_tooltip player_id='1826233' first='Joseph' last='Keita'] and rising sophomore King Bolbert with [player_tooltip player_id='1826228' first='John' last='Bamforth'] contributing. Rising junior [player_tooltip player_id='2109750' first='Andru' last='Lozano'] (2nd leading tackler in 2025), [player_tooltip player_id='1826226' first='Jacoby' last='Bamforth'] and rising sophomore Noah Alvarado will share snaps at safety.   Key Players: [player_tooltip player_id='2109724' first='Ace' last='Saiz'] (LB), [player_tooltip player_id='2109750' first='Andru' last='Lozano'] (DB), [player_tooltip player_id='2114603' first='Donovan' last='Lucero'] (LB), Thomas Salgado (LB).   2026 PORTALES SCHEDULE   In a scheduling quirk, Portales will square off with Santa Teresa twice this season, first in a neutral site non-district game in Ruidoso and then in a Week 10 district class.        Aug. 22 WEST LAS VEGAS (Sat., 6 p.m.)                      Aug. 28 at Espanola Valley                   Sept. 4 CAPITAL                      Sept. 10 vs. Santa Teresa (at Ruidoso)              Sept. 18 LOVINGTON*               Sept. 26 at St. Pius X (Sat., 1 p.m.)*              Oct. 2 at Belen*                  Oct. 9 ALBUQUERQUE ACADEMY*               Oct. 16 Bye*           Oct. 23 SANTA TERESA*             Oct. 30 at Valencia*            * District 4A-2 Game   All kickoffs at 7 p.m. unless indicated otherwise.   <blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Soph season Highlights ✅158 carries 858 yards 9 TD's ✅22 catches 348 yards 5 TD's ✅1,206 all purpose yards ✅1st Team All District Rb- All State HM Rb Check out my highlights🔽 Check out my Hudl Highlight - <a href="https://t.co/vFXVpQyDsQ">https://t.co/vFXVpQyDsQ</a> <a href="https://x.com/PrepRedzoneNM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PrepRedzoneNM</a> <a href="https://x.com/nmprepcosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmprepcosports</a> <a href="https://x.com/nmpreps?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nmpreps</a>— [player_tooltip player_id='1613398' first='Slade' last='Segovia'] (@slade_segovia) <a href="https://x.com/slade_segovia/status/2029072793564811460?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 4, 2026</a></blockquote>   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-19-at-14-57-33-20-Slade-Segovia-@slade_segovia-_-X.png?w=948" alt="" class="wp-image-2251163" /></figure>

OVERVIEW