Central's Boerboom signs to play football at New Mexico

~ Boerboom signed to play at the University of New Mexico

Central senior Zach Boerboom considered enjoying the comforts of home for four more years but ultimately decided a change was the best fit.

Boerboom made it official Wednesday when he signed a national letter of intent to play football at the University of New Mexico next season.

"I thought about that because it's the hometown and I'm comfortable here and I like it," Boerboom said about playing at Southeast Missouri State. "And I know the coaches. It really wasn't that far out there for me to stay here, but once I went to New Mexico, I really liked it and it was a better fit."

Boerboom's father, Brian, is the offensive line coach at Southeast. But the lure of playing in the Mountain West Conference and his visit to the New Mexico campus sold him on moving west.

Central tight end Zach Boerboom averaged 13.5 yards per catch as a senior. (Missourian file photo)

"It's a different culture, more the Spanish and Native American stuff," Boerboom said. "The architecture is different and the food is very different. The facilities are very top-notch. It's the Mountain West so I knew they were going to have nice facilities. But even the facilities they have blew my mind. They just finished a new indoor facility."

Colleges considered Boerboom for tight end or the offensive line, but he said he felt tight end was the best fit.

"If I could play tight end, all the better, but offensive line also was there if they wanted me to and they felt strongly about it," Boerboom said. "I was leaning toward the tight end a lot more."

New Mexico plans to use him as a tight end, which helped sell him on the program.

"A big tight end that could be a key part of our offense," New Mexico coach Mike Locksley said in a statement. "Zach can come in and help us. He is a strong run blocker but finds a way to get open in the passing game. We see him as a backside tight end early as he develops but has great potential."

Boerboom, who is listed at 6 foot 4 and 245 pounds, caught 13 passes for 175 yards and two touchdowns for the Tigers as a senior.

"I've always thought Zach has the tools as a tight end to move on and as an athlete," said Rich Payne, who coached the Tigers this past season. "He's a big, strong kid and he's got excellent hands for an individual his size."

The Tigers relied on a run-first offense this past season, which hurt Boerboom's personal statistics. But Payne said that reliance on the run helped Boerboom improve as a blocker.

"I think over the last year he's gotten better at using his body as a blocking tight end," Payne said. "Granted we ran the ball a lot and that wasn't to his advantage as a pass-catching tight end because we didn't throw the ball a lot. But if you look at his average per catch, it's pretty high. And when we did throw the ball to him, more times than not the ball was caught."

Boerboom will see a familiar face in New Mexico. Former Southeast offensive coordinator Vincent White recently accepted a position as the running backs coach at New Mexico. White and New Mexico tight ends coach Cheston Blackshear recently made a trip to Cape Girardeau to sell Boerboom on choosing New Mexico.

"It made the transition easier," Boerboom said about knowing White. "He has similar philosophies as my dad. They coach the same and they do stuff the same."

But moving more than 1,000 miles from home will be a challenge, especially since Boerboom is the oldest of five children.

"I'm going to miss hanging out with my family and coming home every day to a home-cooked meal and stuff like that," Boerboom said. "But I think in the long run it won't be that bad."

Boerboom won't have much time to enjoy downtime after he graduates from high school in May. He's scheduled to start classes at New Mexico on June 3.

"I heard that and my eyes opened a little bit, but I've been around it for a long time and I knew that was going to happen," he said. "I'm just happy to have two weeks."