‘Trust in each other’: These high school teammates will join forces at Boise State

Tipped off by the defensive formation, a coach on the Mission Viejo High School football team yelled a warning from the sideline during a 7-on-7 passing tournament on Thursday.

“Don’t throw it to Idaho,” echoed across the field.

Two members of Mission Viejo’s secondary — safety Travis Anderson and cornerback Treyvon Tolmaire — were lined up on the same side of the field, prompting the warning.

“We should be pretty darn good against the pass this year,” Mission Viejo head coach Chad Johnson said Friday. “Teams are going to look out there and see both Travis and Trey, and they’re going to have to pick their poison.”

Anderson and Tolmaire have both committed to Boise State. Anderson joined the Broncos’ 2024 class on June 16, just two days after he visited campus. Tolmaire followed suit and committed on Wednesday.

They have been playing football together since middle school. Tolmaire said he and Anderson have been talking amount committing to the same college since Boise State running backs coach James Montgomery showed up at Mission Viejo one day in March to meet them.

Anderson and Tolmaire combined for 11 interceptions last season. Expectations are high for their senior years, and they’ll begin their college careers together on The Blue in 2024.

“It feels like he’s a brother who will be out there with me,” Tolmaire told the Idaho Statesman on Friday. “It’s awesome having him playing behind me because we both know we can put our trust in each other.”

Anderson is a three-star recruit, according to 247Sports. He started at wide receiver his sophomore year before moving to safety last season. Johnson said it was clear right away that it was a natural fit.

“He’s been a two-way player his whole life because he’s a special athlete and that’s what special athletes do,” Johnson said. “But he’s such a natural as a safety because of his ability to track the ball like a centerfielder, leave his feet, make a play and come down with the interception.”

The 6-foot, 175-pounder came down with nine interceptions last year.

“He never lets a jump ball go to anyone else,” Tolmaire said. “In his mind, it’s his anytime the ball is in the air.”

Anderson comes from a family of defensive backs. His father, Jake, played safety at Youngstown State and helped the Penguins win the 1-AA national championship in 1997. Anderson’s grandfather, Andy, was a cornerback at Cal.

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Anderson and his father train together on a regular basis. They take advantage of the many horse trails that snake through Laguna Hills, California. They call their favorite incline “Walter Payton Hill” in honor of the NFL Hall of Famer who famously ran hills to stay in shape during the offseason.

“Travis has always been athletic and always had a knack for making plays,” Jake Anderson said. “But he’s kind of developed into the quarterback of the defense. He has good instincts, he’s tough and smart, and he has made the most of his opportunities.”

Anderson attributed much of his productive junior season to time spent training with former Chicago Bears safety Chris Conte.

“We worked a lot on angles, breaks, reading the quarterback’s eyes and anything to do with man coverage,” Travis Anderson said. “I love being active and being in the play and hitting. If the interceptions come, they come.”

Anderson also has scholarship offers from Fresno State, UNLV, Columbia, Princeton, Dartmouth and Penn.

Tolmaire was on campus at Boise State last weekend. He left with a scholarship offer and wasted little time committing, even though doing so meant passing on an offer from Michigan, which ended last season ranked No. 3 in the AP Top 25.

The Wolverines were the first program to offer him a scholarship, but Tolmaire said Boise State’s coaches stayed in touch with him on a more consist basis, and he said he felt at home as soon as he stepped on campus.

“All the coaches treated me like they’ve known me for five years even though we just met,” Tolmaire said. “It just felt like home as soon as I got to Boise, and it feels good when you know a program really wants you.”

The 5-foot-11, 175-pounder is a three-star recruit with a .865 rating, according to 247Sports. That makes him the highest-rated member of Boise State’s 2024 recruiting class.

Tolmaire also has scholarship offers from Dartmouth, UNLV, Navy, Princeton, Air Force, Army, Fordham and Northern Arizona.

He’s not quite as vocal as Anderson, Johnson said, who described Tolmaire as cerebral when he’s on the field.

“He’s very fast, very patient and he can jump out of the gym,” Johnson said. “You might go a week and not hear him say a word, but he’s a smart player and one heck of a competitor.”

Tolmaire, who is also a starting shooting guard on Mission Viejo’s basketball team and a member of the 4x100-meter relay team in track season, finished last year with two interceptions. He snagged four picks as a sophomore.

“He knows what wide receivers are doing before the ball is snapped,” Anderson said. “It’s great having him in front of me because we trust each other.”

Boise State 2024 recruiting class

DL Hayden Hanks, 6-3, 270, Thompson Falls (Montana) High

OL Eyitayo Omotinugbon, 6-3, 275, Queen Creek (Arizona) High

S Travis Anderson, 6-0, 175, Mission Viejo (California) High

CB Treyvon Tolmaire, 5-11, 165, Mission Viejo (California) High