Mountain Ridge senior Aguilar goes D-I at Drake
This is the first in a series of profiles of Arizona high school seniors that signed with four-year colleges. Here's the full list (currently totaling 240) of players from within the state moving on to the next level.
SPOTLIGHT: 2/4/23
National Signing Day earlier this week rounded out the recruiting class at Drake University. The Division I, FCS school that plays in the Pioneer Football League had eight signees on Wednesday. The other 22 members of that 30-player class put pen to paper back in December during the early signing period. One of those was Christian Aguilar.
Aguilar is a 6-1, 220-pound linebacker at Mountain Ridge. He played all four years in the Mountain Lion program and was a team captain. Aguilar ranked second on the team in tackles and was the heart and soul of the Mountain Ridge defense. He had offers from a few schools and chose Drake largely because of the coaching staff.
"What made me choose Drake from the other schools was definitely the coaches," Aguilar said in an e-mail interview. "I could tell they were very invested in me and when I went on the visit, I instantly knew it was the right fit."
Aguilar saw action in a few games as a sophomore on a Mountain Ridge team that finished 3-6 in 2020. Over his next two years as a starter, he totaled 156 tackles, four sacks, and four forced fumbles. Aguilar was named to the First Team All-6A Desert Valley Region. More importantly, he helped the Lions make the playoffs in both seasons. The last time MRHS had accomplished back-to-back postseason trips was in 2009-10.
Mountain Ridge did this playing some of the best teams in the state in the 6A Conference. The Mountain Lions faced Casteel, Hamilton, Liberty, Centennial, and O'Connor. In 2021, MRHS upset Mountain View on the road in the first round of the playoffs. In last season's playoffs, the Lions gave it everything they had at Mountain Pointe before coming up a point short (on a failed two-point conversion) in the final minute.
"To see the growth was unbelievable," Aguilar said. "We kind of knew from the start that it was going to happen if we all stayed together and were consistent. To see the work pay off and go far was really special."
His recruitment from Drake began back in May during one of the multi-school showcase events. Six high schools converged at Pinnacle during that "Showcase Week". It was at that event where Aguilar met head coach Todd Stepsis. In late June, he went to the campus in Des Moines, Iowa for a tour where he sat down with defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Al Smith. It wasn't until after he compiled some senior film that the offer came from the Bulldogs in October. Aguilar committed in November before signing the next month. He took one more trip out there last weekend.
Schools in the Pioneer Football League cannot award athletic scholarships. It is a football-only, non-scholarship conference that began in 1993. Fortunately for Aguilar, he earned the academic presidential scholarship to help offset much of his expenses. He is planning to major in business and is excited about that program at Drake.
Aguilar credits a lot of people that had a hand in his success at Mountain Ridge. He feels that there were many that care about him not just as an athlete, but as a person.
"Some people who helped me along the way at Mountain Ridge were all my coaches, training staff, my parents, and especially my teammates," Aguilar said.
A couple memorable victories for the Mountain Lions last season didn't come on Fridays. In Week 2, a lightning storm delayed a road game in Surprise against Shadow Ridge to Saturday morning at 9 a.m. The team had to board the bus once again, this time much earlier than normal for a game, and warm up. The Lions trailed 13-0 at the half, but gained their focus in the second half for a 38-27 win.
"It definitely reminded me of Pop Warner days to wake up early and get all ready to play a game on the grass field," Aguilar said. "Also, I remember it being super hot that day and it wasn't the greatest."
A couple weeks later, Mountain Ridge played on a Thursday night at Apollo. Due to shortages with the number of game officials, many schools had to move a game from Friday to Thursday and Week 4 was the Lions' turn. This time, MRHS started strong, taking a 28-7 halftime lead before cruising for a 56-20 win. Aguilar had a game-high seven tackles, intercepted a pass, and forced a fumble. The game was streamed allowing others not there to take in the action.
Aguilar was one of four Arizona high school players to sign with Drake for this class. He was also one of six Mountain Ridge seniors to sign with Division I colleges. At the team's banquet, Aguilar was named one of the team's Defensive MVP's.
Drake has some momentum going into 2023. Not just from its 30 new signees, but also from a three-game winning streak to finish last year. The full schedule hasn't been released yet, but the Bulldogs (3-8 in 2022) will face defending-FCS champion South Dakota State in a neutral site game on September 16 (Week 3) at Target Field in Minnesota. The contest will be the third college football game in the 14-year history of the Twins' home ballpark.
