Aidan O'Neill is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Pinnacle High School for AZPreps365.com

Pinnacle High School has become a launchpad for quarterbacks in Arizona, with talents like the New Orleans Saints’ Spencer Rattler and Nebraska’s Dylan Raiola passing through its ranks. Current quarterback Wyatt Horton is living up to those expectations. 

Since the age of 5, Horton grew up in the Phoenix area playing a number of sports, including football, with his friends. The versatile athlete utilized the skills he picked up from each sport to improve his overall athletic ability, but something about football felt different.

“I fell in love with playing quarterback,” Horton said. “Everything about it. The leadership, the way I have the ball in my hands every play. It started off as just a kid in the backyard.”

This same kid has always loved the process. Starting tackle football at age 7, Horton was the man under-center. Developing through youth football leagues, the position stuck and became a part of Horton. When he first started attending Pinnacle, he faced a daunting task: living up to the expectations set before him. 

The task became less difficult when the Pioneers’ iconic quarterbacks took Horton under their wings, providing him a sense of mentorship. 

“We have an incredible history of quarterbacks; an amazing lineage,” Horton said. “I know all of them personally. … Rattler and I are good buddies. What’s really cool is my older brother was Rattler’s wide receiver in 2020.” 

Getting a head start as a kid on these relationships made the transition to Pinnacle that much easier. Horton shined in his first couple years at the helm, leading the Pioneers to their first-ever 6A football final as a sophomore. It felt as if this was his position for the foreseeable future, until Dylan Raiola, the No. 1 overall recruit from the class of 2024, enrolled at Pinnacle. While most quarterbacks would shy away, Horton welcomed the competition. Raiola ended up playing zero games in a Pioneers uniform, transferring out of Pinnacle after Horton won the job, and roamed around the high football landscape with two seasons in Texas, one at Chandler HIgh School, and his senior season in Georgia. 

After a stellar junior season and picking up offers from Idaho State and others, Horton established himself as a Pioneers player who will not be forgotten. At this point, overcoming trials and tribulations and getting to the top, it would be easy for Horton to get caught up in the noise. Instead, he leaned on his faith in God to stay grounded. 

“God always will humble you if you need to be. I have one mission here on Earth and that is to make it to his kingdom,” Horton said. “Living everyday as grateful and thankful. Football has done an amazing job giving me a platform to talk about it and spread his word.”

Now a senior and committed to Idaho State, Horton looks forward to the next step in his journey. But for those around Horton, his way of life is much bigger than throwing the pigskin. Pinnacle Athletic Director David Abrams felt Horton’s impact from his first day in his new position. 

“I asked Coach if I could come out to just start meeting people,” Abrams said. 

“Here I am, standing on the sideline by myself, which is the way it needed to be, and here comes over No. 15. 'Hi, I’m Wyatt Horton. …Welcome to Pinnacle.'"

“From that moment, I knew that this was gonna be one of our guys.”

Horton has touched many in the Pinnacle community with his kind gestures, but his impact on the field also cannot be overstated. Using his dual-threat ability, Horton has amassed the 13th-most yards in the entire state of Arizona and 22 touchdown passes this season. The personal accolades are outstanding, but the goal of winning a state championship still remains. Pinnacle is the 16th-best team in the state according to MaxPreps and currently has a 5-3 record with two regular-season games remaining. Sitting in a similar position as last year, Pinnacle's quest back to the top remains achievable. 

“Wyatt has been a tremendous leader for us,” Pinnacle head coach Dana Zupke said. “He has been very intentional in trying to positively influence his teammates to support his vision for this year.”

The vision of success in life is clear for Wyatt Horton as he continues to trailblaze as an unforgettable pioneer.