A glimpse inside the mind of BC kicker Aaron Boumerhi
Here's what he's thinking before he attempts a key kick. Does icing the kicker actually work?
Aaron Boumerhi has never minded the pressure.
In fact, it’s when he thrives most, and that’s one of the main reasons he loves kicking.
Boumerhi, a Boston College graduate student who previously attended Temple, has two years of eligibility with the Eagles including this one. He’s been a consistent 17 of 17 on extra points and has transitioned seamlessly to a new team in a new city and conference.
Boston.com picked Boumerhi’s brain with the hopes of understanding what life is like as a kicker. Here’s a glimpse into his daily routine, his favorite kick of all-time, why his job is gratifying, and much more.
How did he first get into kicking?
Boumerhi’s older brothers, Alex and Nick, both kicked growing up, so it seemed natural to follow in their footsteps.
When Nick graduated from Philipsburg-Osceola High School in Pennsylvania, the team needed a kicker, so Boumerhi decided to take it more seriously and invest more time in sharpening his craft.
He grew up playing a lot of soccer, but at the start of his junior year, his football career took off and the better he got, the more he started to enjoy and embrace the role.
“It’s a really fun position because the spotlight’s on you,” Boumerhi said.
Aaron Boumerhi (second from right) is 17 of 17 on extra points through Week 4.
What does he like about kicking itself?
Though Boumerhi doesn’t get too many reps during games, he loves the idea of putting points on the board in a way that isn’t scoring a touchdown.
“It’s something about how controlled yet difficult it is,” he said. “It really intrigues me, because it’s really a challenge, but it’s also very fun.”
Boumerhi said he tries to do as well as he can in everything, regardless of what it is, and kicking is no exception. He said his mannerisms and personality off the field correlate with his personality on the field, so there’s no constant battle trying to adopt a different persona when he’s out there.
He prides himself on being detail-oriented and regimented outside of games, which makes competing on Saturdays easier.
“It’s about keeping a consistent lifestyle and really doing everything I can to try and hone through it,” he said.
Holder Dennis Grosel is consistently impressed by Boumerhi’s effort and his commitment to living in the moment.
“You can tell he wants to be here and wants to make the kicks.” Grosel said. “The biggest thing is not letting this team down. That’s what I respect about him the most is his work ethic and his determination to help all these guys out. He’s the new guy, but he’s fitting in perfectly.”
How did he end up at Boston College?
When Grosel says “the new guy,” he’s speaking literally. Boumerhi started his career at Temple, carving out a key role for himself as a freshman and sophomore. He missed nearly his entire junior year, and he thought there was a chance his career was over.
He had dealt with this torn labrum for quite some time, but at this point, having surgery was necessary if he wanted to keep playing. He knew it would set him back short term, but he wasn’t done with the game quite yet.
“I wasn’t kicking as well as I wanted to,” Boumerhi said. “It’s kind of weird getting surgery to play football, but it was kind of what I had to do.”
He graduated from Temple in three years and was eager to pounce on the opportunity when Boston College expressed interest. The Eagles needed a kicker, and Boumerhi wanted to compete at a high level, so it made perfect sense.
As a graduate student, Boumerhi takes classes and gets to play two more years of football, so he couldn’t be more thrilled with the way things unfolded after he thought his career might end.
“It’s a big opportunity,” he said, “and I’m loving it here so far.”
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What’s his favorite kick of all-time?
There are many kicks that hold a special place in Boumerhi’s heart, but there’s one that occurred recently that was especially meaningful. In his first game back since the injury, he drilled five of five extra points against Virginia Tech.
Getting that first one out of the way after redshirting was a major moment of relief, knowing that all he had been through was worth it.
“It wasn’t a big kick or anything like that, but it was big for me, because everyone doubted me coming back from my injury,” Boumerhi said. “It’s still a battle, but just being able to go out there and prove that I can do it, and to see the ball go through the uprights, was a good feeling.”
A 52-yard kick for Temple against UMass and a 40-yard winning field goal against Villanova are also highlights. He also had a 53-yarder called back due to a delay of game penalty.
How does he prepare for his role?
Boumerhi wakes up early and gets to the Eagles’ facility for treatment. He applies a heat pack, gets his leg and back warmed up, goes through stretches, uses a stim machine, does roll-out exercises and relies on exercise bands, to name a few activities.
He quickly pulls out a lacrosse ball from his pocket to show that he incorporates that, too. There’s no exact science to kicking, so he tries plenty of different exercises to get his mind and body and right.
Grosel said they get some snaps in before practice to warm up, some more during practice to get going and then anywhere from 15 to 25 more after practice to leave the day feeling like they’re in a rhythm and on the same page.
On game days, Boumerhi tries to keep everything the same, and it helps that the stadium is attached to the workout facility, so he can hop back and forth with relative ease. During games, he warms up for each kick with the net on the sideline instead of on the field, which takes some getting used to but isn’t a problem now.
Quarterback Anthony Brown doesn’t work closely with Boumerhi, but as far as he can tell, Boumerhi is dedicated to his craft.
“From what I hear, he works really, really hard,” Brown said, “and he continues to get better each week … You can just tell that he likes to work.”
Graduate student Aaron Boumerhi is loving life at Boston College.
What’s his routine?
It’s always the same for the most part.
He gives a nod to Grosel and they make sure they’re on the same page. Boumerhi takes three steps directly back, two steps to his left at a 90-degree angle, perpendicular to the ball and lines up the kick.
This is where it gets a little funky. He doesn’t have one spot he always looks at. It’s oftentimes a metal bar at the very top of the stadium, he says, but sometimes it’s something specific on the screen or even a brightly colored shirt in the stands.
It depends on if he’s on the hash and how far back he is. Wind is also a factor, so it’s really case-by-case. What’s sometimes an afterthought for fans is Boumerhi’s only thought.
“Every time you kick, you have to repeat the same motion over and over again and block out all other external factors,” Boumerhi said. “At the end of the day, if you’re thinking about anything external, you’re not going to focus on what you’re doing.”
Does icing the kicker work?
It’s an age-old question, and it’s also one that certainly isn’t black and white.
“It really just comes down to your preparation,” he said. “Sometimes it can work. It’s not a cut-dry answer. It’s not a yes or a no.”
On the one hand, Boumerhi said, you’re giving the kicker more time to think, but on the other, you’re giving him one extra warm-up kick that can make all the difference or a chance to read the wind or build up even more confidence.
He knows it’s a widely discussed topic – and people ask him all the time – but he said he doesn’t think much about it a whole lot.
“At the end of the day, you’ve still just got to kick the ball,” he said.
What makes his job gratifying?
Boumerhi never likes seeing the BC offense make it downfield and then fall short of scoring a touchdown, but the silver lining is that he knows he has a chance to help.
This year, in addition to his perfect performance on extra points, Boumerhi has kicked field goals of 30, 40, and 37 yards in the last three weeks. That feeling of running off the field with his teammates after putting points on the board never gets old.
“You can still make a positive out of what was a negative,” Boumerhi said. “Just seeing all the guys always gets you pretty hype.”
It may be a small role, but it’s a significant one. Boumerhi loves the grand stage, and he enjoys the challenge of delivering key kicks with the game on the line.
“It’s really weird,” Boumerhi said. “A lot of position players will have 30-plus snaps a game, but as a kicker, especially for me because I’m not doing kickoffs, it’s a big day if I have seven kicks. You don’t get very many opportunities, but the expectations are so high that pretty much every kick you have to make.”
