It was almost as if Aden Chavez never left.
After moving to Florida in the offseason in hopes of generating more interest from colleges, the senior quarterback returned to Cibola’s starting lineup to lead the Cougars to a mercy-rule shortened, 68-14 blowout of Valley at Milne Stadium on Friday night. Chavez gained his eligibility as a transfer from Holy Trinity High in Melbourne, Florida, through the New Mexico Activities Association appeals committee last week.
Against the Class 5A Vikings (1-1), the 6-foot-5 Chavez completed 22 of 36 attacks for 359 yards and three touchdowns. All three scores came in the first quarter, as Chavez connected with Marcus Wilson for 33 and 23 yards and with Branden Castillo for 20 yards. Chavez was lifted in the third quarter with Cibola (2-0) up 55-14. Chavez started hot, hitting his first four passes for 101 yards and an early touchdown to set the tone for what was to come.
“It was big team win, it wasn’t just me,” Chavez said. “… I can be better. Everyone else can be better. We’re all looking to improve.”
Even though Cibola was victorious against Eldorado in the opening week of the season in his absence, Chavez said he was welcomed back into the fold with open arms. He threw for 3,075 and 32 touchdowns as a junior for the Cougars.
“It was pretty seamless … Everyone kind of just accepted me back in, so it’s been really nice,” Chavez said. “That’s kudos to the team to include me back in after all that.”
While he was happy with how Chavez re-integrated himself into the offense, Cibola coach Chris Howe was most pleased with the overall team effort, which included a defense that forced five turnovers and scored two touchdowns and a ground game that hit paydirt on four occasions .
“I would say the big story is just the way we played as a team,” Howe said. “(Chavez) came in as a team player and we spread the ball around to all four receivers, the running game, defense had a bunch of turnovers – but it was a total team effort.”
As an added benefit, Chavez believes the time he spent in the Sunshine State will translate well to the gridiron in New Mexico.
“It was just a battle. I’ve gotten better. I did a lot—mentally grew, physically grew,” Chavez said.
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“It was a lot of stuff that I learned from the coaches out there that I think that I was completely brand new to, some stuff that they just opened my mind up to use out here.”
Chavez’s return is expected to enhance Cibola’s playoff prospects in Class 6A. According to Howe, it’s his makeup that has been key in making his transition back so smooth.
“It was (easy to bring him back). He’s a class act,” Howe said. “He took himself out of the spotlight. Hey just did Aden. That’s great for our team.”
CIBOLA 68, VALLEY 14
Cibola 28 8 19 13-68
Valley 0 8 6 0-14
Scoring: C, Marcus Wilson 33 pass from Aden Chavez (Brayden Mummert kick); C, Hayden Brownwell recovered fumble in end zone (Mummert kick); C, Wilson 23 pass from Chavez (Mummert kick); C, Branden Castillo 20 pass from Chavez (Mummert kick); V, Caeden Jojola 3 run (Tazhe Wilson run); C, Antonio Salcido 15 fumble return (Mummert run); Jojola 10 run (run failed); C, Anthony Romero 3 run (run failed); C, Castillo 1 run (pass failed); C, name unknown 3 run (Mummert kick); C, Jaiden Viramonte’s 2 run (Mummert kick); C, Peyton Harrison, 53 pass from Aiden Harrison. Rec.: C 2-0, V 1-1
First downs: C 23; V 5. Rushes yards: C 27-109; V 19-97. Passing: C, 26-41-1-448; V, 5-19-3-77. Total Offense: C 557; V 174. Punts avg.: C 2-33; V 4-24.7. Fumbles lost: V 3-3. Penalties yards: C -101; V 7-53.
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