Bourguet unlocks ASU's offensive potential in historic first start

BOULDER, Colo. – Trenton Bourguet settled into his dropback, breath steaming from his facemask in the crisp October air, eyes scanning the red zone with purpose.

The Colorado defense rolled into its coverage, surging downhill to throw a blanket over his routes like the snow that capped the Rocky Mountain range behind Folsom Field. Bourguet waited there at the top of the pocket, unflinching as the pass rush bent toward him. For the moment, the quarterback appeared to stand just as tall as those mountains.

Then Bourguet geared up for a throw that would stamp the initial chapters of his first career start into Arizona State lore.

Jalin Conyers broke through the snowbank up the seam. Bourguet patiently watched it unfold, set his feet, and tossed it to the redshirt sophomore tight end over the top of the defense. It was the same type of play he completed automatically to his receiving arsenal in warmups before the game – a decisive throw with the right amount of velocity and arc that gave his target a chance to adjust and make the catch.

In this case, it was a perfect throw suited for the intended target. Conyers rotated on his vertical climb and won at the rim amidst contact, a move reminiscent of his high school basketball tape. Now using his 6-foot-4 and 265-pound frame to box out on a different type of lob ball, Conyers tipped the ball into his large mitts and crashed down across the goal line.

The touchdown was the final exclamation point in ASU’s 42-34 win over Colorado. To describe Bourguet as simply terrific would be an understatement for the ages. He slung his way to a career-high night, completing 74 percent of his passes for 435 yards – the most by a Sun Devil in his first career start in program history – and three touchdowns, all caught by Conyers.

Bourguet’s passing yards were also the most by an ASU signal caller since Oct. 4, 2014, when Mike Bercovici racked up 510 yards through the air in a dramatic matchup against USC that is fondly remembered by fans as the “Jael Mary” game.

Aside from one small blemish to his historic outing, an interception in the third quarter, Bourguet was outstanding.

“I’ve been playing this game my whole life and just being a competitor in everything I do,” Bourget said in the postgame press conference. “If we’re playing checkers or basketball in the backyard, you know I’m going to try to win. It’s just super exciting to come out here against Colorado and get a big win for the team. It was a complete team effort.”

A week ago, the Sun Devils lost to Stanford in a game the defense did not allow a touchdown. The ASU offense put up zero points after halftime. Change had to begin at the quarterback position, which interim head coach Shaun Aguano declared an “open competition” on Monday.

Aguano decided after Thursday’s practice that Bourguet would replace Emory Jones as ASU’s starter against the Buffaloes. The ball would be placed in the hands of the backup who had already won over many with his stellar fill-in performance for an injured Jones in an upset win over Washington. Some may argue the move should have happened earlier.

“I trusted his decision-making and his anticipation,” Aguano said. “Quarterbacks have moxie, and it’s hard to explain because that word is such a cliche, but you see quarterbacks that have that mental moxie that have something of that ‘it’ factor. I know that he was comfortable with the system that I incorporated, and so that’s the reason why I went with him.”

Along with Aguano, who took over play-calling duties from offensive coordinator Glenn Thomas earlier in the week, Bourguet helped revitalize a plodding ASU offense and unlock areas of the gameplan that the previous duo had barely scraped the potential of.

Bourguet lit up his entire receiving corps, connecting with nine different receivers. Four of ASU’s pass catchers had five or more receptions, and two, Conyers and Elijhah Badger, reached new heights for receiving yards. Conyers finished with 108 yards on six catches in a breakout performance. Badger had 137 yards on eight catches and gained nearly half of that total (66 yards) after the catch.

There were no questions this time around that Bourguet deserved to start. Moreover, he earned it the same way he earned his scholarship: through hard work, unwavering dedication, and the respect of the locker room and coaching staff.

“It was pretty cool,” Badger nodded. “I liked to see what Trent could do. Everybody was waiting for it, and he was prepared for this week.”

Bourguet layered his throws with smooth touch and anticipation over the defense all night. ASU took advantage of Colorado’s off-coverage, finding its tight ends in the flats for easy completions and creating big plays over the middle that churned out yards after the catch. Bourguet never abandoned his progression and got the ball out in a timely fashion before throwing windows evaporated. Even on bootlegs and designed rollouts, he looked comfortable zipping balls on the move.

“I feel like he operates so well,” Conyers said. “He’s so prepared every week. I don’t think you all understand how smart this kid is when he’s going over the plays.

“Like, he knows everything, and when he looks at defenses, he reads things. I don’t think my brain could handle what he goes through. It’s all kudos to him. He deserves this win more than anybody else, so I’m just glad I was able to help.”

ASU was more dynamic and versatile against Colorado than it had been all season. Even with Bourguet cooking at the helm, running back Xazavian Valladay collected 118 rushing yards and three touchdowns. With more weapons coming into the fold as bonafide threats, Bourguet believes the Sun Devils are in a good position to give the remaining opponents on schedule some serious headaches.

“I think it makes it harder on defenses,” Bourguet said. “They want to key in on X and play one (safety) high, but if you play one-high, then you got a tight end running the seam. If you press Badge, then I’m going to take the go ball. We have answers for everything, and it’s just going to make defenses really think. Just control what we can, and like I said, we came out with a great win.”

One reason Bourguet was effective was his iciness when faced with pressure. Headed into the game, Bourguet posted a 77.8 percent completion rate, six first downs, and three touchdowns against the blitz. He was equally impressive in that aspect against the Buffaloes, who failed to sack him once.

“Just the way he understood what I was trying to do,” Aguano said. “When we had those talks about the RPO game or the passing game, he understands exactly what I was looking for. His progressions were quick; his anticipation was quick. When you have almost a coach on the field at the same time understanding exactly what the schematics that I want to get done, it makes it a lot easier.”

Even when things did not go according to plan, Bourguet showcased a short memory and quick resolution of his mistakes. On third-and-4 from the ASU 42-yard line, Bourguet stared down Conyers breaking out at the sticks. He was picked off by Colorado safety Trevor Woods, who read the play the entire way and jumped the route.

When it came time for Bourguet to convert another pass to a different tight end, Messiah Swinson, on second-and-10 to extend ASU’s final drive and prevent Colorado from obtaining a chance to mount a comeback, he delivered.

Bourguet sold the play-action to the left side and moved the entire defense in that direction with his eyes. Then he pulled the ball, gunned it to Swinson in space, and watched the Missouri transfer lumber 13 yards for a first down. Aguano’s aggressive play call in a critical down-and-distance looked routine and calculated, especially with Bourguet under center.

“You always think, well, you have to run the ball out, so the clock is going, right?” Aguano explained. “But I also understand that they’re on the defensive side; they’re going to probably move up from the box and put more guys in the box. I’m always a numbers guy, and I thought we had better numbers throwing that to the tight end. Just because if we had to, we could go top-shelf on him because he’s a big guy. So if we missed, I know if we will miss, we will miss high. He made the catch, and that was incredible.”

Now sitting at 3-5 and 2-3 in Pac-12 play, ASU’s path to bowl eligibility remains alive. A tough home test against UCLA is up next. The Bruins will be the fourth-ranked opponent the Sun Devils have faced this year.

But for the first time in a long time, ASU might have more answers than questions. The team finally has a quarterback that can elevate the talent around him, although Aguano declined to name a starter for next week. The scheme was refreshing and, most importantly, effective against Colorado. The encouraging signs that popped up in Boulder are replicable against the remaining competition down the stretch.

“I’ll look at the corrections, and then we’ll get on to UCLA,” Aguano said. “That’s a big game for us. It’s parents’ weekend. Our guys play up to that level, so I want to see what happens come Saturday.”

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