As a redshirt junior, ASU’s Trenton Bourguet’s journey to becoming a starting quarterback has been anything but a smooth one.
Hailing from Marana, Arizona, near Tucson, the senior quarterback at Marana High School didn’t attract much attention from colleges. With no Division I offers on the table, Trenton had to take the path of a preferred walk-on, a decision that materialized after a meeting with former ASU coach Herm Edwards.
With Jayden Daniels, Joey Yellen, and Ethan Long—fellow ASU quarterback signees from the 2019 high school class—preceding Trenton, there were doubts about whether he would ever get a chance to step on the field.
After redshirting his freshman year with the Sun Devils, Trenton saw two pass attempts with one completion in one game during his redshirt freshman season in a 70-7 blowout victory against the University of Arizona.
At that point Trenton was hungry for more but was grateful to take anything that he could get.
“For me, just accepting my role, excelling in my role and just trying to be the best I can be,” Trenton said. “So, whether I was the third string, the backup, the starter, I tried to prepare like the starter.”
During Trenton’s redshirt sophomore season, he was once again benched behind Daniels and appeared in four games for the 8-5 ASU team mostly during blowout games finishes. He threw for 10 passes with a 70% succession rate, adding one touchdown against Washington State.
A change in tides came Trenton’s redshirt junior season after Daniels transferred out of Tempe to become an LSU Tiger. With an opening position, Trenton battled for a starting position with Emory Jones the entirety of the 2022 season.
During his inconsistent minutes while sharing the role with Jones, Trenton threw 145 completions on a 71% completion rate for 11 touchdowns and five interceptions in seven games.
At this juncture, three years into his journey, Trenton’s wild ride was only just commencing.
A true underdog
As one of the longest tenured Sun Devils on the squad, the five-year quarterback entered the 2023 season as an underdog once again when he was benched behind true freshman Jaden Rashada.
“For me, it’s kind of, you know, been my life story,” Trenton said. “You know, I’ve always been an underdog, always been overlooked.”
Rashada was off to a rough start for the Sun Devils, with a pass completion of 55% and throwing for two interceptions in ASU’s second game of the season.
When the news broke that Rashada would not be starting the following game against Fresno State, fans speculated who would be up next.
Trenton was the projected back up in ASU’s quarterback depth chart but the Sun Devils also had Drew Pyne and Jacob Conover to consider.
You know by now which way the decision went.
“It was exciting to get my name called obviously,” Trenton said. “Being the backup here the last couple years was not a role I was super used to.”
In a 29-0 loss against the Fresno State Bulldogs, Trenton earned his first start of 2023, throwing for 47 yards, completing six of eight passes.
He was beyond excited to finally earn the starting position but fell short in his debut. He threw for one interception during ASU’s first offensive drive and was injured during its second.
“It’s frustrating, but like I said, you know…for me just trying to recover, trying to get back to 100% or as close to 100% as I can,” Trenton said. “I’ve been fortunate to not have too many injuries growing up and the last couple years I’ve been dinged up.”
As ASU was frantically scrounging for the next man up, Trenton was working hard to get over his injury. He had a taste of the true-starting position and he was going to do anything to get it back.
Spending only one game on the sideline, Trenton returned against Cal and helped pull the ASU squad to a close 21-24 loss against the Golden Bears.
Having been the underdog for numerous years, Trenton was determined to strongly advocate for himself as the next ASU starter.
“I’m not the biggest guy. I’m not the fastest, I’m not from you know, a big state of Texas or California,” Trenton said. “But for me, I know what I’m capable of doing and just earning my players around me trust and the coaches…controlling what I can and trying to be the best teammate that I can be.”
Trenton has proved to his teammates time and time again that he is the best teammate, so much so that he has found himself living under the same roof as a few of them.
Three QB’s: One roof
ASU tight end and sometime stand-in quarterback Jalin Conyers has spoken on living alongside Trenton in the past.
“He’s a clean freak so I try not to keep the house all messy and stuff,” Conyers said. “I try to think about that stuff because I know he’ll come and knock on my door and say, ‘Hey, you left this out.’”
To this quote, Trenton laughed.
He does in fact like to keep his living space tidy but it does not appear to affect their relationship in any way.
“We like to watch football (and) basketball… we’ll go to a bunch of different sporting events,” Trenton said. “But it’s been super cool to have him as a roommate this year. It’s made a lot of memories for sure.”
The living situation has certainly elevated the quarterback and tight end’s connection on the field to a different level as Trenton has targeted Conyers on 14 occasions in the limited amount of time that the duo have spent on the field together.
Along with Conyers, star running back Cam Skettebo is also considered a roommate to the duo.
“Those are some of my closest friends on the team,” Trenton said. “It’s been awesome you know…we play Madden all the time.”
It seems that the Trenton-Conyers-Skattebo household serves as a breeding ground for cultivating exceptional quarterbacks. Conyers has taken two snaps at QB with a 100% completion rate and Skattebo has taken eight snaps with 50% completion, throwing for 85 yards and one touchdown.
In a three-win season for the Sun Devils, coach Kenny Dillingham has truly pulled out all the tricks and is using the three players to their full extent.
From not thinking that Trenton would share a lot of field time with the duo to starting alongside them, he has been extremely supportive of the duo taking a few snaps, even acting as a coach for when they have any questions.
“To see them be able to step in that role, you know for emergency situations…it’s been super cool,” Trenton said. “To see them accept that role and embrace it and they have a lot of questions and we’re talking ideas back and forth.”
In addition to sharing the field with his current roommates, Trenton also has former roommates who have joined him on the playing field.
The Bourguet Bunch
As a late arrival to ASU’s 2021 season, Trenton’s younger brother Coben Bourguet is currently repping the maroon and gold as redshirt sophomore wide receiver.
In Coben’s third year with the ASU program, he has yet to record any statistics but did see some playing time against Utah this season.
On top of a fellow Sun Devil in Coben, the two’s younger brother Treyson Bourguet decided to venture off north to West Michigan and become a Bronco. Following in Trenton’s footsteps, Treyson also embraced the role of a quarterback.
Trenton and Coben got the chance to head out to Kalamazoo to watch Treyson during ASU’s bye-week. The only time that the Sun Devils have been able to see their younger brother at work.
“Super cool to see him do his thing,” Trenton said. “And he’s out there, you know, he’s far away from home but he’s having fun for sure in the cold.”
The youngest of the Bourguet college bunch is the three’s younger sister Rylen, who is a true freshman on the ASU’s beach volleyball team.
With a family full of athletes and two siblings that have not yet hit college, it can be hard to divide and conquer for the children to all see one another play in their respective sports. Nevertheless, they all make a concerted effort to support and celebrate the achievements of their talented family members to the best of their abilities.
Given that the Bourguet’s grew up in a suburb of Tucson, the dreaded question had to be asked.
Was Trenton a Wild Cat growing up?
“I didn’t miss a home football game for you U of A from the time I was born to the time I was like 14,” Trenton said. “Lived 15 minutes away from the campus and you know, tailgating, went to all the basketball games, softball, all the sporting events.”
So, yes. Unfortunately, he was.
Trenton admits that he was not a big Sun Devil fan growing up given the civil war rivalry but did in fact have a bit of ASU in his blood. Both of his parents and his grandfather are ASU alumni, so it was only fate that Trenton would find his way to the good guys and follow in their paths.
A path that Trenton is endlessly thankful for. He is now a Sun Devil for life.
“For me, I was just blessed to be given the opportunity to come here,” Trenton said. “I’ve loved it and it’s been an awesome experience.”
