Interview: Gut Wrenching Story of Tre’von Gauno Puts Sports Perseverance and Determination in Check

Written by Ryan Wright

Twitter: @HogManInLA

Athletes in all sports always talk about the work put in to be great. In football circles, the word “grind” is used a lot in reference to how hard said person or team is working with aspirations towards being All-Conference or winning a state title. Some athletes are just naturally gifted able to take the field without too much extra work put in at the high school level but still act like they work really hard. Others truly do put their heart and soul into their passion. Some, like Tre’von Gauno, have put their heart and soul into the sport they loves while weathering the unthinkable off the field.

College coaches throughout the country pay top attention to Louisiana football talent each year, and for good reason. The Sportsman’s Paradise turns out some of the best players year after year with iron sharpening iron. Gauno earned his stripes playing for Terrebonne High School. The Tigers went up against some top talent in the 2015 class during Guano’s senior season like Destrehan running back Kirk Merrit (Oregon) and wide receiver Alfred Smith (Utah), East St. John cornerback Antonio Parks (Arizona) and running back Nigel Anderson (Tulane), and Hahnville wide receiver Brandon Singleton (Cal), linebacker Dwaine Thomas (Texas A&M) and wide receiver Rickey Preston (Tulane) just to name a few.

Guano, a Class of 2015 recruit, went to Shasta College in California as a non-qualifier for his freshman season. Just as he was settling in to a new environment with a focus on academics and football, tragedy struck when a cousin, thought of as a brother, was shot and murdered. As Guano tells the story, “He was 17-years-old. He was killed over a drug dispute. He was my cousin but we were very close. I treated him and thought of him like a brother.”

Within hours another tragedy struck the family when another family member was shot and killed, “My uncle Pops died on the same day.”

Before Gauno could truly begin his life as a student athlete, three games into his freshman season he had to rush back home to take care of his family. The eldest of eight siblings, he felt the need to be back closer to home. The sad thing, the 6-1, 175 pound, playmaker was getting it done on the field. In three games he already had three interceptions lining up at corner for Shasta.

In the spring, another opportunity came about with Cisco College in Texas. A second chance at a junior college was provided, but not all was what it seemed. The defensive coordinator who recruited Gauno was dismissed. Gauno now had to play his way into a scholarship paying for his school along with his room and board once at Cisco. Showing his passion and dedication, Gauno stayed instead of opting out looking for another more financially secure option. It did not take long for the coaches to like what they had with Gauno. Before the first two weeks of spring camp had been completed, he had earned a starting spot with four picks in two games taking two of those back to the house for scores flashing his 4.43 speed.

Gauno reflected on that time saying, “I passed all of my classes without books. I had to prove myself each week to the coaches. I was a transfer and from out of state. I had to go above and beyond to get a scholarship. I felt like my life was on the line.”

Just as life started to look up, another tragedy struck his family. Five weeks into spring ball, Gauno started getting text messages one day about his mom. People were asking if his mom had died, and even worse finding out that people were making jokes about her passing. All of the bad jokes and frustration came to a life changing halt when a cousin called crying telling him the news he did not want to believe to be true. “I was in the cafeteria eating when my cousin called asking me if I had heard the news. I dropped my phone when he told me and my food. I was trying hard to hold back my tears but I dropped to the ground. She had a heart attack in her sleep from all the stress. I ran out of the cafeteria to a park and cried at the park for three hours.”

Gauno further explained all that was going on, “Our dad had just been sentenced to jail for three years. I needed to figure out what I was going to do for my family. I called to make sure everyone was okay but still did not know what to do.”

The fight for a football scholarship for the 2016 season was still ongoing. “I had a spring game with Texas Tech and UAB coming the next day. That was a make or break day. I played in the spring game, I had my best spring game that game. The next day all of the schools were hitting me up on Twitter. My mom had died two days before that. I had to fight through the situation. I told my brothers the same thing. You have to fight through it.”

His resolve would be further pressed, Gauno found out that his hours from Shasta did not transfer. Gauno ended up sitting out the 2016 season focused on his grades getting his hours in line.

Good news finally came. Gauno has all the classroom work in line and football is back on the table, “I’m happy and glad. My time is finally coming. My grades and talent are there. I’ve been waiting so long now. Spring time will be my time.”

There has been another change at Cisco with the coaching staff opening up another opportunity for Gauno at a different JUCO. So far Gauno has 14 JUCO offers. Another potential life changing decision awaits Gauno.

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Photo credit: Hudl.com; Tre’von Gauno at Shasta.

Photo credit: TJ Holmes; No. 3 Tre’von Gauno in action at Shasta.

Photo credit: Gauno family; Tre’von Gauno at Cisco JUCO.