Cibola has ‘a rare one’ in sophomore QB Aden Chavez
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (BVM) — It’s uncommon for a quarterback to set a state record in his first high school game, but football players like Aden Chavez don’t come around too often.
Especially not in New Mexico.
The Cibola Cougars opened the 2019 season against crosstown rival Sandia in a game that could be remembered for a long time as just the beginning of a special career for Chavez, who was only a freshman at the time but certainly didn’t look the part. The 6-foot-4 QB threw for 428 yards and six touchdowns in a 40-35 Cibola victory, showing no signs of the first-game jitters one would expect from a first-year player.
“They threw every blitz, every exotic-type stunt blitz they could throw at us,” Cibola head coach Roderick Williams said, “and we just had the answer for everything.”
Chavez’s performance not only broke the state record for most passing yards and touchdowns by a freshman in their first game, it also set the mark for most passing yards and touchdowns in a game by any varsity starter in New Mexico high school history.
“All of the plays were just coming to me and it was just a really good game for our offense and everything was opening up,” said Chavez, now a sophomore heading into a shortened second season with Cibola. “Coach Williams was calling the right plays to lead me to my success. Especially since I was like a smaller kid last year and I didn’t have that much weight on me, coach was definitely helping me through that entire game, calling a bunch of plays so I wouldn’t take hits and I would get the ball to my receivers and they could make plays.”
Chavez threw for 1,493 yards, 13 TDs and six interceptions in six games played before a knee injury sidelined him for the second half of his freshman season. Since then, the wait for his sophomore season has been considerably longer than what could’ve been anticipated.
New Mexico was one of the country’s last few states to get the go-ahead to play high school sports amid the Covid-19 pandemic, which created a difficult situation for a young, promising prospect like Chavez. While numerous states postponed the start of their football seasons, many players around the country moved to different states that had the green light to play football — players who, like Chavez, need to put more plays on film to improve their profile for potential college suitors.
Transferring was something Chavez considered before he ultimately decided to stay loyal to Cibola.
“Honestly it hurt, just the experience of watching what was happening with 47 other states playing and that was just a complete mood changer,” Chavez said. “But I don’t think I ever want to leave just because I want to bring a lot of success to Cibola. I’ve been born and raised here and that’s what I want to do.”
Chavez won’t have the chance to lead the Cougars to a lot of success as a sophomore. Cibola was only recently given the go-ahead to start playing football in what will be a very abbreviated spring slate of games as the New Mexico Activities Association now has to try to jam every sport into a three-month time frame. The Cougars have only two games on their schedule: Saturday at Volcano Vista and April 2 at home against Eldorado.
While that’s not much to work with, Chavez is ready to make the most of his limited opportunities this spring.
“I just want to get out of this year that I’ve improved,” Chavez said. “I’m not the same quarterback that I was as a freshman. I want to show that I’ve improved upon my knowledge, my arm strength, my speed, all of that since from freshman year.”
It might not be until later this fall that Chavez has a chance to show what’s capable of over the course of a full season, but for those who know him best, there’s no doubt that he’s ready to take the next step.
“He’s mature beyond his years and he’s probably the most intelligent quarterback I’ve ever worked with, definitely for his age,” Williams said. “He just gets the game and knows what to do. He sees things and makes it happen and it’s rare that he makes a bad decision.”
Williams knew well before Chavez played a game that he had a special talent on his hands. Chavez grew up in a football family with brothers who also played at Cibola and a father who has coached and who Williams said has helped groomed Chavez into the player and the person he’s become.
“I knew he knew the game really well because he and his dad have worked on it for years and I used to coach with his dad,” Williams said. “Watching him right away what he did is he just did all the right things to be able to be a freshman leading a team with seniors on there and we had some talented seniors. He just right away showed leadership.”
Along with his ability to lead at a young age, Chavez’s competitiveness has also set him apart from his peers.
“He’s a super tough competitor and that’s what people don’t realize,” Williams said. “I would put him against any kid on our team in a fistfight right now. He’s that dude. He just has it.”
Chavez, now closer to 6-foot-5 and nearing 200 pounds as a sophomore, has all the physical traits along with the skills and, as an honors student, he also the smarts to become a star beyond the state of New Mexico. The question is who will take notice of the promising young QB and when.
“He’s intelligent so if he got under any Division I system and coaching, he would shine,” Williams said. “I think he’d fit in anywhere. It’s just getting noticed out here and getting that recognition, but he has the potential to play big-time football.”
The last star quarterback to come out of New Mexico was 2015 Eldorado grad Zach Gentry, a former four-star prospect who went to Michigan where he switched to the tight end position which he now plays for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Chavez believes he has what it takes to become a high-level college recruit like Gentry was.
“I think with my work ethic I can definitely improve and keep getting better toward my senior year,” Chavez said. “I want to play college football because I love football and I want to play as long as I can.”
Williams has little doubt that Chavez has a long football career ahead of him, and if the opportunity presents itself, the burgeoning star signal caller will find success at the highest level of college football.
“You give him the time, the weight rooms, the facilities, all that stuff they have, he would shine,” Williams said. “He’s got the smarts, he’s got the character, he’s the total package. It’s just being in New Mexico where we have a hard time getting guys to see that we’ve got some real talent and this is a rare one here. You don’t see it come through New Mexico very often.”
