Boyd Excited To Be Part Of Program At Prairie View A&M

SOUTHFIELD - The desire to find an HBCU to play baseball has been met by Omar Boyd.

The Detroit Edison senior will be heading south to the state of Texas after a commitment with Prairie View A&M.

“I’ve wanted to go to an HBCU since I was a freshman,” Boyd reflected. “It all started with Prairie View in January. I was sending emails out to schools to get my numbers out there and I got a call from the coach saying he liked my video.”

Versatility was one area of the game that stood out.

“They liked my athleticism,” explained the 86th-rated senior in Michigan. “They saw that I ran a 6.6 60, and that I can play all positions. They said if I keep hitting the way I am, they will find a spot for me.”

Making improvements in his game helped attract the Division I program.

“I’ve gotten a lot stronger,” Boyd noted. “Over the last two years I’d only had 10 extra-base hits but this year I had five in my first 10 games. My fielding has also gotten better. I’m playing third this year but I’m really getting used to playing all positions.”

Boyd pointed to an opportunity to get on the field quickly as a determining factor in choosing the Southwestern Athletic Conference school.

“One thing that stood out the most is they said I could come in my freshman year and start,” Boyd related. “Others said there was a senior ahead of you. But (assistant) coach (Brian) White said if I come in and do the things I’m supposed to do I have a chance to start.”

Playing at the next level is something that has grown on the 5-10 175-pounder.

“I’ve wanted to play in college since I was younger but I wasn’t serious about it until my freshman year of high school,” Boyd said. “I started playing with Arsenal in the summer and they really helped me out with my game and seeing good pitchers which I hadn’t seen much previously.Previously I went to Southfield A&T but then I transferred to Detroit Edison to be around better players and that pushed me to make me better.”

College interest followed.

“My sophomore year is when I first started getting recognition and looks from colleges,” Boyd noted. “The first ones were D-III and JUCOs but then going into my junior year I got some D-I looks.”

There was a lot of assistance along the way to help make a commitment to a Division I university happen even before recruitment began for Boyd.

“It all started with my 10U team,” Boyd explained. “My dad coached that team. It was a big part of my progression to where I am today. Then I moved on to the Bloomfield Blue Jays with Mike Cowdrey. He was a big help with me being able to hit the ball in every direction and stay calm. Then the Southfield coaching staff helped me out big time. Then Detroit Edison and coach Mark Brown. He knows the coaches and program at Prairie View very well and he was a big help there.”

Still, being an uncommitted senior brought some concerns according to the fourth-ranked 2021 second baseman in Michigan.

“It was tough with covid and not being able to do a lot of things, but I wasn’t really nervous,” Boyd said. “I knew it was only a matter of time. I just had to stay patient and everything would work itself out come high school season.”

A 4.07 student planning on a major in computer science, Boyd has no worries with the long distance from Detroit to Prairie View, which is located just north of Houston.

“It’s a two-and-a-half-hour flight and maybe a 17-hour drive,” Boyd noted. “My parents are very supportive of it. It’s down south and hot there … it’s not Michigan weather. I was a little nervous the first time I went down there, but I know if I stay faithful everything will go well.”

The 18-year-old believes he can be a major asset to the Prairie View program.

“I have a lot of determination, fight and grit,” Boyd concluded. “I’m that guy who will sacrifice himself for the team no matter the cause. I can bunt, get a base hit in the gap, and play any position, whatever they need.”