Jaxon Boley, a 6-6 230-pound tight end out of Hodgenville, Kentucky (LaRue County HS) has verbally committed to the University of Wyoming football program as a preferred walk-on in the 2018 signing class. On the surface, this may seem like a non-story and just another walk-on, but you don’t know the background of one of the newest Cowboy football players.

You see, Boley never thought he would be a college football player. He was an accomplished right-handed pitcher for LaRue County High School and thought he would be committing to a baseball program for college. As a freshman in 2015, Boley threw a complete game one-hitter as he got his feet wet in high school baseball as a starting pitcher. During his sophomore year, he bloomed as a player becoming a pitcher instead of a thrower and posted a 9-2 record with a 1.59 ERA and 56 strikeouts with just 23 walks in 61 2/3 innings pitched. These numbers and an 83-mph fastball would get him voted Area Pitcher of the Year, All-Area First Team and on the radar of top college baseball programs in conferences like the SEC and ACC.

A career ending injury would derail him from his baseball path though and in the fall of 2017, he joined the LaRue County football team. Jaxon Boley played tight end on a team that went 11-2 and finished second in their district. This would lead him to get attention from Western Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky and Wyoming even though he only played one season of varsity football.

Boley committed to Wyoming on February 5th after taking an unofficial visit to Laramie this past weekend. He chose to play for Wyoming, “Because I really believe Coach Bath can develop me on and off the field.” In addition to tight ends coach Mike Bath, the Kentucky product was recruited by Wyoming’s newest on the field assistant Gordie Haug who is now the running backs coach.

On film, you can see why Coach Bohl and his staff like the potential of Boley as a football player. His high school highlights show that he is a willing blocker who can secure the edge in the run game, which is a staple in Brent Vigen’s pro-style offense. As a receiver, Boley provides a large target and looks to have good hands and a nose for the ball. With only one year of varsity football experience under his belt, Boley will have the opportunity to come to Wyoming and learn about the ins and outs of the tight end position. He is a good fit for the program as he fits the Cowboys ideal player profile. He describes himself, “as just a gritty hardworking guy that likes to put his hand in the dirt.”

If Jaxon Boley can take his competitive mindset from the pitching mound to the Mountain West gridiron, there is a good chance he could develop into a contributor and the scholarship athlete he thought he would become. We have seen former basketball players become star tight ends in both college football and the NFL. Now we will see if a 6-6 power pitcher from the Bluegrass state can go from throwing baseballs to catching footballs on the high plains of Wyoming.