PARKER — For a spare $145, you can own a piece of DJ Bordeaux.
Well, a piece of his handwriting, at any rate.
As of Friday afternoon, a trading card featuring the new Legend High School quarterback — complete with a red backing, a gold frame and his autograph scribbled in blue — was posted to eBay with a yowza, bid-starting price of $145.
“Whoa,” Bordeaux said giddily when I showed him the listing. “Can I take a picture of that?”
Sure thing.
“You (sign) it once and they scan it,” Bordeaux continued, “but they didn’t tell you when it was going to come out.”
Picture taken, we both looked again. Closer, this time. White jersey. Green stripes. Black helmet.
“Hang on,” I said. “Are you wearing a ThunderRidge jersey? Isn’t that a Grizzlies …?”
Bordeaux nodded. Yep and yep.
“Yeah, that’s (from) before I played my sophomore year,” he explained. “So, with Leaf, I had a deal when I was out in Georgia. Before I moved back, I had that deal (with them). And that’s probably what that’s from.”
Ah, gotcha.
Wait. Wait. Wait.
“So why the ThunderRidge jersey?” I pressed.
“Because I didn’t play yet at my new school,” Bordeaux explained. “So, I transferred into (Georgia after) freshman year. So that next January … that’s when I’d moved.”
So, summing up, Bordeaux’s got a trading card out now as a senior at Legend … that features a photo from his freshman year at ThunderRidge … that’s part of a licensing partnership signed while he was playing high school ball over two different schools in Georgia.
Confused?
Join the club.
The No. 1 quarterback recruit in the state for the Class of ’26 — Bordeaux committed to Boston College and coach Bill O’Brien this past April — took the scenic route, from Denver to Georgia and back again, to finish up his prep eligibility in Colorado.
Know what? He doesn’t regret those stops. Even though there’ve been (checks notes) four of them.
“I was definitely happy; (My path) had its pros and cons,” the 6-foot-2 Bordeaux, rated by 247Sports and ESPN as a 3-star prospect, told me earlier this month. “But I mean, it was definitely a good situation. I got the exposure I needed. I met a lot of great people, worked with a lot of great people.
“It built me into the player I am today. So, most definitely, it’s all love across the board.”
•••
Some pictures are worth 1,000 words. Bordeaux’s trading card raises 1,000 questions. Let’s tackle the biggies, starting with this:
What the heck happened to the kid in that photo? That 14-year-old poised to conquer the state?
Bordeaux was always ahead of the curve. As a freshman with the Grizzlies, before he could legally drive, DJ was destined to be the next big slinger along the Front Range. In 2022, he was weighing offers from CU and Penn State. At 6-2, he towered over his peers. The arm, the release, the feet, the IQ, left college coaches — and college general managers — salivating.
Looking for a spark, ThunderRidge turned the keys to the offense over to the kid, who threw for 326 yards and three touchdowns in his first varsity start. Bordeaux helped power the Grizzlies to the 5A state quarterfinals, where they fell — as most challengers do — to eventual state champion Cherry Creek, 42-7.
“Yeah, I got you,” Bordeaux said. “No, basically my dad wanted me to move out to Georgia just for a better situation …”
Better competition. Bigger stages. DJ stepped up. As a sophomore at Alpharetta (Ga.) High School, 27 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta, Bordeaux put up 2,466 passing yards and 26 scores over 10 appearances. One problem: His Raiders went 5-6.
“At my next school, the school I was at, Alpharetta, something happened,” Bordeaux continued. “(The) head coach got fired. I had to move on …”
Stop No. 3 was 45 miles away, just west of metro Atlanta, to Douglas County High School. As a junior, Bordeaux leveled up again, this time posting 2,645 yards through the air, piling up another 510 on the ground, with 20 passing TDs and another five rushing.
“Then out here, just some family stuff had happened,” DJ continued. “My mom needed me to come back…”
And here he is.
DJ also said that he came back home to play with old friends he’d grown up with — Titans tailback Ryken Banks in particular — and to play for former Legend coach Monte Thelen. The school’s switch this past February from Thelen to Jake Heaps, a longtime passing guru and part of Russell Wilson’s inner circle, was just a bonus.
“The guys weren’t like, ‘Hey, come here, come here,’” Bordeaux said. “(Legend is) a good spot for me. Coming back from Georgia, I just knew that was where I could showcase my talents.
“I mean, when I talked to (Heaps), when I found out, when I got here, I was like, ‘It’s God’s plan.’ It didn’t happen (without a) reason. Great dude. Love Coach Heaps.’”
•••
And the kid on that card has more or less picked right back up where he left off three years earlier.
“It’s been fun,” DJ said. “And it’s still fun. I’m having fun. I’m just ready to go to college now. I’d just tell my (younger self), ‘Keep working. Keep doing what you do.’”
He’s been playing with Banks since they were 8 or 9 years old. Now 17, Bordeaux meets Ryken for regular hikes, cross-training and weightlifting sessions that start as early as 4 a.m. A pair of old souls sweating the small stuff. One last ride.
During one 7-on-7 session two months ago, Bordeaux threw a couple of picks, felt off and didn’t like what he was seeing. He asked to meet with Heaps the next day to break things down, to iron out every last kink in his craw.
“And we go out on the field (after that) and did really well on offense,” Heaps recalled. “(DJ) walked off the field and said, ‘Hey, coach, everything you told me, it worked.’
“So those are just those moments (where) you build that trust. He’s had four different programs that he’s been a part of in four years. It’s been a very unique journey for him.”
As of last Friday, at least 24 of those Bordeaux Leaf trading cards were available on eBay.
At his current trajectory, Bordeaux’s got more collectibles — and more eBay listings — in his future. He’s just hoping the next card’s focused less on the journey and more about the destination.
“It’s a great situation, and the coach is great,” Bordeaux said. “… It all worked out.”
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