Utah State’s own All-American celebrity: Logan Bonner

Jacee Caldwell

It’s fourth and goal with three seconds left in the 2021 Mountain West Championship game. San Diego State snaps the ball, and as the clock runs out, Utah State linebacker Justin Rice sacks the quarterback to seal Utah State’s 46-13 victory on Dec. 4, 2021, making them the champs for the first time in school history.

And one of the first people to run onto the field in celebration was none other than Utah State’s starting quarterback and game offensive MVP himself — Logan Bonner.

“We were supposed to get beat by 20. I waited my whole career for a championship. I had been wishing for it since I was ten years old,” Bonner said, describing that moment. “We posted videos of it after and you can see (our) faces — pure joy. It was a perfect moment.”

However, Bonner’s football journey didn’t start there, and it definitely hasn’t always been sunshine and rainbows.

The six-foot-one Texas native made his way to Utah State after graduating from Arkansas State with a degree in sports management. During his five seasons repping red and black, he played 24 games with a total of 3,166 passing yards, 30 touchdown passes and nine interceptions.

But after having to split time with a new quarterback following an injury in 2019, Bonner knew by game four of his last season there that it was time to leave.

Knowing his time wasn’t up for the game though, he made the decision to pursue a master’s degree in sports administration at another university and continue to prove his talent to the world.

About a week into Bonner’s recruiting process, the then Arkansas State head coach Blake Anderson accepted his current position as USU’s head coach, a decision that made Bonner’s choice much easier.

“I knew the fans were insane, the support was great. Took a couple of visits and then I decided, ‘You know what? I’m going to play for the best coach I know,’” Bonner said.

On Dec. 29, 2020, Bonner announced his move to the Beehive State via Twitter. But his past didn’t stay completely behind him. Teammate, good friend and roommate Brandon Bowling also followed Bonner to the Aggie football family to be a wide receiver.

“I knew if he was going to Utah State, I was going to go,” Bowling said. “We were sort of a package deal just because we had been with each other for such a long time.”

The dynamic duo’s strong chemistry seemed to follow them all the way to Cache Valley.

In the MW championship game, Bowling caught eight passes from Bonner for a career-high of 154 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a 58-yarder to give the Aggies an 18-point lead.

Bonner ended last season with 3,628 passing yards, 36 touchdown passes and 12 interceptions. He ranked first in passing touchdowns in the MW conference and seventh in the nation.

In addition, Bonner set a new bar by breaking several school records, including four touchdown passes in three straight games, four touchdown passes in six games in a season and 2.57 touchdown passes per game.

Looking ahead, the star quarterback continues to have his eye on the prizes.

“I want to get to 50 plus touchdowns this year, but also, I just want to win,” Bonner said. “I came here to win, and we won a championship, and I want to do it again. My job is to put my team in the best spot to win and if we do that consistently, then those records will come automatically, so I’m not worried about it.”

His teammates don’t seem worried either.

“At the end of the day, all he wants to do is win, and he will lead his team to victory,” Bowling said.

But it’s not all about the numbers. his life and he loves to go for the gold, Bonner recognizes there are more important things in life, and his family will always come first. A value he’s learned from the support of his parents.

“I don’t see them the whole year, and then they just save up money and they come to every game, so I see them for 12 weeks straight,” Bonner said. “It’s a sacrifice being this far from home, but as soon as the schedule comes out, they buy flights.”

His family is more than happy to be a part of his journey, even if it does mean constant traveling from over a thousand miles away.

“We just don’t miss our kids’ stuff. I gave up my career to stay home with both my kids; we are very involved parents,” Logan’s mom, Linda Bonner, said. “That’s just how we are as parents. We gave up a lot to be involved with our kids and it was worth it to us—still is.”

“I’ve missed three games in six years. Even through redshirt year, I just wanted him to be able to look up and see me,” his dad, Bane Bonner, said.

Since both Logan and his sister played sports growing up, it isn’t new for the Bonner family to make it a priority to be at games, even if they may have had hesitations in the beginning. “His coach at the time, when he was little, told us he was going to be quarterback, and I was like, ‘Woah, woah, woah, can’t he play another position?’” Linda said. “Logan was just starting, but the coach said, ‘He can handle it, I can just tell.’”

Since becoming a quarterback, football has been around for Bonner’s entire life and consumes a lot of his day-to-day — but it still isn’t everything.

Off the field, Bonner can be found outdoors, golfing, shooting, hiking, camping, fishing or playing with his dog.

According to his parents, it’s in these moments away from the crowds and the lights that show who Bonner is underneath the helmet and pads — kind, loyal, humble and faithful.

But on or off the field, there is no doubt that he’s loved.

“The kid makes me so proud,” Linda and Bane both said. “He has never embarrassed our name, and we will always be there to support him.”

Being a great quarterback with great character brings great love from the local community, too.

Bonner explained that every time he goes out in public, even if it’s just to buy groceries or to see a movie with friends, it’s almost a guarantee that someone will

“When I’m by myself, I get it probably every other time I go out; people will stop me. But when I’m with my teammates, it’s every single time,” Bonner said. “You always get surprised when it’s an older person, too. The old men kill me. It’s so funny, they just want to talk all day. It’s awesome, they’re really big fans and they light up.”

But surprising to many, although he may thrive from the spotlight on the field, Bonner does his best to avoid extra attention everywhere else.

“Football, you got cameras and lots of people watching and yeah, I’m animated. I yell, I scream because I love what I do,” Bonner said. “But outside of that, I’m hat down. I’m very quiet, I’m very low key. There’s a lot of times that you probably wouldn’t even know I was there.” A statement that didn’t shock his family at all.

“He’s a different person on the field,” Linda said. “I had to get to know that person.”

But with the dream of going to the NFL once his clock runs out on repping his Aggie jersey, a dream that almost everyone believes he will achieve, Bonner’s fame will only grow. at that level,” Bowling said. “I believe if he has another great season, there is no doubt he can accomplish that.”

This would mean a bright future for the graduate senior, considering his determination to have his best season yet.

“I have no plan B. If I focus on plan B, I’m not working on plan A,” Bonner said.

And in one of his proudest moments as a quarterback, he took a team from winning one game in 2020 to becoming 2021 MW Champions to show everyone exactly why he needs no backup plan.

That game may be the last thing people remember about Bonner now, but he is confident it will certainly not be the last they’ll see of him.

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