West Texas: 10 2026 Prospects To Watch In The Panhandle

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The West Texas Panhandle is filled with plenty of talented 2026 prospects. Many had outstanding sophomore seasons in 2023 and look to stay on an upward trajectory in 2024. Here are 10 of the top 2026 prospects in the Panhandle:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Boston Botello, Pampa</strong>: As a team, Pampa struggled last season but Botello offered promise for the future by making 71 tackles and 6.0 TFL on defense, finishing as the Harvesters' third leading tackler. The second leading tackler (<strong>Britten Joyce</strong>) also returns in 2024, giving Pampa the central pieces for a solid defense.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Junior Cervantes, Canadian</strong>: Canadian had a high-powered offense in 2023 but they also had a very good defense as well and Cervantes was one of the Wildcats' top defensive performers. He had 112 total tackles, 13.0 TFL and 3 QB hurries from his outside LB spot. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Slayden Dickinson, Canadian</strong>: The Wildcats finished the season as the No. 1 ranked team in the MaxPreps Amarillo region poll, and for good reason. They finished 14-1 and didn't lose until the semifinals of the Class 3A, D2 playoffs. Dickinson had a key role on both sides of the ball as he rushed for 338 yards on 49 carries and made 36 tackles on defense.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Coltyn Fulton, Tascosa</strong>: Fulton won Tascosa's QB job in the preseason and ended up as the Rebels' leading rusher with over 800 yards. When Fulton improves his completion percentage, he'll become a dangerous dual threat QB. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1466629' first='Darien' last='Lewis'], Palo Duro</strong>: In his first season with the Palo Duro varsity, Lewis was outstanding as the Dons' dual threat QB with over 900 yards passing and rushing as he helped lead the Dons into the Class 5A, D2 playoffs. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Reid Macon, West Plains</strong>: Few 2026 prospects in the Panhandle had a better season in 2023 than Macon. He throws accurate passes (career 65.2 completion percentage) and rarely makes mistakes (career 54-14 TD Pass to INT ratio). He has already thrown for over 5,000 yards with two years remaining. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Kalub Ramirez, Hereford</strong>: As a sophomore in 2023, Ramirez threw for 2,195 yards and 24 TD compared to just 7 INT. He led Hereford to the Class 4A, D1 playoffs. Hereford also returns its top rusher (<strong>Brylyn Lopez</strong>) and receiver (<strong>Tell Bryant</strong>) from 2023, so the 2024 campaign is shaping up to be good one for the Whitefaces.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Briggs Satterfield, Gruver</strong>: There are few better young dual threat quarterbacks in the Panhandle than Satterfield. He led Gruver to a 10-win season and a deep run in the Class 2A, D2 playoffs by throwing for over 2,000 yards and rushing for over 800.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Garrett Splitt, Amarillo Randall</strong>: Splitt had a nice sophomore season for the Raiders with 37 tackles and 7.0 TFL. The latter number tied him for second on the team for most TFL. He also had 4 sacks and 2 QB hurries. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hunter Trusler, Dalhart</strong>: Trusler was a dynamic two-way player for Dalhart in 2023 with 373 rushing yards on 94 carries, 30 receptions for 462 yards and 98 tackles on defense as a physical safety. Dalhart reached the second round of the Class 3A, D1 playoffs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/THS_FB/status/1753076141643227436?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/THS_FB/status/1753076141643227436?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/MaxPrestonTV/status/1753154721282437164?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/MaxPrestonTV/status/1753154721282437164?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/ReidMacon5/status/1732473494552674780?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ReidMacon5/status/1732473494552674780?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/HerefordHerdFB/status/1753454935021064657?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/HerefordHerdFB/status/1753454935021064657?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->