Recruiting New Mexico: ENMU dominates in-state again (Part 1)

During Kelley Lee's first stint as Eastern New Mexico head coach (2017-20), the Greyhounds dominated in-state recruiting, often signing a dozen or more NM prospects annually.   Six weeks into his celebrated return to Portales following two years coaching at a Texas high school, little has changed.   ENMU signed 17 New Mexico prospects on National Signing Day (Feb. 1) or shortly thereafter, by far the most of any football-playing college or university in the Land of Enchantment.   For Lee, it was déjà vu all over again.   “I'm from New Mexico and my dad was a Hall of Fame coach in New Mexico,” Lee told Prep Redzone New Mexico. “I love New Mexico high school football. Obviously, we recruited the state hard when we were here before. I have three New Mexico guys on my staff. We have a lot of ties.   “It was easy to get in and get reacquainted with everyone and find out quickly who were the players we had to go after and get them on campus and do home visits in a short period of time before signing day.”        Ten of the 17 signees from New Mexico play defense, and the list features many of the top defensive players in the state, including Hobbs LB [player_tooltip player_id='138050' first='Kenyon' last='Singleton'], Alamogordo LB [player_tooltip player_id='138069' first='Ryan' last='Stovall'], Ruidoso DL [player_tooltip player_id='138085' first='Dalton' last='Trapp'] and Carlsbad DL DJ Moore.   “That's just the way it worked out with the New Mexico kids we went after,” Lee said. “More of them were defensive players or guys we projected to play on the defensive side. Offensively, we went more with system-oriented guys. Guys that ran option football in high school.”   It's not a coincidence two of the five New Mexico offensive players signed by the Greyhounds are from nearby Clovis. Led by former ENMU assistant Andrew McCraw, the Wildcats run the same flexbone offense as the Greyhounds.   As a result, Lee expects Clovis RB [player_tooltip player_id='138039' first='Robert' last='Nora'] and OL [player_tooltip player_id='541112' first='Braxton' last='Masters'] to contribute quickly.   “Braxton is a good run blocker, which is what we need,” Lee said. “And he played in a system that's ours under Coach McCraw. He'll already know our terminology and what he is expected to do when he gets here. He won't have much of a learning curve.”   Nora was Clovis' leading rusher in 2022.   “Robert might be the steal of our New Mexico signees,” Lee said. “For some reason, he was under the radar. He's fast and is one of the best hurdlers in the state. Good size. He was  a hidden gem. He's going to be a great player for us.”         ENMU signed another offensive lineman from the Albuquerque Metro region – Sandia's Franklin Finch. He's listed at 6-foot-4, 290 pounds with loads of potential.   “He has great size and he's really athletic,” Lee said of Finch. “He has very good feet. He has a ton of upside. I was fired up to get him. I think he can be a heckuva offensive lineman someday.”   Besides Nora, ENMU signed a second offensive skill position prospect – Piedra Vista QB [player_tooltip player_id='542468' first='Logan' last='Howell']. The Panthers ran the flexbone offense to near perfection this past season, reaching the Class 5A state championship game.   “Logan is highly productive and he knows our scheme,” Lee said. “He a coach's son. He'll be able to come in right away and execute our offense in terms of making the right reads and distributing the ball. We look at him as sort of like a point guard in basketball. He can get the ball to other people and be highly accurate in his reads. Being an in-state kid who knows our system, it was a no-brainer. It was a steal for us.”   Howell could be joined in ENMU's offensive backfield some day with former Piedra Vista teammate Zach Mora-Dotson, who could play running back, fullback or slot receiver for the Greyhounds.   “What we liked about Zach is he knows the offense and he's mentally and physically tough,” Lee said. “He broke his leg and rehabbed like crazy last season and got back in time for the playoffs. We play with three running backs every down. The fact he knows our offense and can play at least three different positions is great.”   2023 NM SIGNEES – EASTERN NEW MEXICO:   OFFENSE (5): Franklin Finch, OL (Sandia); [player_tooltip player_id='542468' first='Logan' last='Howell'], QB (Piedra Vista); [player_tooltip player_id='541112' first='Braxton' last='Masters'], OL (Clovis); Zach Mora-Dotson, RB/WR (Piedra Vista); [player_tooltip player_id='138039' first='Robert' last='Nora'], RB (Clovis).      DEFENSE (10): [player_tooltip player_id='138080' first='Austin' last='Blair'], OLB (Carlsbad); Jabby Cooper, DB  (Albuquerque High); Wesley McKibben, DL (Carlsbad); [player_tooltip player_id='138041' first='D.J.' last='Moore'], DL (Carlsbad); [player_tooltip player_id='270224' first='Caden' last='Moreland'], OLB (Socorro); [player_tooltip player_id='138050' first='Kenyon' last='Singleton'], LB (Hobb); [player_tooltip player_id='138069' first='Ryan' last='Stovall'], OLB (Alamogordo); [player_tooltip player_id='545865' first='Zedekiah' last='Thompson'], DB (West Mesa); [player_tooltip player_id='544210' first='Zebadiah' last='Thompson'], DB (West Mesa); [player_tooltip player_id='138085' first='Dalton' last='Trapp'], DL (Ruidoso).     ATHLETES (1): [player_tooltip player_id='137916' first='Dane' last='Naylor'], QB/DB (Carlsbad)   SPECIAL TEAMS (1): [player_tooltip player_id='335475' first='Kaden' last='Bell'], PK (Los Lunas).   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ENMUAthletics/status/1625600081985695744 </div></figure>     <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/CoachKelleyLee/status/1623142203836231680 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ENMUAthletics/status/1621264260419690496 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/trapp_dalton/status/1620825510816407552 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM/status/1620957305134268416 </div></figure>

During Kelley Lee's first stint as Eastern New Mexico head coach (2017-20), the Greyhounds dominated in-state recruiting, often signing a dozen or more NM prospects annually.