We take a statewide tour for our NMPreps Week 3 recap of New Mexico high school football, bringing you the highlights from the No. 6 Las Cruces Bulldawgs' victory over the No. 4 Rio Rancho Rams, as well as Bernalillo's signature win over No. 25 Portales. #nmpreps

In a game riddled with penalties, the visiting No. 6 Las Cruces Bulldawgs pulled off a hard-fought 34-21 victory over the No. 4 Rio Rancho Rams, thanks to an outstanding performance by running back Daniel Amaro, who scored four touchdowns on the night. The win serves as a statement for Las Cruces, who rebounded after a tough loss last week to deliver an upset of their own.

Rio Rancho struck first, with quarterback JJ Arellano connecting on a 35-yard touchdown pass to tight end David Butler. However, Las Cruces answered swiftly, with Amaro charging in from inside the 10-yard line to tie the game.

Las Cruces quarterback Gunnar Guardiola added to the offensive pressure, throwing a touchdown pass to give the Bulldawgs a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

Amaro was the clear star of the night, breaking off 65-yard touchdown runs. He nearly had a fifth touchdown on a 30-yard run, but it was called back due to a holding penalty. Even with the setback, Amaro’s overwhelming performance proved too much for Rio Rancho to handle.

Despite Amaro’s heroics, the game was tightly contested, tied at 21-21 heading into the final five minutes. Arellano shifted to using his legs for Rio Rancho, picking up critical first downs and scoring the Rams’ final touchdown on a 1-yard run with 3:27 left in the third quarter.

But that would be all for the Rams. Exhausted, they couldn’t keep up as Amaro quickly responded with two more touchdowns in the closing minutes to seal the victory—one of which came on an electrifying punt return.

With the win, Las Cruces improves to 2-1 on the season, while Rio Rancho falls to 2-1, with both teams looking ahead to Week 4.

If you're looking for flashy football, this wasn’t it—but as predicted in our preview, this game was all about measuring where teams stand. The Bernalillo Spartans and No. 25 Portales Rams faced off for the third time in two seasons, with the Rams previously coming out on top in their 2023 matchups. This time, however, Bernalillo flipped the script with a hard-fought 14-7 victory at home.

The game started with fireworks in the first quarter when standout quarterback Uriel Castro launched a 60-yard touchdown pass, putting the Spartans up 7-0 early. On the other side, Portales, missing their star QB Paxton Culpepper for the season, turned to backup Dallas Lozano. Lozano managed to tie the game in the third quarter with a touchdown pass to Tommy Lopez, keeping Portales within reach.

However, Bernalillo’s Castro was not done. He connected with wide receiver Kenneth Saiz for another long touchdown pass midway through the fourth quarter, sealing the Spartans’ victory. With this win, Bernalillo improves to a perfect 3-0 on the season, while Portales drops their second consecutive game, falling to 1-2.

Continue Here

Friday, September 6th

Albuquerque 24, Alamogordo 21 - F

Bayfield CO 41, Aztec 7 - F

Bloomfield 55, Miyamura 0 - F

Chaparral 26, Santa Teresa 7 - F

Clayton 54, Tatum 42 - F

Cleveland 54 Clovis 0.- F

Cobre 32, Anthony TX 25 - F

Deming 45, Silver 6 - F

Dexter 34, Grants 12 - F

Dora 51, Floyd 0 - F

Durango, CO 17, Piedra Vista 6 - F

Eldorado 27, Cibola 20 - F

Escalante 56, Dulce 0 - F

Eunice 35, NMMI 30 - F

Gadsden 48, Clint TX 6 - F

Goddard 14, Valley 3 - F

Laguna-Acoma 52, Santa Fe Indian 0 - F

Las Cruces 34, Rio Rancho 21 - F

Logan 32, Grady 26 - F

Los Lunas 37, Farmington 28 - F

Lovington 47, Carlsbad 44 - F

Mayfield 30, Organ Mountain 20 - F

Menaul 51, Ramah 0 - F

Newcomb 20, Gallup 12 - F

Pojoaque Valley 14, Los Alamos 13 - F

Raton at Trinidad CO - Missin Score

Robertson 49, Santa Rosa 19 - F

Roswell 37, Hobbs 35 - F/OT

Shiprick at Kirtland Central - Missing score

Socorro 46, Cuba 0 - F

St. Michael's 42, Santa Fe 3 - F

Texico 32, Farwell TX 19 - F

Tularosa 48, Estancia 0 - F

Valencia 20, Belen 14 - F

Volcano Vista 28, Sandia 6 - F