FSU's Trent Forrest: Success On & Off the Court
With the canceling of the NCAA tournament, the collegiate career of Seminole Trent Forrest has come to an early end, several games short of when it should. He leaves as one of the most memorable 'Nole players in the current era, having earned numerous academic and athletic accolades.
Forrest arrived at FSU in 2016 as the ninth-rated shooting guard in the country and a member of the nation's 10th best recruiting class. He joined a talented team with several future NBA players, including Dwayne Bacon, Jonathan Isaac, and Terance Mann. Add in Xavier Rathan-Mayes, PJ Savoy, Braian Angola, and CJ Walker, and there was intense competition for playing time.
Forrest's game belonged in that group, and over his freshman year he averaged about 15 minutes of court time per game. His stat line over the whole season doesn't jump out at you, but his BPM rating was third on the team. In just his fourth game, Forrest led the team with 5 assists, showcasing his potential as FSU's future point guard. Game nine displayed his overall game when he led the team in rebounds. That team started 16-1 -- best in Florida State History -- and Forrest was an important part of its success
He turned out to be a natural for Leonard Hamilton's position-less system. At 6'4 he was often the shortest FSU player on the court. He was quick enough to defend other guards, but long and strong enough to make life difficult for opposing centers. He showed good vision, was a natural leader, and seemed unafraid of any challenge. With each year, Forrest's game improved.
Forrest only started two games in his sophomore year, but he played slightly more minutes than starting point guard CJ Walker. From this point on in his career, he ranked top-10 in ACC play in steal rate (his freshman year he would have too, but didn't have enough minutes to qualify). When it was crunch time and Florida State needed to get a basket, the play was often drawn up for Forrest to get to the rim. The best game of his career could have been the second round game in the NCAA Tournament against 1-seed Xavier, when several key steals, drives, and assists were deciding factors in the Seminole win and run to the Elite 8..
His Junior year was hampered by a gruesome turf toe injury. He played through it for most of the season, but didn't acknowledge it until after an off-season surgery. He was a rock all season for a team with several players even more experienced than he was. With that context, he put on a heroic performance in Florida State's final game against Gonzaga in the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16. He was clearly in such pain that he could barely reach above the rim, but he carved up Gonzaga's defense to nearly overcome a plethora of Seminole injuries. He scored 20 points on 11 shots and 6 free throw attempts, adding 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and a block to top it all off.
During his senior year, Forrest was the man during crunch time. When FSU needed a score, the ball was in his hands. He'd drive the lane and shoot his short floater, go around the defender for a layup, or kick out to an open shooter. He was one of three 'Noles this year to shoot free throws at better than 80% and was seemingly even better at clutch time.
Forrest wasn't only dominant on the hardwood. Over the last 15 years, 95% of Hamilton's players who stayed for four years graduated with a college degree. Trent did it in 3.5 years and played this last semester as a grad student. He earned a spot on the ACC Academic Basketball Team all four years, the ACC Academic Honor roll three times, was a regular on the FSU Academic Dean's list, and won numerous other academic awards culminating with this year's Skip Prosser Award for being the ACC Men's Basketball Scholar Athlete of the Year.
Check out this impressive list of honors Forrest garnered during his FSU career, from Seminoles.com:
2017 FSU Academic Dean’s List (Spring)
2019 FSU Academic Dean’s List (Spring)
2017 Golden Torch for Basketball (FSU Academics)
2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 ACC Academic Basketball Team
2017, 2018, 2019 ACC Academic Honor Roll
2019 NCAA Tournament West Regional All Region Team
2019 NABC Give Back Team (nominee)
2019 NABC Academic Honors Court
2019 All-ACC 2nd Team (preseason)
2019 Emerald Coast Classic All-Tournament Team
2020 Bob Cousy Award Watch List
2020 Tallahassee Democrat FSU Basketball All-Decade Team (2011-20)
2020 John Wooden Citizenship Cup Finalist (1 of 4)
2020 CoSIDA Academic All-District 4 First Team
2020 ACC Postgraduate Scholarship
2020 Skip Prosser Award — ACC Men’s Basketball Scholar Athlete of the Year
2020 All-ACC Second Team (ACC Coaches and Media)
2020 All-ACC Defensive Team (ACC Coaches and Media)
2020 ACC Regular Season Championship Team
2020 ACC Championship Team
That catalogue is as astounding as it is commendable.
Trent Forrest is a great Seminole and one of the best guards to ever wear the Garnet and Gold. There's little doubt that his success on the court will see him remembered for years to come, and his success in the classroom will serve him for the rest of his life.
