2021 Season Preview: Centennial Hawks
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Centennial 2021 Preview Head Coach: Aaron Ocampo Mascot: Hawks Twitter: @angrybirdfb Colors: Black, red and yellow Enrollment: 1,509 Spring Record: 1-2 Star Players: QB Ian Lopez Ian Lopez QB Centennial | 2022 State NM , OL Jacob Fielder Jacob Fielder…
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Continue ReadingCentennial 2021 Preview
Head Coach: Aaron Ocampo
Mascot: Hawks
Twitter: @angrybirdfb
Colors: Black, red and yellow
Enrollment: 1,509
Spring Record: 1-2
Star Players: QB Ian Lopez Ian Lopez QB Centennial | 2022 State NM , OL Jacob Fielder Jacob Fielder DL Centennial | 2022 State NM , DL Julian Holland Julian Holland 6'2" | OL Centennial | 2022 State NM , DL Seth Chavez, ATH Cole Runyan, WR Isaiah Abeyta Isaiah Abeyta 5'10" | 155 lbs | WR Centennial | 2023 State NM .
Breakout Star: QB Ian Lopez Ian Lopez QB Centennial | 2022 State NM .
Overview: Lopez shared snaps at quarterback with the graduated (and ENMU signee) Karsten Rueckner Karsten Rueckner 5'10" | 160 lbs | QB Centennial | 2021 State NM in the spring, but his Hudl film is loaded with big plays and plenty of improvisation. He can fire the ball to receivers from different arm angles and scramble from the pocket when he has to. Centennial must replace Isaac Gutierrez Isaac Gutierrez 5'10" | WR Centennial | 2021 State NM and David Gomez David Gomez 6'0" | WR Centennial | 2021 State NM at WR. Rising junior Isaiah Abeyta Isaiah Abeyta 5'10" | 155 lbs | WR Centennial | 2023 State NM takes over as the No. 1 WR. He started all three games in the spring and quietly had a solid campaign. Nathan Lara and Micah Gutierrez are the running backs. The offensive line returns lots of experience. Fielder becomes the new left tackle protecting Lopez’s blind side. Chavez and Fielder anchor the D-Line.
Schedule: As always, Centennial plays a rugged 9-game schedule (Gadsden opted to go independent). This year, the slate opens with a pair of home games against Class 6A power Cleveland and improving West Mesa. Two trips to Albuquerque sandwich a home game against local rival Mayfield. The campaign ends with potential three crucial games against district foes Carlsbad, Las Cruces and Hobbs.
Aug. 21 CLEVELAND
Aug. 28 WEST MESA
Sept. 3 at Sandia
Sept. 10 MAYFIELD
Sept. 18 at Atrisco Heritage
Sept. 24 Bye
Oct. 1 at Organ Mountain
Oct. 8 at Carlsbad
Oct. 16 LAS CRUCES
Oct. 22 HOBBS
Top Storyline: Will Centennial finally break through and become King of the Mountain in Las Cruces high school football?
Final Thoughts: Centennial has been a solid program for the past several years both in 5A and 6A, amassing 67 wins over the past 8 seasons. They’ve won 10+ games five times, a remarkable sign of consistency. What they haven’t done is knock the Bulldawgs from their perch as the No. 1 team in Las Cruces and reached the championship game of the state playoffs in Class 6A. Ian Lopez Ian Lopez QB Centennial | 2022 State NM could develop into one of the most dynamic players in the state. Aaron Ocampo has done a wonderful job building the Hawks program since the school’s inception in 2012 and this fall looks to be another good year despite Centennial’s reliance on younger players.
Coach’s Comments: “I can’t wait to see what Ian does this year. We played two guys at quarterback (in the spring) and that’s not ideal. But I thought a happy medium was to play both guys. Our players have a lot of confidence in Ian and he makes everybody around him better. He does everything real well. He provided a spark for us in the spring. . .One of our strengths is outstanding attitudes. We have the makings of a team that could have really good leadership. . .We don’t have a big senior class. Probably about 11 seniors, so we’re going to be young at a lot of positions this year. But we have some kids who can play and compete.” – Aaron Ocampo.
Check out my highlight – https://t.co/qavK4sctZW
— ian lopez (@ianlopzz) June 8, 2021
We just added to the All-State wall in the weight room. #whoisnext pic.twitter.com/ooeTzzFhGJ
— Aaron Ocampo (@Angrybirdfb) May 21, 2021
After Karsten Rueckner graduates from high school, he plans on attending ENMU to play college football and pursue his degree.
Please join us in congratulating Karsten on his upcoming graduation. Good luck and know you will always be a part of the Hawk football brotherhood. pic.twitter.com/pLgmPsDNbV
— Aaron Ocampo (@Angrybirdfb) May 10, 2021