Mateo Arenas is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Pinnacle High School for AZPreps365.com

Pinnacle High School is known for its quarterbacks. From Spencer Rattler and J.D. Johnson, who were featured on Netflix’s “QB1:Beyond the Lights,” to Brian Lewerke, the Pioneers have been synonymous with premier prospects under center.

After a breakout sophomore season in which he led the school to its first Arizona 6A Championship appearance, Wyatt Horton appeared to be the next top “QB1” to come out of Pinnacle.

In the offseason, Horton’s future as a Pioneer was suddenly put into question after the No. 1 quarterback recruit in the nation, Dylan Raiola, transferred in from neighboring Chandler High School. In this age of the transfer portal and name-image-likeness deals sweeping the college ranks by storm, most players in Horton’s position would have sought out a new home as Raiola settled in as a Pioneer.

That was simply not in Horton’s character, though, and the incumbent starter was ready to take the challenge head on.

“Being a quarterback at Pinnacle is an honor, which means everyone wants to do it,” Horton said. “Everyone’s going to want to go to Pinnacle and try to be the quarterback. [In] my sophomore year last year, you don’t just get a job as a QB1 at that type of school. I had to go in there, and at a young age I earned everything I’ve got. I beat out a junior and a senior last year, and led my team to a state title game. Dylan Raiola transferred over, the number one quarterback in the country. I really had to prove why I’m QB1 at this school, and that’s what I did.”

After an issue regarding his transfer with the Arizona Interscholastic Association, Raiola transferred again during the offseason, this time to Buford High School in Georgia, all before playing a down as a Pioneer. Horton proved to have made the right decision to stake his claim at Pinnacle, and is off to a great start to his junior season. The Pioneers currently boast a 6-3 record and are ranked as a top team in the state. After dealing with all that transpired in the offseason, Pinnacle head coach Dana Zupke was proud of how Horton kept his focus on what he could do as a football player.

“Wyatt is a tough competitor,” Dana Zupke said. “I was not surprised at how he handled that situation. Most QBs would have transferred. It says a lot about his toughness and character.”

With it being Horton’s junior season, it also is a big season for the recruitment process. Horton currently is ranked as a top 25 recruit in the state of Arizona for the class of 2025 by 247 Sports, with Division I offers from Utah Tech and San Diego. Still very early in this process, Horton understands it is important not to rush it, as he has taken visits to USC, TCU, and SMU in the past weeks. 

Not only is Horton going through this process for the first time himself, but has also made the effort to help his teammates through it when he has the chance.

“Whenever [Wyatt’s] on the phone with coaches, he always talks really good about me,” Pinnacle receiver and fellow top recruit Jace Pina said. “He’s always uplifting and telling me how much better I can be at doing something, if I really don’t have my head in it. Whenever I’m with him, he will always help me if I don’t know what to text a coach or how to respond to [difficult] questions.”

Standing at 6 feet, Horton knows he is undersized compared to most top quarterback prospects, and this can be a big emphasis in recruiting. Although schools might not see him as “blue chip” on paper, Horton lets his play speak for itself, similar to another Arizona-bred quarterback who currently is taking the NFL by storm after an “irrelevant” start to his professional career.

“I get compared to Brock Purdy a ton,” Horton said. “He played at Perry [High School]. I’ve trained with Brock before, and he and I play a lot. We always have that chip on our shoulders. I think with being an undersized quarterback, you have to have a lot of those tangibles that a quarterback has to have, and to do it well.”

Purdy played at Iowa State and was picked by the San Francisco 49ers with the final pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, making him “Mr. Irrelevant.”

While Horton has a bright future ahead, he emphasizes staying grounded through the remainder of his career at Pinnacle. The Pioneers are in a playoff race, and aim to get back to the championship game they fell short in last season. No matter what is thrown at him, Horton has shown time and time again that his winning mentality will win out in the end.