A ‘frustrated’ football player nearly left BYU. Now he’s a big reason why the Cougars are 2-0.

University Park, Texas • BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick presented the play to his group early in the week — knowing the SMU game might just depend on it. He couldn’t predict exactly when he’d pull it out. Who could have foreseen BYU and SMU locked in a turnover-fueled derby, 15-15, with less than five minutes to go? But Roderick kept repping his new version of the speed option in practice just in case there was a tight game, short yardage and need-to-have-it down.

And sure enough, with 4:05 to go in Dallas and a fourth and one near midfield, the moment presented itself. Quarterback Jake Retzlaff motioned the receiver, Keelan Marion, across the line of scrimmage. He snapped it, took a few steps to his left to draw the defense and then pitched it over to running back Miles Davis at the last second.



The rest was on Davis to pick up the most important yards of the game. “Just drew it up this week. Once he called it, I was like, ‘Oh, this going to be good.

’ Like zero blitz, basically sent the house, and we knew we can get the [running] back on the edge of the speed option,” Retzlaff said. Davis did his job. He popped a 37-yard run to the SMU 15 that would set up the game-winning field goal.

On a night when BYU averaged less than 4 yards a carry and finished with under 140 rushing yards, it was Davis who was the finisher. What a call by BYU on 4th down to set up the go ahead field goal. BYU leads 18-15.

pic.twitter.com/7MfzC5lJy1 And for him to be in that spot, the highlighted man on BYU’s preordained, game-busting play call, is significant.

Just nine months ago, Davis was in the transfer portal thinking of getting out of BYU. He admitted he was frustrated with his role. Now, he’s the reason BYU is 2-0 and still has a real shot at going to the postseason.

“I wanted to find a way to help my team. And I feel like I wasn’t being the best to do that,” he told The Salt Lake Tribune two weeks ago. “So I felt like .

.. yeah, I don’t know.

I was frustrated a little bit.” Davis entered the portal after BYU’s 5-7 season ended last December. He only had 16 carries for 79 yards on the year.

To outsiders, it was slightly puzzling. Davis had moments of brilliance in 2022, going for 131 yards against Wyoming as a redshirt freshman. He averaged nearly 5 yards a carry.

But he fell out of the rotation as a sophomore. He appeared in only five games. Coaches hinted it was partly because Davis was dealing with injuries.

But he said that wasn’t the case. “I was healthy the whole time,” he said. “I got injured a little bit at practice.

At the beginning, I got injured. But that was a little small tweak, came back from that probably the next day. Yeah, I was healthy most of the year.

” Davis simply didn’t know where he stood in the pecking order. He went into the portal to explore his options. BYU lobbied hard for him to come back.

His role would be different this time and now they could use Davis as a more complete running back. Yet, again in fall camp, it looked dicy. When the first depth chart came out, Davis was listed as a third-string back alongisde freshman Pokaiaua Haunga.

Ahead of him were LJ Martin and Hinckley Ropati. Davis thought he had his best camp in years. He added 20 pounds of muscle and stayed in Provo the whole summer to get ready.

In his mind, he was right there with Martin and Ropati even if he wasn’t getting the reps. “Personally, honestly, I’m right there with them to get snaps,” he said. “But, like, I don’t know.

It’s all, it’s all up to the coaches.” Then, on Friday night, the coaches finally came to him. After the first week of the season when Davis only got five touches — averaging 4.

8 yards a carry — BYU was running out of ball carriers against SMU. Martin went down with an injury. Ropati was playing poorly.

Enoch Nawahine was gassed. Davis was the last man standing. So when BYU went with him for the final few plays, he rewarded them with 48 all-purpose yards and the game-sealing play.

“Miles has played a lot of football here, so the moment wasn’t too big,” BYU head coach Kalani Sitake said. A few weeks ago after practice, Davis was sensing things might not break his way early. He wasn’t sure if his main role would be on the field.

“Really just find a way to help the team if I play, or be a cheerleader on the sidelines, just be able to help my team,” he thought out loud. But after Friday night, his role may have just gotten larger. BYU’s postseason prospects did thanks to him.

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