Arizona Wildcats defensive tackle Dereck Boles wants to make something clear.
“I’m not a bad guy,” said Boles, who transferred to Arizona from junior college — after being dismissed from Boise State following an ugly fight with a teammate.
“I don’t get into trouble a lot. I don’t go out looking for trouble. It’s just that situation was a bad situation. It was a bad situation all around.
“But I had to go through all that to come out here. Now I’m sitting here getting ready for the season.”
Arizona gave Boles a second chance, and he’s determined not to blow it. He understands, better than most, that his actions have consequences.
As he considers his current situation — back in Division I, back with his old coach, ascending the depth chart — Boles reminds himself how fortunate he is.
“It’s like, God, don’t lose this again,” he said.
Boles already lost it all once. He was kicked off the Boise State team on Feb. 27, 2016, for what was termed at the time a violation of team rules. About 2½ months later, Boles was arrested and charged with felony mayhem after a Feb. 12 incident in which he bit off part of then-teammate Chanceller James’ ear.
The fight between the two players took place at a house party during which both were drinking, according to published reports. Boles’ attorney argued that he acted in self-defense. This spring, an Idaho jury found Boles not guilty.
He played last season at Coffeyville (Kansas) Community College, accumulating 66 tackles and five sacks.
He maintained a relationship with Arizona defensive coordinator Marcel Yates, who had served in the same capacity at Boise State when Boles played there in 2014 and ’15. Yates paid him a visit in the spring of 2016, Boles said. UA coach Rich Rodriguez came to see him at Coffeyville.
When Yates left Boise for Arizona in January of ’16, Boles remembered thinking he wanted to play for him again. Improbably, it happened.
“Just how everything worked out, it’s crazy,” Boles said. “I feel like everything happens for a reason in life.”
Boles, who grew up in Jamaica before starring at Lakeland (Florida) High, views the fight and its aftermath as a blessing of sorts.
It changed the way he viewed himself and the world. It forced him to accept responsibility for his behavior.
“I learned a lot from it,” Boles said. “I’m a different person coming out of it.”
How so?
“In all aspects,” Boles said. “Seeing the bigger picture. Not just thinking about myself. It took all that to happen for me to honestly sit back and look at myself like, ‘What are you doing? When you get this chance again, what are you gonna do?’ ”
Boles described the process of getting to that point as “long” and “grueling.”
“I had to do some things I didn’t want to do,” he said. “I had to be in some places I didn’t like to be.”
Those places included a police station, a courtroom and — no offense to Coffeyville — a junior college.
“You’re going from having everything right at your fingertips to going to juco, where you’re buying your own cleats,” Boles said. “That was a big wakeup call.”
Boles no longer has to buy his own cleats. He’s in a good place now, a place where he feels wanted. His coaches have had nothing but positive things to say about the redshirt junior thus far.
Boles, who’s listed at 6-2, has dropped from 305 to 288 pounds since joining the team just before the start of training camp. If he doesn’t start at one of the two interior defensive line positions, he’ll be one of the first two players off the bench.
Boles is looking forward to making his official UA debut a week from Saturday against Northern Arizona.
But first, he wants to clear up something else.
About a month after Boles verbally committed to Arizona this spring, 247Sports and other outlets reported that he had changed his mind and would play for South Florida instead. Boles told the Star that never happened.
“I don’t know who screwed that up,” he said. “It wasn’t true. I was always coming to Arizona.”
RichRod softens stance
About a year ago, shortly after Colin Kaepernick’s initial protest, Rodriguez said he would be “disappointed” if a member of his program declined to stand during the National Anthem.
The controversy over Kaepernick’s actions and his subsequent unemployment continues to rage, and other NFL players have shown their solidarity by sitting, kneeling or placing their hands on teammates’ shoulders during the Anthem. Rodriguez has softened his stance slightly.
“I would be disappointed because of what the Anthem means to so many people and the people that have sacrificed for that,” Rodriguez said, adding: “But our guys all have their individual ideals too.”
As Rodriguez noted, the teams remain in the locker room during the “Star-Spangled Banner” for most college football games. If the Wildcats were on the field, Rodriguez said, “I’d like for our guys to put their right hand over their heart and stand up. But that’s an individual choice.”
Extra points
Arizona is scheduled to resume practice Tuesday as it continues to prepare for the opener. This week’s workouts include the “Beanie Bowl,” which is open to the public. It is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. Friday at Arizona Stadium. An autograph session will follow.
