By Vernon Robinson
Progress
Flanked by his VVHS coaches, Alejandro Rivera signs to play football at Dakota Wesleyan University next fall during a brief ceremony last month.
A Virgin Valley High School football star recently signed to play the sport at the collegiate level this fall.
Last month, VVHS 2024 graduate Alejandro (Alex) Rivera signed a letter of intent to play football at Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, South Dakota.
“I’m very excited about this,” Rivera said in an interview last week with The Progress. “It’s been a dream for me and it’s a long time coming.”
Alex started playing organized soccer when he was 12 years old. That year he joined a high school club team in Wendover, Utah, where his family lived at the time. He was the youngest player on the team and the only sixth grader.
It turned out to be a great experience for him. That’s when he started dreaming about continuing to work on his football game throughout middle school, high school and then playing in college, he said.
“I shared my dream with my dad and he was very supportive,” Alex said. “Shortly after he passed away.”
In seventh grade, Alex had moved to Mesquite with his mother. But he continued playing club throughout high school. When he entered VVHS as a freshman, he made the varsity football team. He played for the Bulldogs all four years of high school as a starter.
During his senior year, Alex scored a total of 19 goals, an average of 1.1 goals per game. He also tallied 16 assists on the season.
Rivera said he began emailing college coaches across the country.
“Meanwhile, I was playing as hard as I could and waiting until I got my chance,” he said.
Alex got some answers from the coaches. But something about Dakota Wesleyan University’s program caught his attention.
“I spoke to the coach and he was very nice and showed a lot of interest,” Alex said. “We stayed in touch throughout the year and he kept pushing the process to get me there. “So I decided this was the program for me.”
Alex will be the only Nevada player on the team. He plans to major in Business Administration in school.
Alex expressed his gratitude to VVHS head coach Junior Flores, who is also his brother-in-law, for his support during his four years of high school.
“He always emphasized that if you worked hard, you could do something with it,” Alex said of his football playing. “He taught me to always play as if he (a college recruiter) was watching. “That inspired me.”
Alex is the son of Martha Rivera and the late Ramone Rivera.
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