Wake Forest’s Gio Lopez keeps Demond Deacons rolling
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Carlos Leon-Trejo, Contributor
- September 14, 2026
Nicholas Rodriguez, Gio Lopez highlight Week 2 recap of Latinos in College Footbal
Wake Forest’s Gio Lopez can do it all, it seems. The 6-foot, 220-pounder from Madison, Ala., puts the dual in dual-threat quarterback. He has the Demond Deacons rolling early in the 2026 season.
Lopez took over Wake Forest’s double-overtime thriller on the road against Purdue, gashing the Boilermakers with his legs to tie the game in double overtime and then again for the winning two-point conversion.
“We have an absolute big-time quarterback,” Wake Forest coach Jake Dickert told the media afterward. “He’s fast. In the toughest moments, the biggest spot, he’s taking hits, doing whatever it takes to win. He’s ultimate competitor.”
Lopez did it all in a 38-36 victory. He completed 16 of 27 passes for 225 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed for 59 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries.
Gio Lopez shows up early, late
For his heroics, Gio Lopez was named Our Esquina’s Latino Player of the Week for Week 2 in College Football.
“You win an overtime game, there is nothing more exciting than that,” Lopez told the Associated Press.
Carlos Hernandez led Wake Forest’s receivers with six catches for 88 yards. Purdue’s Rodney Lora had one tackle in the loss. Jacobo Echeverria Lozano was 3 for 4 on field goal tries with a miss from 49 yards for Purdue.
Here’s how most of the other Latinos in college football performed in Week 2. If we miss any Latinos, please let us know. Email CarlosLeon@OurEsquina.com to alert of any Latinos we may have missed.
Kentucky tight end Willie Rodriguez had eight catches for 49 yards in a 45-17 loss against Alabama. Texas A&M kicker David Olano made two field goals with a long of 39 yards. He added six PATs in a 48-20 victory over Arizona State.
Georgia Tech quarterback Alberto Mendoza was 26 for 40 for 221 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions in a 45-24 loss to Tennessee. Utah’s Steve Chavez-Soto had three carries for 18 yards in a 43-10 victory over Arkansas. Anthony Rubio had a five-yard carry for Florida against Campbell.
Nicholas Rodriguez shines at Mizzou
Nicholas Rodriguez led Missouri with eight tackles and one sack in a 38-21 victory over Kansas. Elijah Melendez had six tackles (two solo) and a sack to help Auburn beat Southern Miss 43-8. Ohio State sophomore Devin Sanchez had eight tackles in a 24-23 loss to Texas. Charlotte quarterback Cole Gonzales was 14 for 21 for 128 yards with one interception in a 41-9 loss to Ole Miss.
Oregon safety Peyton Woodyard had four tackles (two solo) in a 39-31 loss against Oklahoma State. Nathan Acevedo had a six-yard carry for San Diego State in a 28-10 loss to UCLA. Michigan State’s Nikai Martinez had five tackles in a 35-7 victory over Eastern Michigan. Senior defensive back Juan Salas had 11 tackles for Eastern Michigan. Hector Gonzalez added a tackle in the loss.
Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr. was 26-for-41 for 249 passing yards in a 16-14 victory over Utah State. Tyler Robles was 3-for-4 on field goal attempts with a long of 43 for the Huskies.
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Running back Matteo Perez showed up all over the stat sheet in UC Davis’ 56-10 loss to SMU. The senior carried the ball three times for 19 yards. He also caught a 6-yard pass and made one tackle on special teams. Aggie teammate Julian Fernandez also made one tackle in the loss.
Utah running back Steve Chavez-Soto had three carries for 18 yards in the Utes’ dominant 43-10 victory over Arkansas. Villanova linebacker Christian Caballero made eight tackles in a 59-13 loss to Louisville. Linebacker Popo Aguirre recorded three tackles in NC State’s 73-0 win against Richmond. Defensive back Cameron Martinez had one tackle in a 28-21 win against Rutgers.
Tony Rojas adds interception
Penn State linebacker Tony Rojas led the Nittany Lions with seven tackles (five solo) and an interception in a 27-9 victory over Temple. Josiah Zayas added two tackles for the Nittany Lions. Senior linebacker Curly Ordonez had a game-high 12 tackles and a sack in the losing effort. JoJo Bermudez rushed for six yards on two carries for the Owls.
Linebacker Antwone Santiago recorded one tackle in Virginia Tech’s 44-21 win over Old Dominion. Defensive lineman Dakota Quinonez made one tackle in Duke’s 31-27 win over Illinois.
Notre Dame wide receiver Devin Fitzgerald made his first collegiate catch. The son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald Jr. had a 20-yard catch against Rice. Safety Jo Chavez had four tackles (three solo) in the 52-0 loss for the Owls against Notre Dame.
UTSA receiver Dave Amador II, who was a quarterback at Houston powerhouse North Shore High, threw a 44-yard touchdown pass. He also had an 11-yard punt return and three catches for 26 yards in a 31-26 victory over Texas State.
Bryce Garza had four tackles for North Texas in a 44-6 victory over UNLV. The sophomore safety also had his first interception of his career. Navy quarterback Jackson Gutierrez was 6 for 12 for 100 yards with two touchdowns. He also ran for 75 yards and one touchdown on seven carries in a 38-30 loss to Florida Atlantic.
Tony Diaz propels Iowa offense
Tony Diaz had eight catches for 95 yards to help Iowa beat Iowa State 16-13. Defensive tackle Jareb Ramos had one tackle for the Iowa State Cyclones in their 16-13 loss to Iowa.
University of Houston kicker Jonathan Dimas went 11-for-11 in PAT’s in the Cougar’s dominant 77-6 victory against Southern University. Texas Tech backup quarterback Thomas Castellanos rushed for a seven-yard touchdown. Castellanos had an eight-yard touchdown pass in the Red Raiders’ 35-24 victory against Oregon State.
Arizona’s kicker Michael Salgado-Medina went 2-for-2 in PATs in the Wildcats’ 28-17 loss to BYU. Colorado wide receiver Danny Scudero had two catches for 13 yards in the Buffaloes 52-21 victory over Weber State. Linebacker Tyler Martinez had seven tackles (three solo).
Featured photo courtesy of Wake Forest Athletics.
Carlos Leon-Trejo
Contributor
Carlos Leon-Trejo is a co-host on the Bring on the Blitz! podcast on the Our Esquina network. A graduate of the Texas A&M-Victoria, his reporting credits include major stages such as the CONCACAF Gold Cup and the Big 12 Championship.
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