When the Sun Devils needed someone to step up, Xavier Guillory didn’t just answer the call—he stole the show. With Jordyn Tyson out for the season, ASU turned to the 6’3″, 205-pound redshirt senior in the Big 12 Championship against Iowa State. Guillory delivered in style, grabbing his first two touchdown catches at just the right time and leading the team to a statement-making 45-19 win in Arlington.

But here’s the thing—if you think Guillory’s rise is impressive, wait until you hear about the people behind it. His story is as much about heart and heritage as it is about football. Let’s dive into the family roots that shaped Xavier.

Who was Xavier Guillory’s Dad?

As a kid, Guillory chose the gridiron and the ever-dynamic world of football primarily because of his dad, Raphael, who recognized the extraordinary gift of his son and shaped his dream likewise from a very tender age. From taking him to five-mile runs to executing regular dad-son workout sessions, Raphael instilled the drive right. The super dad used to drive five hours (from Spokane to Bellvue, Washington) to expose little Xavier to more competition in the mainstream.

Raphael encouraged Guillory to develop his one-of-a-kind passion into a full-blown profession — ”When other kids would go to the water park, my dad and I would be running in the heat,” Guillory said. The prized WR started to grind his body in the epic cross-country runs when he was in second or third grade (he couldn’t minutely recall).

However, Raphel was never a tough dad and didn’t impose anything upon his boy. The emotive son dove deeper into nostalgia, reminiscing about how he’d come home and tell his father he was beating all the sixth graders. His father used to laugh it off in disbelief unless and until one day, he visited the practice and watched it happen in front of his own eyes. That time Raphael got to know that his son was inching closer to his dream: to play college football and then the NFL in the farthest future. But life took an abrupt pear-shaped when, during a family dinner table conference back in 2019, Raphael let his family know that he was battling colon cancer.

”I’m going to watch you play college football,” He said to his son 13 months before he breathed his last. The fairytale remains unfinished. But Xavier and his mom are still carrying the torch of Raphael’s dream with much devotion and care.

Who is Xavier Guillory’s mom?

Losing his dad was an unimaginable pain, but what’s carried Xavier through is the strength and love of his family—especially his incredible mom, Gloria. But he had his bad days, too.

The couple raised five kids, four daughters and one son. After Raphael’s untimely death, Xavier’s mom had to take care of the whole household. The physical and emotional toil was so frustrating to see that it propelled the athlete to think choosing football over his family would be a selfish act. “Why am I over here (at Idaho State) playing football, chasing this dream, when my mom is struggling to pay the bills, and my sisters are trying to work through their depression?’‘ Guillory said in an antipathetic confession of dream and responsibility, the contrasting reality of life.

As Idaho State produced its worst season in a decade, Xavier felt lost, unsure, and clumsy all at once. He didn’t play football without his father cheering from the sideline. So, the emotional void was eating him up from the core. On the other hand, the pain of his family got the better of his focus and skill. At this challenging time, his mother came up and put him right on the track with proper guidance and mental fuel. She did it as the last promise to his late husband not to let the kids stop pursuing their interests in life.

The mother-son bond grew even stronger from then onwards, but nobody could fill the void of a son’s silent ache for his dad. The community and the neighborhood upbringing played a bigger role in shaping little Xavier’s life and later career as well.

Where did Xavier Guillory grow up?

He proudly resembles his roots, the Nez Perce tribe, a federally recognized tribal nation in Idaho with more than 3,500 citizens. The place houses so many legends to brag about. Guillory believes people still deem the native Americans as ‘historic figures’ in a classroom book — ”We’re something you read about,” Guillory said with his eyes sparked with pride. There are alternative narratives as well that present his ethnicity in a bad light.

But Xavier chose to go with the history ‘‘It’s important,” he said, that he let the world see the traits that they often fail to see when they think of Native Americans. Traits like strong uncompromising work ethics, success, and dedication can very well be defined by him in his breakout season with ASU.

Xavier’s only halfway through building his legacy, and there’s still so much more to come. You just know he’s going to crush the rest of the journey and make it to the NFL someday—giving his late father the ultimate tribute in the process.