Last year was a memorable football season in Tucson.
Not only did the Old Pueblo produce two state championship-winning football teams (Mica Mountain and Pusch Ridge Christian), Marana native and former Arizona Wildcat Jordan Morgan became a first-round selection by the Green Bay Packers in the NFL Draft.
Additionally, former Salpointe Catholic Lancer and Ohio State safety Lathan Ransom led the Buckeyes to a national championship to cap his roller coaster journey at OSU, before becoming a fourth-round choice by the Carolina Panthers, the team that drafted former UA star Tetairoa McMillan.
It'll be tough to one-up last year, but that doesn't mean Tucsonans won't have anything to cheer for this upcoming football season, especially college football at the FBS level.
Here’s a rundown of Tucsonans playing at the FBS level in 2025:
Coben Bourguet, Arizona State
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Wide receiver
Year: Redshirt senior
Rundown: The younger brother of Trenton Bourguet enters his fifth season with the Sun Devils and was recently placed on scholarship for his last year with the program. Last year, Bourguet graduated from ASU's Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering with a 4.1 GPA.
Treyson Bourguet, BYU
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Quarterback
Year: Redshirt junior
Rundown: Once again, Bourguet will have a backup role after the Cougars announced Stanford transfer Bear Bachmeier as the starter. Bachmeier replaces Jake Retzlaff, who's now at Tulane after withdrawing from BYU following his seven-game suspension for violating the school's honor code. Prior to BYU, Bourguet played in four games as a true freshman in 2022 and preserved his redshirt season at Western Michigan. Bourguet has completed 111 of 212 passes for 1,314 yards and six touchdowns in his college career.
Hawaii running back David Cordero (10) grabs the face mask of Oregon linebacker Devon Jackson during the first half, Sept. 16, 2023, in Eugene, Ore.
David Cordero, Hawaii
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Running back
Year: Senior
Rundown: The successor to Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson at Salpointe Catholic is returning home on Aug. 30, when Hawaii faces the Arizona Wildcats. Last season, Cordero had 10 rushes for 57 yards and contributed on special teams. As a sophomore, Cordero was the third-best rusher for the Rainbow Warriors with 138 rushing yards.
Keona Davis, Nebraska
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Defensive end
Year: Sophomore
Rundown: After he was originally committed to play for Jedd Fisch and the hometown Arizona Wildcats for the 2024 season, the 6-5, 255-pound edge rusher flipped to Washington until UW head coach Kalen DeBoer, who was replaced by Fisch in Seattle, went to Alabama. Davis (known as Keona Wilhite during his high school career) signed with Nebraska and had 10 tackles as a freshman. He briefly entered the transfer portal, but returned to Nebraska.
Salpointe Catholic’s Noah Banhie (99) celebrates with teammate Dinos Drossos (15) after Drossos recovered the ball from a fumble on the play during a game against Chandler Basha in September 2022.
Dinos Drossos, UMass
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Linebacker
Year: Freshman
Rundown: In two seasons at Salpointe Catholic, Drossos had 142 tackles (104 solo tackles), 22.5 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, three interceptions and three fumble recoveries. Drossos joins a UMass program entering its first season under head coach Joe Harasymiak, who replaces former UA defensive coordinator Don Brown.
Chika Ebunoha, Utah State
High School: Marana
Position: Safety
Year: Redshirt junior
Rundown: The full version of Ebunoha’s first name is Chikaodinaka, which is Nigerian for “In God’s hands.” Ebunoha played nine defensive snaps for BYU and then transferred to Utah State. In three years at BYU, Ebunoha appeared in 34 games as a special teams contributor.
UCLA defensive lineman Gabriel Murphy (11) and offensive lineman Bruno Fina (75) warm up before a game against Oregon State Oct. 14, 2023, in Corvallis, Oregon.
Bruno Fina, Duke
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Offensive lineman
Year: Grad
Rundown: The son of ex-Wildcat and NFL offensive lineman John Fina started 13 games at left tackle for UCLA in 2023, before transferring to Duke. Bruno Fina played 830 snaps at left tackle and surrendered four sacks, according to Pro Football Focus. Duke went 9-4 last season and lost to Ole Miss in the Gator Bowl.
Roman Fina, Duke
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Offensive line
Year: Freshman
Rundown: Another Fina has arrived at Duke. The 6-4, 270-pound Fina, who also pitched for the Salpointe Catholic baseball program, played both right tackle and left tackle for the Lancers.
Kyah Francone, New Mexico State
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Wide receiver
Year: Freshman
Rundown: Francone made 18 of 24 field goals (80%) in two seasons at Salpointe Catholic. He also made 93 PATs in 96 attempts and scored 147 points for the Lancers. Francone's longest field goal at Salpointe Catholic was from 53 yards.
Dailan Goodman, New Mexico State
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Running back
Year: Redshirt sophomore
Rundown: The 6-foot, 195-pound Goodman played his second season with the Aggies after rushing for 927 yards and 11 touchdowns with the Lancers. Goodman had two carries for 2 yards last season.
Mica Mountain’s Jimmy Leon (1) gestures after cradling a pass for the final score of the night in the fourth quarter of the Thunderbolts’ game at Sabino High School on Sept. 13, 2024.
Jimmy Leon, UTEP
High School: Mica Mountain
Position: Defensive end
Year: Freshman
Rundown: After leading Mica Mountain to its first-ever state championship, the tight end and defensive end signed with UTEP, which hasn't had a winning season since 2021. As a tight end, Leon caught 48 passes for 468 yards and 20 touchdowns. On defense, the 6-4, 240-pound Leon had 161 tackles, 38 sacks, 16 pass deflections, three forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and three interceptions.
Kayden Luke, Arizona
High School: Canyon del Oro
Position: Tight end
Year: Sophomore
Rundown: After the CDO running back and linebacker led the state in rushing yards (2,302) yards and helped the Dorados to a perfect 14-0 season en route to a 4A state championship, the walk-on fullback — also known as “Big Red” — carved out a role at the UA. Luke had five carries for 20 yards and was mostly used as a blocker in the backfield last season. He's now a tight end for the Wildcats.
Tucson’s Jonah Miller left the Oregon Ducks football program after one season in Eugene in 2021. He spent two seasons at Santa Rosa Junior College in Northern California, and the former four-star prospect is now at UTSA.
Jonah Miller, UTSA
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Offensive line
Year: Redshirt senior
Rundown: After leaving Oregon in 2021, the former four-star recruit spent the 2022 and '23 seasons at Santa Rosa Junior College in California. Miller played four snaps at left guard for a UTSA team that won the Myrtle Beach Bowl.
Tyler Mustain, Arizona
High School: Pusch Ridge Christian
Position: Tight end
Year: Redshirt sophomore
Rundown: The 3A South Defensive Player of the Year is a walk-on at Arizona after logging 349 tackles, 33 stops for loss and 17 sacks during his high school career. Mustain played 137 snaps last on special teams, according to PFF, and is now a reserve tight end.
Chase Randall, Arizona
High School: Canyon del Oro
Position: Tight end
Year: Redshirt junior
Rundown: The walk-on played seven games at Valparaiso in Indiana before transferring to the UA in 2023. Randall moved to running back midway through the 2024 season and is now a tight end.
Marana's Dezmen Roebuck (1) takes advantage of a slip by Salpointe's Alon Deon (17) in the third quarter in Marana on Aug. 30, 2024.
Dezmen Roebuck, Washington
High School: Marana
Position: Wide receiver
Year: Freshman
Rundown: The Marana star was the first Tucson-area product to win the Ed Doherty Award since Robinson in 2019. Roebuck was also named 2024 Gatorade Player of the Year in Arizona and MaxPreps Player of the Year in Arizona. Roebuck set a state record with 352 career receptions for 4,239 yards and 40 touchdowns over four seasons. He's expected to contribute at UW as a true freshman.
Cruz Rushing, Oregon
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Safety
Year: Redshirt junior
Rundown: The one-time Florida Gator and Arizona Wildcat transferred to Oregon last year. He has yet to appear in games. He had 93 career tackles at Salpointe Catholic.
Elijah Rushing, Oregon
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Defensive end
Year: Redshirt freshman
Rundown: One of the highest-rated players in Tucson history, Rushing signed with Oregon as a five-star prospect and played behind All-Big Ten edge rusher Matayo Uiagalelei. According to PFF, Rushing had 18 defensive snaps as a freshman in 2024.
Braydyn Sage, New Mexico State
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Long snapper
Year: Freshman
Rundown: Sage was rated by Rubio Long Snapping as the 34th-best long snapper nationally for the 2025 recruiting class.
Joey Sumlin, Purdue
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Linebacker
Year: Redshirt sophomore
Rundown: The son of former Arizona head coach Kevin Sumlin, who is now the tight ends coach at Maryland, is entering his third season at Purdue, the older Sumlin’s alma mater. Joey Sumlin was mostly used on special teams.
Anthony Wilhite, Arizona
High School: Salpointe Catholic
Position: Running back
Year: Redshirt junior
Rundown: Wilhite rushed for 2,058 yards and 24 touchdowns in three seasons with the Lancers. Wilhite didn’t appear in any games for the 4-8 Wildcats last year.
Sa'Kylee Woodard, New Mexico
High School: Canyon del Oro
Position: Defensive lineman
Year: Redshirt freshman
Rundown: Woodard, a 6-4, 267-pound defensive tackle, helped CDO win a 4A state championship and a perfect 14-0 record as a senior. Woodard moved from offensive line to defensive line and lost nearly 30 pounds.
