College football coaches will say just about anything to impress recruits.
Steelers running back Najee Harris told Yahoo that during his recruiting visit to UCLA, then-Bruins coach Jim Mora claimed to know who killed Tupac Shakur in 1996.
Salpointe Catholic High School quarterback Treyson Bourguet recently received an offer from Mora, now the first-year head coach at UConn. Bourguet, one of the state’s top undecided recruits for 2022, said Mora lived up to his reputation.
“I’ve heard some crazy stories,” Bourguet said of Mora. “I’ve also heard he went skiing with Snoop Dogg over winter break.”
Mora’s quirky connection to the Los Angeles rap scene isn’t the most bizarre experience during Bourguet’s recruitment.
The 6-foot-2-inch, 185-pound Bourguet earned his first scholarship offer from Vanderbilt as a sophomore in 2019, with Arizona, BYU, Idaho and others following suit. Bourguet committed to the hometown Wildcats only to change his mind after coach Kevin Sumlin was fired following a winless 2020 season. Bourguet has been closely monitoring the landscape as he determines his future school.
“I’ve been able to see the changes in recruiting over the last couple years,” Bourguet said. “Sophomore year, when I was committed to Arizona, the transfer portal wasn’t as big of a deal — neither was (Name, Image and Likeness), so those two things didn’t play any factor in my decision.
“I was just committed because I thought that was what’s best for me and my future. … NIL, transfer portal has caused craziness in recruiting.”
Arizona rescinded its offer to Bourguet after Jedd Fisch was hired, leaving the quarterback with offers from BYU, Northwestern, Portland State, Idaho and Columbia. Rather than prematurely committing to a school, Bourguet is delaying his decision. He has until Feb. 2 to sign.
Salpointe Catholic’s Treyson Bourguet, left, runs out of the pocket during the first half of the Class 5A state semfiinals between Salpointe Catholic and Goodyear Desert Edge. Bourguet, a senior, is one of the top undecided prospects in the state.
“Spots are opening up and spots are being taken, so I thought it was just in my best interest to hold off and see if there’s any more movement in schools that I’m interested in and hopefully an opportunity comes up,” he said. “If not, I’m happy with the options I have and feel very confident in what I can do.”
Bourguet recently landed an offer from Ohio University, and visited Athens County over the weekend.
“It’s a real college town. … They don’t have a downtown, it’s just a college and then a small population, so it was really cool and very different,” he said. “It was a very good and informative weekend.”
Bourguet also has an offer from Ohio’s MAC rival, Western Michigan. Bourguet told ESPN Tucson’s “Spears and Ali” on Tuesday that he’s zeroed in on BYU, Ohio, Western Michigan and UConn. Salpointe Catholic coach Eric Rogers starred at linebacker for UConn, serving as the Huskies’ team captain in 1998.
“At the end of the day I want to see them get back to their winning ways and that takes talent and leadership, and Treyson has both of those traits,” Rogers said. “Coach Mora is first class all the way. I’m excited to watch.”
Don’t rule out the possibility of Bourguet playing in the Pac-12 after all. Washington State, now under the direction of new coach Jake Dickert, has expressed interest. First-year Washington State offensive coordinator Eric Morris is flying to Tucson this week to visit Bourguet, though no offer has been extended. Bourguet is scheduled to take an official visit to Pullman next week.
Treyson Bourguet says he's impressed with Washington State's "Air Raid" offensive style.
Washington State has taken full advantage of the transfer portal, adding Incarnate Word transfer Cameron Ward before losing Jayden de Laura to the UA.
“Man, do they know how to throw the ball,” Bourguet said of Washington State. “They’re ‘Air Raid,’ that’s for sure. They definitely have a lot of success with quarterbacks and always find hidden gems. They might not get the five-star recruit who has all these offers, but whoever they get they know how to develop them.”
Added Bourguet: “It wouldn’t be bad visiting Arizona every year and playing in front of people that I love and people that supported me during my whole career, and then being able to play against my brother (Arizona State quarterback Trenton Bourguet). We may not be on the same sideline, but it’s always fun to compete with him in everything we do in life.”
Within the next two weeks, Bourguet has a big decision to make. But as he’s learned over the last two years, patience is a virtue.
“I definitely want to go somewhere that I can build connections, meet new people, get a degree that holds weight and be able to do something that I’m happy with and be successful with outside of football,” he said. “I’m just blessed to even have these opportunities, and I’m just excited for the next step.”
