Luke Foster is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Centennial High School for AZPreps365.com

The Centennial Coyotes (9-1) have held opponents to a staggering average of 12.2 points per game.

A stronghold in this defense is linebacker Aaden Nguyen, who has racked up 78 tackles, with seven of those being for loss. He leads the team in both categories. He’s also tacked on three sacks, two interceptions, and a forced fumble.

He does this all while playing special teams and rarely, if ever, missing a snap.

The senior linebacker squats, benches and power cleans 300 pounds. His mix of strength, intelligence and technicality leads to him being an absolute nightmare for opposing teams.

“Aaden is very smart, and he probably knows our defensive gameplan as well as coach [Andrew] Taylor,” head coach Richard Taylor said. “He knows what everyone else is supposed to do, and he calls out plays [the opponent] is going to run.”

In their win over Chandler High School on October 6, Nguyen lived in the backfield for the first half, and the Wolves had to change their gameplan at halftime, Richard Taylor said.

Yet despite his dominance, Nguyen is flying under the radar when it comes to college offers.

He only has one offer from a college in Oregon, and he is continuing to look to prove his dominance to other universities.

“I’m working to get an opportunity for someone to bless me,” Nguyen said.

Nguyen is from the Laveen area of Phoenix. His parents weren’t in a position to play sports when they were younger, so they jumped on the opportunity to have him play when he was younger.

The senior linebacker has been wanting an opportunity for a long time, he said.

“I’ve been chasing this dream of playing at another level since I was 5 years old,” Nguyen said.

Even Nguyen’s jersey number, 84, is double his youth jersey number. He said that this is to represent the growth in himself over the years. He said that he lives by the Bruce Lee quote, said in a 1971 interview, “You put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot.”

The senior star carries his adaptability onto the field and classroom. He is an AP student and carries a 3.75 GPA. He said he knows the value of school and takes advantage of it in order to stand out among other athletes.

Special teams coordinator Steve Isaac noted Nguyen’s intelligence.

“He cares,” Isaac said. “He knows the significance of one play.”

No. 3 Centennial begins post season play in the Open State Championship Quarterfinals against No. 6 Desert Mountain Friday, Nov. 17 at Centennial.