ALLSPORTSTUCSON.COM CONTINUES ITS 50 POSTS FOR THE 50-DAY COUNTDOWN TO THE 2025 SEASON THAT STARTS AUG. 22 FOR SOME SOUTHERN ARIZONA SCHOOLS WITH A LOOK AT A LIST OF TOP CLASS OF 2026 RUNNING BACKS. CATCH UP WITH ALL THE POSTS BY CLICKING HERE.
.@SabinoFootball1 senior RB @HaleyZachari emerged as one of the top prospects in the state at his position last year, rushing for 987 yards on 164 carries with 10 TDs. That followed a sophomore in which he shared the backfield with Mason Cade and gained 578 yards on 104 rushes… pic.twitter.com/NZmtT3J9yp
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) August 14, 2025
TOP SOUTHERN ARIZONA CLASS OF 2026 RUNNING BACKS
Honor selections made by region coaches following last season.Honors are listed by region - 1 indicates first-team selection, 2 is second team and H is honorable mention.
*Denotes player who was also an all-conference selection.
| PLAYER | SCHOOL | Ht | Wt | Hnr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noah Chanez | Tucson | 5-7 | 160 | 5A1 |
| Holden Mikeworth | San Tan Foothills | 5-8 | 127 | 3A1 |
| Zachari Haley | Sabino | 6-0 | 170 | 3A1 |
| Cedar Haynie | St. David | 5-7 | 140 | 1A1* |
| Chase Pacheco | St. David | 5-11 | 180 | 1A1* |
| Michael Lujan | Buena | 5-8 | 190 | 5A2 |
| Jayden Simmons | Flowing Wells | 5-10 | 195 | 5A2 |
| Isaac Lugo | Sahuaro | 5-7 | 175 | 4A2 |
| William Thwaits | Sahuarita | 6-2 | 187 | 4A2 |
| Joseph Wretschko | Florence | 6-0 | 185 | 3A2 |
| Kameron Pippen | Palo Verde | 5-9 | 180 | 2A2 |
| Yahir Luna | Valley Union | 5-11 | 165 | 1A2 |
| Myles Richardson | Valley Union | 5-9 | 155 | 1A2 |
| DiAngelo Alexander | CDO | 5-7 | 182 | 5AH |
| Cameron Armstrong | Casa Grande | 5-5 | 170 | 5AH |
| Darian Dewitt | Marana | 5-5 | 140 | 5AH |
| Azarious James | Maricopa | 5-8 | 175 | 5AH |
| Christian Teah | Desert View | 5-11 | 180 | 5AH |
| Jeremiah Sandoval | Pueblo | 5-9 | 170 | 4AH |
| Smith Mangum | Thatcher | 5-9 | 150 | 3AH |
| Sebastian Blakeman | Tanque Verde | 5-10 | 155 | 2AH |
TOP 10 RETURNING CLASS OF 2026 RUNNING BACKS IN RUSHING YARDS
| RB | School | Car | Yds | TD |
| Haynie | St. David | 129 | 1219 | 15 |
| Mikeworth | STF | 172 | 1000 | 10 |
| Haley | Sabino | 164 | 987 | 10 |
| Lujan | Buena | 137 | 935 | 15 |
| Simmons | FW | 119 | 891 | 16 |
| Lugo | Sahuaro | 95 | 886 | 9 |
| Pacheco | St. David | 103 | 865 | 11 |
| Chanez | Tucson | 138 | 855 | 9 |
| Luna | VU | 106 | 750 | 8 |
| Armstrong | CG | 102 | 724 | 6 |
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator in 2016 and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.
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