2024 NFL Latino Youth Honors: Meet the eight finalists rewarded with a trip to the Super Bowl

NBC Sports

04-02-2025

When the Chiefs and Eagles go head-to-head at Caesars Superdome for Super Bowl LIX on February 9, there will be eight particularly talented football players in attendance – and none of them play for either team.
These eight athletes – four male, four female – are the finalists for the second annual NFL Latino Youth Honors, an initiative that recognizes outstanding high school tackle and flag football athletes who excel athletically and academically.
The nominees are all high school seniors with Latino heritage, with 59 athletes in total representing the 32 NFL teams (up to two per club – one male, one female). The field was narrowed down to eight finalists, each representing one of the eight NFL divisions and all of whom will receive grants toward college – $25,000 to both the male and female national winners and $5,000 to the remaining six finalists.
In the long term, the hope is that the grants will prove invaluable. In the short term, eight teenagers and a family member of their choosing will get the experience of a lifetime: participating in Super Bowl LIX Week in New Orleans and attending the big game.
Below is a sampling of their inspiring stories, which may have you jumping off the coach, ready to pursue excellence in your own life.
The finalists for the 2024 Latino Youth Honors are:
AFC North: Edson Pacheco - Painesville, OH - nominated by the Cleveland Browns
AFC South: Paola Cruz-Ramos - Crescent City, FL - nominated by the Jacksonville Jaguars
AFC East: Cecilia 'CeCe' Beauchamp - Bronx, NY - nominated by the New York Jets
AFC West: Paula 'Nicole' Cruz - Calexico, CA - nominated by the Los Angeles Chargers
NFC North: Mariano Talamantez - Racine, WI - nominated by the Green Bay Packers
NFC South: Lucas Carranza - Charlotte, NC - nominated by the Carolina Panthers
NFC East: Joel Cordoba - Plainfield, NJ - nominated by the New York Giants
NFC West: Sophie Guitron - Redondo Beach, CA - nominated by the Los Angeles Rams
Now let's meet these multidimensional young adults who didn't just tick the boxes of the selection criteria. Rather, they are true 'student-athletes' who value their sports (yes, many play multiple), their education, their community, and their heritage.
Masters of the balancing act
Lucas Carranza, a center from Olympic High School in Charlotte, North Carolina, is known for his perfect record of never having allowed a sack throughout his career, helping his team accumulate over 4,000 all-purpose yards in 2023. Still, being a center is often a thankless job.
'I don't usually get much recognition from things because I play offensive line,' Carranza said.
He's been playing football since he was 4 years old, is on the wrestling team, serves as a student athletic trainer (something he is interested in pursuing as a career), and works multiple jobs throughout the year, including one at Food Lion – a grocery store chain.
When I talked with him just a few days before Christmas, he was getting ready to leave his house for a wrestling tournament that would occupy much of his weekend. Considering football and wrestling (and being a captain of both teams), school and work (he works most Sundays and says he clocks 20-25 hours per week during breaks), it's a natural question to ask, 'How do you balance it all?'
'Before, I couldn't really find the balance of doing all my work on time, then still having to practice every day, and then, after practice, being tired,' Carranza admitted. 'And sometimes after practice I would have to go to work, and it was just a lot.' But he recognized the challenge and simply… adjusted. 'If I [have] a project, I'll work on it the first day and it'll be due in like a week. I'll finish it in like a day or two, just so I don't have to worry about it anymore. Just easy from there.'
Edson Pacheco can relate to Carranza's balancing act.
Pacheco, an offensive lineman from Thomas W. Harvey High School in Painesville, Ohio, didn't play football until his sophomore year. He was only in the marching band his freshman year, but he told his friends, 'I think I want to play football next year.' When they asked what position he would play, he said he didn't care, he just wanted to be a part of it, part of the culture, and he was ready to jump in.
And if you thought Pacheco would be ditching the trumpet for the football field, you would be mistaken.
For the past three years, Pacheco has played in the marching band and played football, jumping from guard (sophomore and junior year) to tackle (junior and senior year) and even played a little center too ('I wasn't the best,' Pacheco laughed).
'I take a few mental notes, and on the last play of the half, you gotta go straight to the field,' Pacheco said, describing the experience of a typical gameday. 'You gotta remember all your starting notes. You gotta remember all your sharp placements. You gotta remember what yard line you line up at... [It's] a hectic summer and fall. It definitely was, because you have to split practices. My philosophy on it was, 'keep everybody happy.' If I miss something, make sure I don't miss it too often. And I just made sure that I had enough of a grasp on both things that I wouldn't fall short.'
'When it comes down to it, I am a member of the marching band and a football player. I don't think either one of those could come solo. I don't think I could ever mention one without the other.'
Unlike Pacheco, Sophie Guitron, a member of the U.S. National U17 Girls Flag Football Team, had to choose between her sports.
Guitron did track and field for two years but had to drop it for her club flag football team. The former sprinter, pole vaulter, and long jumper lives in California – notorious for its traffic. At one point, she was commuting about an hour to 'receive that higher level of education' – 'I really value the balance between education and sports' – but, eventually, her family moved 10 minutes away from her school. Then, she joined the Conquer Chargers flag football club in Orange County, and her commute is once again an hour and 20 minutes to get to practice Mondays and Thursdays. Luckily, her mom will shoulder the burden of driving when she can, but sometimes Guitron has to deal with the frustration of traffic before and after practice on the days her mom can't take her.
Cecilia 'CeCe' Beauchamp, the four-year starting quarterback and captain of the Bronx High School of Science flag football team in New York City, might take the cake for craziest schedule.
Are you ready?
Beauchamp plays tennis in the fall (her 'hobby' sport), basketball in the winter (her former No. 1 sport), flag football in the spring, and rugby year-round (winter is slower, but it's busy in summer and fall). She's the captain of all three of her school teams, and in addition, is a member of the jazz band – writes her own music, plays electric bass, guitar, 'a few others,' and sings. Somehow, the 'big, big nerd' (her words) also finds the time to do medical and mental health research. She wants to do something with 'hands-on research applications' as a career.
'My personal research has to do with the correlation between music and reduced depression in adolescents, which has been amazing and I love working on it, so I definitely want to continue on that path in my future, because I just want to help people,' Beauchamp explained.
In Beauchamp's case, she says practice is when she gets to 'unwind and be authentically [herself].' It's her chance to reset from a really stressful or hard school day. Once she gets home, she's able to be productive and do homework or whatever else is needed.
'Because I go to a very academically rigorous high school, I always say that the sports that I play are the reason that I succeed in the classroom, because it gives me an outlet to be able to breathe, to be able to express myself physically and be around people that I love.'
No, their lives aren't perfect
It'd be easy to think these athletes are able to balance so much thanks to a lack of other challenges, or thanks to the relative simplicity of life in high school. But while it may be true that high school is a much smaller pond than the 'real' world, these teenagers have faced their own share of challenges.
Paola Cruz-Ramos, a corner and receiver from Crescent City High School in Crescent City, Florida, recently had to grow up fast when her parents divorced last year.
Pacheco's mom moved to Mexico half a year ago, and he wasn't expecting to see her again until his graduation in May. But both his mom and dad, who are also separated, were there as a united front when he was announced as a finalist before the holidays.
And then there's Guitron, who had open heart surgery the summer before starting middle school.
Guitron had been playing soccer her 'entire life' since she was a toddler, but she had to stop in fifth grade when she got sick and was hospitalized for a month. Doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong initially, but she was eventually diagnosed with systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (sJIA), which causes internal inflammation of the organs.
When doctors were checking for inflammation around her heart, they found she had a heart condition, even though it wasn't what they were originally looking for.
'I kind of lucked out with that one, because they were able to find a heart condition that I didn't even know that I had, and I've been playing sports my whole life, so it was always a possibility of a heart attack… I'm really blessed to be alive.'
On August 2, 2018, Guitron had her chest opened up to fix the issue.
'I think [the surgery] was probably one of the hardest things,' she said. 'It was harder than being hospitalized and catching up with all that work that I missed because, for me, sports was such a way of life, so it was really hard for me to accept the fact that I couldn't run. I couldn't speed walk because they were afraid that my heart rate was going to kind of get too high. Then I'd just collapse.'
Guitron stopped physical activity after that and didn't start again until she started tossing the football around with some of her classmates at lunch in the seventh grade. They asked her to join the rec flag league; she ended up getting 'Super Bowl MVP' at the end of that season.
She still has yearly check-ups with her cardiologist. They do an Echo, an EKG, and a stress test. If all is good, she's cleared for another year of sports. As for the sJIA, she was in remission for a while, but it recently flared up last May – she says, probably due to the stress of AP tests. Currently, she gets a monthly injection to control it.
Guitron wanted to make a point that her faith as a Christian has fueled her, saying, 'God has really been my true strength, and he gives me the courage and the wisdom and the strength every single day to keep playing flag and he just blesses me with so many opportunities, and he really got me through the lowest valleys in my medical struggles.'
Rooted in heritage
Of course, one of the requirements to be nominated for this honor is to be Latino/Hispanic. Their heritage is something the finalists are particularly proud of.
Carranza's dad is from El Salvador. He moved to the States in the '80s because he was in the military and met Lucas' mom in California. The family still has relatives back in El Salvador, including Lucas' sister and grandfather, and they visited them a couple summers ago.
In their household, and many of the finalists' homes, food is a big way they keep their culture present.
'He's always cooking crazy foods, and they're all so good,' Carranza said of his dad. 'My stepmom, she would make pupusas, and they're like the best thing ever – they're so good.'
Cruz-Ramos' parents are both from Mexico, so they're always eating Mexican food and always talking in Spanish (a language many of the finalists speak fluently).
'I'm always making tortillas for my dad because he needs those to eat,' Cruz-Ramos said.
She added, 'I feel like I'm proud to be Mexican because I feel like everyone should be proud of where they come from, but most importantly, because I'm proud of my parents and everything that they've accomplished.'
Guitron's mom was born in Mexico and became a U.S. Citizen, and her paternal grandmother was born in Mexico.
'My grandma's dream was to get to the United States, and my mom's dream was for me to go to college, and now I'm about to go to college, so just being able to fulfill those dreams for her and show her and my grandma that their hard work is paying off is truly a blessing,' Guitron said. 'I'm blessed to have all the opportunities that I've had and to be able to overcome my medical challenges and still be able to kind of grow as an athlete and as a person also.'
We often hear the phrase, 'representation matters,' but how do we know it matters?
Beauchamp highlighted those lining up beside and across from her:
'I'm not used to playing against people that are Puerto Rican or Dominican or Mexican. And it's just a very important part of me to be able to express myself and be who I am, authentically.'
'It's amazing to see that an award like this exists,' she said. 'An award for people that are amazing on and off the field, and also people that are of my culture – that was unreal to me.'
Pacheco pointed out Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, who is also Hispanic, as someone he looks up to.
'I remember I used to look up Mexican quarterbacks on the internet, you know, trying to look for something, somebody to relate to,' Pacheco said.
Both of his parents are from Mexico, having moved to the States in the '90s. They practice the religious Christmas tradition of Las Posadas, which is celebrated in Mexico and other Latin-American countries. It commemorates the journey of Mary and Joseph from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
'There's just so many things I love about Mexican heritage, and I think the primary one I like is just the fact that it's always rooted in creating the best future for yourself,' Pacheco said. 'That's what I love about my parents. I mean, my dad always pushes me like, 'You're gonna be better than you think you are, and it's gonna be great and you're gonna love it, you just need to keep working hard.' He always reminds me, you know, make sure your homework is done. Make sure you don't miss a practice. Make sure this or that. And I think that's one of the main parts that I love so much about being Mexican. Hard workers – that's what we are, and I love it so much. I love that I can label myself as a Mexican.'
Being inspired and inspiring others
These young adults have been and are inspired by their family members, their teammates, their coaches, and even professional athletes. They succeed, and then they inspire others, whether it be a 60-year-old in Maine or a 5-year-old in New Mexico.
Carranza mentioned his offensive line coaches and one of his teammates, right tackle Kilan Harrison, as the people in football who have made the biggest impact on him.
'I've had three different [offensive line coaches] in like three years, and I've always had a different connection with them than any other coaches, because I had to always talk to them the most,' Carranza said. 'They always give me advice about things.'
His coaches and Harrison helped Carranza get through this past season, when he had to sharpen his leadership skills as the senior guy on the line.
'Earlier in the season, [Harrison] got injured and he couldn't play the whole season, so I had to play the whole year with younger offensive linemen – so like sophomores and juniors. I was the only one out there that had varsity experience before, and it was just tough… I'd go to the sideline, Kilan would be there, and he'd be like, 'I see what you're going through, it's okay. Everything's gonna be alright, y'all are doing good.''
Mariano Talamantez, a quarterback-turned-linebacker from St. Catherine's High School in Racine, Wisconsin, made an admirable sacrifice this past season.
'At the age of four, when I first picked up a football, I was playing catch with my dad, and that's when I decided I was going to be a quarterback,' Talamantez said. 'So I actually have played quarterback all my life. I've gone both ways – I've played linebacker and quarterback through the years and then in high school up until my junior year. And then this year, I decided to just focus on linebacker – straight linebacker.
'That decision was a big decision for me to make. I kind of identified myself in that position as a quarterback, because the quarterback's got all the features of being a leader and he [is] the guy to look up to. But switching over to linebacker, that's when I recognized that the leadership is just… it's instilled in me, and all the traits, I can show that at any position.'
So why did he switch to linebacker full-time?
'We had seen the vision to make the state championship run, and my coach pulled me to the side and he told me, 'I can't risk your injury at quarterback.' We had another guy who could get the job done behind me. So it was really a sacrifice for the team.'
St. Catherine's won the WIAA Division 4 state title, with Talamantez picking off the opposing team on their first offensive play of the championship game.
When discussing the title run, Mariano shouted out his little brother, Mauricio, who is just 15 months younger than him. They've always played together, with Mauricio playing 'up,' and are best friends. They push each other to be better – 'iron sharpens iron' – including friendly rivalries like trying to finish with the most total tackles. Mauricio, a strong safety, won that competition last season, but this season, Mariano was victorious.
Pacheco also plays with a family member, but it's his nephew, Rodrigo Flores (who is like his brother), and they play baseball together.
One time, they were in a playoff game and were getting blown out. Pacheco wasn't a starter. A few weeks prior, Flores had told him how he was kind of sad that bench players were taking his at-bats in blowouts, since he wanted to keep trying to score even if they were down by a lot. It was the bottom of the fifth, and they were expecting to be mercy-ruled. When Flores' at-bat came up and their coach told Pacheco to hit for him, Pacheco spoke up.
'No, I'm not,' and he turned to Flores and said, 'Yo porque te voy a quitar el at-bat guey? Tu tomalo.' Why am I going to take away your at-bat, guy? You take it.
Flores replied, 'Yo te lo ando dando!' I'm giving it to you!
At the time, Pacheco had actually fallen out of love with baseball a bit, but Flores' response, letting him take his at-bat, helped him fall in love with the game all over again.
He ended up cracking a single into center field for his first hit of the season – 'So, technically, I'm hitting 1.000 in the playoffs!'
Bright futures
Several of the finalists have scholarship offers to play in college, but all have aspirations.
Carranza and Cruz-Ramos are looking at sports medicine and becoming athletic trainers.
Beauchamp was recently accepted to Yale, where she can play rugby with the club team on the DIII circuit. She's keeping her options open in case any of the other Ivy schools want to offer her for their Division I teams, but she's excited to continue her medical research wherever she lands.
Guitron is committed to play flag at Keiser University in West Palm Beach, Florida. She plans to do something with sports management and maybe business.
'Preferably sports management, to stay within flag football and kind of just grow the sport and be able to help future generations from a management position,' Guitron said of her interests.
Talamantez, who's committed to play at DIII Carthage College, wants to become a nurse, following in the footsteps of his mom and other family members.
'There's a lot of people in my family who are nurses, but I think, you know, just sitting down and thinking about it for a while, it's a hard question to ask: what do you want to do for the rest of your life? But my end goal in my career is I just want to help people out and make a difference in the world. So I feel like that's something that I could do through nursing, and that was really why I made my decision to go into that field.'
And Pacheco? 'I would love to be a pilot.'
He hopes to go to Bowling Green State University and join their aviation program. It's a recent dream, which he acknowledged in his application, saying, 'I always start things I love way too late. That was with football, that was with baseball, band, everything.'
One day, Pacheco said he wants to give a little kid his wings. It's kind of like how the NFL is giving these athletes their wings with this honor. They were ready for takeoff, they just needed that lift.
A once in a lifetime trip
All of the finalists found out they were one of the final eight in a special way.
Carranza was surprised at a Panthers practice, when he thought he was just going to the facility to take some pictures.
'All the players just kept coming up to me, and they're like, 'congratulations, congratulations.' I'm just thinking to myself, 'for what?' I didn't do anything. [They're] like, 'you're that one wrestling kid. You got a 4.0 GPA.' I'm like, how do you guys know this? Then the practice ended and the head coach, Dave Canales, called me over. He was like, 'Hey, come here, come here.' He had me stand up in front of the whole team, and he was just talking about me. Then he had me break 'em out. Then he said, 'One more thing: he's going to the Super Bowl.' It was just crazy. Something I'll remember forever.'
Pacheco was validated just by being nominated, let alone becoming a finalist.
'In middle school, I would not consider myself the best person, per se, but everybody was a mess in middle school. And I think football really introduced me to discipline and just being a better person and being humble. And I think [my coach] praised me a lot for that, because when I was being coached, it was all attention, it was all eyes, all ears. I don't think I'd ever been so focused on something in my life. And he praised me for the fact that I was so committed to uplifting others and uplifting the team. I just feel like I am selfless when it comes to football. And then he was like, 'I feel like you fit this description perfectly.'
'When I started playing football, I was like, this is probably going to be something fun I do for three years and then move on,' Pacheco said. '... I just never expected for something like [this] to happen. It was mind-blowing, really. And right then and there (when he found out he was a finalist), I felt like it was enough for me. Like that just completely validated everything I'd ever done in football when it came to that.'
They'll travel to New Orleans February 5 and have a busy schedule the rest of the week, including attending the NFL Honors on February 6, going to the Super Bowl Experience, having dinner with their fellow finalists, and attending the game.
'I remember a couple years ago, I was looking at the ticket prices of the Super Bowl, and I was on that website for about 10 seconds,' Pacheco, who only just attended his first NFL game this season, said. 'I think that's the fastest I've ever closed a tab in my life, if I'm being completely honest.'
All eight finalists get to bring one person to the Super Bowl with them, although some other family members will be tagging along to partake in the other activities throughout the week.
Talamantez is excited to share this 'once in a lifetime opportunity' with his dad.
'All the hard work that I've put in, he's put in the same amount of work. To get him out there from what I've been able to do in the classroom and on the field, it's just… to see that pay off for him as well, it's going to be big for me.'
Throwing a football was the first athletic thing Beauchamp's dad ever taught her, not caring that she was a girl. Her whole family will be in New Orleans, but while her mom will join her for the other events, she's taking her dad with her to the game.
'It's literally always been my dad's dream to go to the Super Bowl and watch – we have to do that together. It's gonna be a very full circle [moment]. I'm gonna make his dream come true!'
It's a pinch-me moment for all of the finalists and their plus-ones – and it was well-earned.