Pass by Van Buren Caught in Colorado

Receiver Leodes Van Buren of Newbury Park High, who represents half of the state’s all-time leading passing combination, has orally committed to Colorado, he said Thursday.

Van Buren (6-feet-1, 190 pounds) made his college choice three days after Newbury Park quarterback Keith Smith, the state’s all-time leading passer and Van Buren’s best friend, announced he will attend Arizona.

“I wish I could have Keith throwing to me in college, but I think we both made good choices,” Van Buren said.

“It would have been great if we could have agreed (on the same school), but this is something we each have to do.”

Van Buren, selected all-state by Cal-Hi Sports, tops the state receiving list and is No. 2 nationally with 269 receptions for 4,446 yards. He also scored 44 touchdowns.

He received his Scholastic Aptitude Test result in the mail Thursday--a qualifying score in his second crack at the test--then immediately called Colorado to accept a scholarship offer.

Van Buren’s score the first time he took the SAT was below 700, the minimum required for freshman eligibility at Division I schools. That made Thursday’s news especially gratifying.

“I’m so pumped up,” Van Buren said. “The first time I took (the test), I really didn’t study . . . I didn’t take it seriously.

“I worked really hard since then and I studied--a lot. I did what I had to.”

Van Buren, who said he plans to major in business administration, returned from a recruiting trip to Boulder on Jan. 21.

The Times’ Ventura County lineman of the year the last two seasons, Van Buren also took recruiting trips to Fresno State and San Diego State. He declined invitations to visit Nebraska, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.

Van Buren helped lead Newbury Park (14-0) to one of the greatest seasons in state history, which was capped by a 22-14 victory over Hawthorne in the Southern Section Division III championship game.

He led the state in receiving, catching 101 passes for 1,658 yards and 20 touchdowns.