Mountain View hires Rene Elizondo to be the next flag football head coach

By Mason Byers

Staff Writer

There is a new era for the Mountain View flag football program.

The Mountian View Toros have hired Rene Elizondo to be the next head coach of their flag football program. This comes after previous head coach Jesus Arzaga decided to step down after the 2024 season.

Elizondo spent the 2024 season as the Higley Knights flag football offensive coordinator, where he helped lead the team to the playoffs.

Now he will take over a Mountain View program heading into its third season of AIA flag football. In the inaugural season for AIA girls' flag football, the Toros won the first-ever 6A state championship. The following season, in 2024, they finished in the final four in the 6A bracket, where they lost to the eventual 2024 6A state champion Hamilton Huskies.

It is safe to say Elizondo is excited to take over a prestigious Arizona flag football program and get started right away.

“I've had a lot of moments in my life that I'm like, wow, this feels like I'm at the top, but nothing beats what I felt when I got the phone call that they were moving forward with me,” Elizondo said. “I’m very eager to get things rolling.”

The Toros have high expectations with their first-year head coach, as they are returning 20 out of the 25 players from the 2024 season.

One of the more notable players returning will be soon-to-be junior quarterback Tierah Metcalf.

Metcalf has steadily improved in her first two seasons under center for the Toros, and Elizondo is excited to work with one of the better quarterbacks in the state.

“She has all of the tools to be very successful at a high level,” Elizondo said. ”I know one of her goals is to compete in the 2028 Olympics and I'm gonna do anything and everything I can in my power to get her there.”

The dual-threat ability Metcalf brings is something Elizondo hopes he can use to help bring in more wins for the program.

One of the main goals that Elizondo has for his 2025 group is to of course win the 6A state championship once again for Mountain View. Although his goals and aspirations for this program and his players go beyond just the 2025 season.

“I'm trying to get these colleges out here and put them on platforms so they can earn scholarships and have all their school paid for,” Elizondo said. “We want to win a state championship, we should win a state championship with this group. But at the end of the day, it's about the bigger picture for me.”