A lot of factors prompted Fort Lupton’s Will Alvarado to choose Mesa State University in Grand Junction as his next educational and athletic stop.

“I love Mesa. It felt like a small town. It felt like Fort Lupton,” he said after signing his letter of intent May 12. “It felt like I knew a lot of the people. And, I knew quite a few of the wrestlers there. It felt like a family. Everyone there is nice, neat. I loved the room, loved the coaches, loved the staff, loved everything they accomplished already.”

Alvarado originally planned to head for Colorado State University-Pueblo but changed course.

“I loved Mesa more. It felt like a place I could love more for five years,” Alvarado said. “There were quite a few schools that got in contact with me. Mesa stood out to me.”

Alvarado had a choice of continuing to play football, baseball and wrestling.

“Wrestling has been a grind for me. It’s something I’ve been passionate about my whole life,” he said. “I like how much you have to depend on yourself, how much you have to put into it, how much of a grind it is. It’s shaped me physically and mentally, especially mentally. It’s helped me prepare for everything that’s going to come.”

Alvarado placed twice in the state wrestling tournament. He began wrestling in the Fort Lupton Metro Wrestling program.

“We were running our own tournament, and Will ran out of gas,” said FLHS coach Tommy Galicia. “In the middle of the match, Will tried to call a timeout. I told him, ‘This wasn’t Metro. You have to finish.’”

“I met Will when I was a senior (at FLHS) and Will was in seventh grade,” said assistant wrestling coach Lorenzo Vasquez. “We took him to a camp at Western (Western State University). I was surprised we’d take someone that young. Will is a competitor at all levels.”

Alvarado’s recruiting process felt some impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It made recruiting a little bit harder to get my name out there with short seasons,” he said. “Other than that, that was it.”

Alvarado wants to be a computer science engineer. His goal is to be a software developer.

“I'm excited. I’m ready to get on the mat, start rolling,” he said. “I leave June 1 to go up to Mesa and start wrestling. I’m ready for it all.”