|
Sonic Boone
by
Kelly L. Martinez
Photo credit: Clay Jacks, The Advocate Messenger
When I was a
kid, Atari video games were the craze. Your popularity with your
peers soared if you had an Atari system in your house. Though I
tried to convince them of the necessity to have one, my parents
didn’t buckle until about three years later when the price had dropped
and Atari had already designed its next game system. Perhaps if
I had convinced them that there was much to learn by having an Atari
system, they would have been more accommodating in my quest for
popularity.
Over the years,
GameCube, X-Box, and PlayStation have muscled Atari into obscurity
and are as ubiquitous as bicycles and roller skates. In Kentucky,
there’s a young man who admits his Sony PlayStation 2 has improved
his football game. Not the game played on the television screen,
but the game played on the actual gridiron.
 |
|
Univ.
of Kentucky
file photo
|
‘X’ men
Aaron Boone, a senior wide receiver at the University of Kentucky,
readily credits his gaming system of choice with some of the moves
he puts on opposing defenders. “It’s a joke on the team,” said
Boone. “When one of the guys doesn’t run his pattern fast enough
or one of them can’t catch someone, we tell them, ‘You’ve got to
press the ‘X’ button quicker!’”
Boone has apparently
pressed the ‘X’ button quicker than most during his collegiate career.
In 2001, for example, he made 18 catches for 268 yards and led the
Wildcats in touchdown receptions with six.
One Cat’s
Loss is Another Cat’s Gain
Like a lot of kids that grow up in Utah, Boone dreamed of making
catches at the base of the Wasatch Mountains for BYU. Instead,
he evolved into a different breed of cat.
A 1996 graduate
of Millard High School in Fillmore, Utah, Boone excelled in three
sports, earning all-state honors in each. On the diamond, Boone
played pitcher and shortstop, helping his team to a state title
as a sophomore. On the hardwood, he took up residence on the Eagles’
frontcourt as a forward. On the gridiron, he quarterbacked his
team to a state Class AA title as a senior.
Sports weren’t
the only activities Aaron excelled at while in high school. He
graduated with a 3.70 grade point average, was a four-year member
of the National Honor Society and graduated 19th in his
class. He found time for other extracurricular activities as well,
serving as student body president his senior year and as secretary
to the Young Republicans. (A Republican in Utah?? Imagine that.)
Boone enrolled
at Snow College in Ephraim, Utah, in the fall of 1996 and red shirted
his freshman season before answering the call to serve a full time
mission to Peru from 1997-99. He returned from his mission to Snow
hoping to continue at the quarterback position, but fate had other
plans.
A week before
the 1999 season, his coach moved him down the line a few slots to
wide receiver, telling Boone he felt it was his natural position.
Time proved his coach right, as Boone started all 10 games of the
’99 season and caught 33 passes for 645 yards and six touchdowns.
By the end of
his junior college career in 2000, Boone had made 81 catches for
1,505 yards and had caught 19 touchdowns for the Badgers. He was
named First-team All-American by J.C. Gridwire and Second-team All-American
by the National Junior College Athletic Association. Colorado,
Nebraska, Kansas State and Iowa offered him scholarships, but Kentucky
is where his future would unfold.
Boone’s boyhood
dream of playing for BYU was dashed when, in the confusion of the
Lavell Edwards-Gary Crowton coaching transition, Boone
was told he would have to walk on to make the Cougar squad. “It
was a little hard to take,” said Boone. “I mean, I was being offered
scholarships by some of the top schools in the nation, but BYU told
me I had to walk on to play there. They ended up offering me a
scholarship, but it was on signing day and I had already decided
to go to Kentucky.”
Family ties
Boone is the sixth of 10 children born to Coley Boone
and Sherry Peterson. Jonathan, 33, Becky,
32, Amy, 30, Martha, 28, Tammy, 26, Aaron,
24, Sarah, 22, Jesse, 20, and Jason, 18, comprise
the Boone brood. Justin, who was 11, passed away while Aaron
was in Peru.
“Justin’s passing
was a very difficult thing to handle,” recalled Aaron. “But, it
helped me to apply what I was preaching. The Plan of Salvation
helped me to know that Justin was fine. I feel I was blessed because
I felt like I had an angel with me the rest of my mission helping
me out.”
Sports run in
the Boone blood, it seems. Jesse and Jason are both on the University
of Utah football roster. Amy, who was a standout basketball player
at George Mason University, is presently the general manager of
The Sporting Club One at Aventine and is also managing the National
Women’s Basketball League – both organizations are in San Diego,
Calif.
Additionally,
Coley and two of Aaron’s uncles played football at BYU.
Photo credit: David Coyle
Early to
rise
From an early age, Aaron had made the decision to serve a mission.
“I Hope They Call Me on a Mission” was a primary song that helped
him form the right attitude and helped prepare him for the time
when he would heed the call to serve.
His older brother
Jonathan also had a big influence on the path that led Aaron to
the realization of that decision. “Jonathan was always such a good
example for me,” said Aaron. “It had a big impact on me to see
him make the right decisions. I always looked up to him and wanted
to be like him.”
Aaron learned,
from an early age, good habits that have kept him close to the Lord.
Here and
Now
Amidst the excitement of expecting to start this upcoming season,
Aaron – who is currently single – finds time to commit to the things
that matter most. A member of the Bluegrass Ward in Lexington,
Ky., Aaron serves as the first counselor in the young men’s presidency
and as a “scout helper outer.”
He has had several
missionary opportunities in Kentucky, taking teammates to church
and to Utah to visit BYU. About two months after arriving in Kentucky,
Aaron met a young lady and introduced her to the Gospel. She and
her family were baptized and are now active members of the Church.
One of the funniest
missionary experiences he’s had happened shortly after he got to
Kentucky. “I was playing a game of pickup basketball,” Aaron said.
“I had a breakaway and I dunked it. One of the guys playing said
to me, ‘I thought you were a Mormon.’ I told him I was. He said,
‘Then how come you dunked? Isn’t that against your religion?’
I thought he was joking, but I could tell he was dead serious.
I said, ‘No, it’s not against my religion.’ He said he thought
it was because BYU never dunks the ball.”
A Word to
the Wise
Following your dreams and keeping the commandments is the advice
Aaron offers to young LDS athletes – and the rest of us. “I think
all of our dreams are within our reach,” stated Aaron. “There will
always be things that seem to be in the way, but we can’t let them
stop us. You can’t listen to what other people tell you. You can’t
compromise your beliefs to conform to what others are doing or saying.
Staying close to the Lord and keeping His commandments will always
guide you in the right direction.”
Note: To
learn more about Aaron Boone, link here: http://ukathletics.ocsn.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/boone_aaron00.html
Click
here to sign up for Meridian's FREE email updates.
© 2002Meridian
Magazine. All Rights Reserved.
|
