High school football- gotta love it- I certainly do. There is really nothing like it, and scouting Texas like I do I have seen some outstanding football over the past few years. But for my first entry- Let's talk New Mexico High School football.
It is a usually good year in New Mexico if one or two kids get D-I scholarships. In the decade of the 2000s New Mexico produced Alan Branch (Albuquerque Cibola) to Michigan, Dontrell Moore (Roswell High) to New Mexico, Aaron Lewis (Albuquerque LaCueva) to Texas, Hank Baskett (Clovis) to New Mexico, Rodney Ferguson (Albuqueruqe Manzano) to New Mexico, Chris Williams (Rio Rancho) to New Mexico State, Joey Garcia (Clovis) to Texas Tech and Landry Jones (Artesia) to Oklahoma. Forgive me if I overlooked any bigtime kids- but these are the headliners off the top of my head. Of course- in the 1990s- Lovington produced one of our greatest to ever put on pads- Chicago Bear All-Pro Middle LB Brian Urlacher (UNM).
2010 offers some interesting senior prospects from New Mexico, and I want to talk first about the kids I have seen in person. First kid I have to mention is Albuquerque LaCueva RB Ronnie Daniels (6'1-210-4.5). I saw Ronnie as a freshman all-purpose back at LaCueva in 2007 in a 27-21 Bears win over Clovis. Daniels finished the game with 4 carries for 25 yards and 1 TD and one catch for 24 yards. Daniels finished his 2009 senior season with 2,274 rushing yards (8.6/carry) and 32 rushing TDs for 12-1 LaCueva, who beat Las Cruces Mayfield 31-14 in the NM 5A title game. Ronnie ran for 199 yards on 44 carries and caught a 27-yard TD pass in the title game. Ronnie Dainels is a definite D-I BSC School type prospect.
Second kid I have seen play that I need to mention is DT Willie Pounds (6'5-315-5.2) of Albuquerque Eldorado. Willie has excellent quickness at the point of attack and does a good job of stopping the run up the middle. He is a competitive kid with a quick first step that plays hard and has a huge upside. He was injured during the 2009 season but was still selected 2009 NM Class 5A First Team All-State DT. Willie- who was also First Team All-State DT as a sophomore in 2008- helped the Eagles finish the 2009 season with a 6-6 record and reach the NM Class 5A quarterfinals, where they lost 36-29 to Las Cruces Mayfield. Like Daniels, Willie Pounds has the talent to play D-I ball for a BCS school, and could end up at OT.
Next kids I have seen in live action that I have to mention are a couple of kids from here in Artesia- WR/KR Koby Caton (5'9-165-4.55) and QB Josh Houghtaling (6'0-195-4.9). Caton is dangerous anytime he touches the ball. He finds lanes in the return game and gets though them quickly (37.8 per kickoff return with 2 TDs and 6 punt returns for 42.5 average with 1 TD). He has great hands and inflicts damage after the catch. I saw him in the disttrict 4-4A championship game vs Roswell Goddard (47-35 Goddard win) when he caught 4 passes for 90 yards and 1 TD (65 yards) and returned a kickoff 78 yards for a TD. Caton finished the 2009 season with 58 catches for 1,110 yards (19.1/catch) and 9 TDs. He's a little on the small side, but he has D-I/D-IAA potential.
Josh Houghtaling (pronounced HOT-ling) is a little raw but has a strong arm and can move around a little to avoid pressure. He's accurate but will occasionally try to force a pass into a crowded area. Houghtaling split itme as a junior with senior Devin Nelson. In 2010, the job is Houghtaling's. He completed 5-of-10 passes for 102 yards and 1 TD in the 47-35 loss to Goddard. Houghtaling finished the 2009 season completing 157-of-274 passes (57.3% for 2,192 yards with 22 TDs and 12 INTs. He also rushed for 90 yards and 4 TDs for the 7-5 Bulldogs, who lost 38-35 to Aztec in the NM Class 4A State quarterfinals. Houghtaling could have a huge season in 2009. He has D-I/D-IAA potential.
The last three kids I saw in 2009 that I feel have boderline D-I/D-IAA skills are all Clovis Wildcats- RB Quran Wiggins (6'0-188-4.5), RB Raymond Beechum (5'11-160-4.6), and FS/ATH Jordan Hill (6'0-175-4.6). I saw all three of these kids in a 31-14 win over Roswell Goddard, and all three played well. Wiggins looks like the stud to me. He is quick and has great vision. Wiggins sees the hole and has the ablity to cut into it and explode into the open field. He finished the Goddard game with 21 carries for 165 yards and 3 TDs and one catch for 15 yards. He finished a solid 2009 season with 1,313 rushing yards (6.5/carry) and 12 TDs for the 9-3 Wildcats, who lost 38-0 to Las Cruces Mayfield in the 2009 NM CLass 5A State semi-finals. Wiggins also caught 3 passes for 106 yards (35.3/catch) and 2 TDs and was selected 2009 NM class 5A Second Team All-State RB.
Raymond Beechum is also skilled. He is effective up the middle and on the edges. Beechum was very effective in the 4th quarter of the Goddard game, with 4 runs of 13 yards or more in the 4th quarter, including a 42-yard run on a delay right up the gut on third down and 20 late in the game. Beechum finished the Goodard game with 116 yards on 10 carries. He finished the 2009 season with 451 rushing yards (5.8/carry) and 3 TDs and caught two passes for 41 yards. Beechum also appears to be a good enough athlete to transition to the secondary. He is a marginal D-IAA kid, but he could improve his status with a big 2010 senior season.
Jordan Hill is a good football player and a good athlete. He has nice coverage and tackling skills and does not make many mistakes. Hill is a good athlete who plays CF on the Wildcats baseball team and also saw limited action at QB in 2009. He finished the 2009 football season with 73 tackles (49 solo) and 3 INTs for the Wildacats. Hill was selected 2009 NM Class 5A Second Team All-State DB. He has D-I/D-IAA potetnial.
Now for the prospects I have not had a chance to see live to this point. Aztec OT Matthew Hegarty (6'6-281-5.2) is the top prospect in the state by light years. He is a gifted athlete with great balance and athleticism. He is rated as a Top 5 National OT and a Top 30 overall national prospect by most. Hegarty has committed to Notre Dame. He will be one of the top players that has ever come out of New Mexico and could be playing on Sundays some day soon. Here's hoping he has a blue star on his silver helmet and that he is protecting Landry Jones. Coach Hirsch must be proud.
The next two best unseen (by me) prospects from NM are Las Cruces Mayfield OT/DT Matthew Rammondo (6'4- 270-5.2) and Raton QB Dustin Walton (6'4- 215-4.75) Rammondo is strong and competitive. He is a quick, agile kid and is a good athlete. He comes from one of the top programs in the state and is well coached in the basics. Walton is the nephew of Raton Head Coach Brock Walton. He is a strong, tough kid with a good head on his shoulder. He has nice arm strength and is a tremndous leader. I have game film on Walton headed my way and will be reviewing it shortly. Will try to see both gentlemen in 2010- Both are solid D-I prospects.
Other promising Class of 2011 seniors in NM:
Kellen Hester- 6'2-183-4.64- QB- Alamogordo
James Morehead- 5'11-180-4.6- RB- Albuquerque Sandia
Matt Jaramillo- 6'6-220-4.8- QB/TE/DE- Albuquerque West Mesa
Kevin Armstrong- 5'8-196-4.7- LB- Clovis
Isaac Leon- 5'11-210-4.7- LB- Albuquerque St. Pius
John Thompson- 6'4-234-5.2- OT/DT- Roswell Goddard
Zack Bird- 6'0-207-4.7- LB- Carlsbad
Tim Foley- 5'8-160-4.58-CB- Rio Rancho
Kevin Reaves- 5'7-155-4.55- RB/WR/DB- Albuquerque Manzano
Jacob Fender- 6'0-170-4.65- FS/QB- Los Lunas
Best overall class in New Mexico in ages. I am sure I have overlooked noteworthy kids-- I will try to discuss additional kids once the season gets underway or at some point prior to the Season. Gray Scouting Report 6-11-10
