There will always be a place for local recruits in Scotty Walden’s UTEP football program.
This spring there are 17 locals on the Miners’ roster, a fairly normal number that represents a mix of scholarship players on the two-deep and walkons looking to work their way there.
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One of those currently on the two deep include a newcomer transfer in Jayden Wilson, a linebacker who graduated from Austin as one of the most decorated two-way players in the city (he was also a running back at Austin) before heading to New Mexico for two years.
Jayden Wilson is a junior linebacker for the UTEP football team
UTEP has always been home for quarterback Shay Smith, the former Franklin star and son all-time UTEP football great Paul Smith, who played eight years in the NFL and now owns a West side gym.
Smith is in his second year at UTEP after playing in specialty roles as a Wildcat quarterback last season.
Here is a look at two El Pasoans looking to make their mark this spring.
Jayden Wilson loves being back in El Paso
Wilson still remembers where he was when he got the offer to come to UTEP.
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He was lightly recruited by the previous staff but ultimately wasn’t offered, leading him up to his best alternative, New Mexico.
He made an impact there, playing 23 games in two seasons, but he always had an eye on what was going on in El Paso. He could figuratively hear Walden from Albuquerque.
“The dynamic they were building over here, even when I was at UNM, I’d look on Twitter, see the coaching staff, coach Walden, very amped up all the time,” Wilson said. “It felt like it was a great system they were building and I was excited to come in with a new coaching staff and bring UTEP back to where it used to be, a winning program.
“Get this revamped again. I was willing to take on that challenge with this coaching staff. I’m excited for it.”
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Wilson was with his family on an excursion in Ruidoso during the past recruiting period when he heard he was wanted back in his hometown.
“Once I entered the portal, they were the first people to call,” said Wilson, a 6-foot-1, 218-pound junior. “I was on a road trip with my parents to Ruidoso when I got the phone call telling me they wanted to bring me home. It was a no-brainer. There were tears of joy.”
The attraction was simple.
“Home is home, of course,” said Wilson, who grew up watching Aaron Jones in the Sun Bowl. “Ever since I stepped foot on the UTEP campus I felt the feeling of being at home. The people I’ve surrounded myself with, it’s a great environment to be in: the coaches, the players. I’m loving every second of it.”
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Right now he’s working in the rotation as a No. 2 linebacker and at the moment projects as an every-game player.
Shay Smith is a redshirt freshman quarterback for the UTEP football team
Shay Smith enjoying competition
Walden calls this quarterback room the deepest he’s ever had, with four signal callers who saw the field last year back, former five-star recruit Malachi Nelson and another top freshman recruit, Chad Warner. Warner is at with UTEP this spring, what would have been his senior spring at Cibolo Steele in the San Antonio area.
Through all that Smith, one of the four who played at quarterback last year, was taking snaps with the first team in the middle of this past week.
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The battle is supposed to be between Nelson and incumbent Skyler Locklear, but Smith has stuck his nose in the middle of everything and has been impressive so far.
“It’s very competitive,” Smith said. “Guys like Chad, Malachi, Skyler, JP (Justin Pickles), Cade (McConnel), Michael (Southern, a walk-on from Montwood), it’s good to have them in the room. I want to pick their heads, soak up as much knowledge as I can with those types of guys. It’s a blessing to have those guys in the room.”
Along the way, he feels blessed to be in his hometown competing for his father’s alma mater.
“It’s a dream come true,” said Smith, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound redshirt sophomore. “Coming here as a kid, seeing the games, hearing the stories of my dad playing here, it’s super-ironic I ended up here. Hopefully I can give kids in El Paso a lot of hope to chase their dreams, keep going, keep pushing, keep stacking days.
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“It’s very special being from this city. El Paso represents a lot of hard work, a lot of blue-collar people. Being raised by those type of people made me want to work hard. I’m an old-head, I just want to work hard and my parents teach me to be independent, do things on my own.”
That he’s doing them in his home town will always be special for Smith and all the El Paso players on the roster this spring.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Former local stars Jayden Wilson, Shay Smith make mark for UTEP football
