KENNESAW, Ga. — Davis Bryson. Many Owl faithful will recognize the name, but few know the full story of his perseverance.

In 2022, Bryson arrived to Kennesaw State as a dual-threat quarterback from Freedom High School in Woodbridge, Virginia. As a senior, he led all quarterbacks in Virginia in both rushing yards and rushing touchdowns, finishing with 2,518 passing yards to go along with 1,216 rushing yards and 56 total touchdowns. 

After earning All-Region and All-District Player of the Year honors, it was time to choose where to play college football. That decision was made easier for Bryson after being recruited by former Owls quarterback, 2017 Big South Offensive Player of the Year and Kennesaw State Hall of Famer Chandler Burks. 

“Kennesaw State showed me the most love out of all the schools that were recruiting me,” Bryson said. “I was lucky enough to have Chandler Burks recruiting me, one of my favorite coaches that I’ve had. He came to my school to visit me, we had a few good conversations over the phone, and once I got up here for a visit, Kennesaw State just checked every box.” 

Bryson’s first action as an Owl came in 2023, appearing in four games with one start at quarterback. He finished the season with 206 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while also completing two passes for 53 yards. 

Going into the 2024 season, Bryson was named the team’s starting quarterback, an opportunity that he had spent two seasons preparing for. 

“It was what I was preparing for really my whole career since I stepped foot on campus,” he said. “And then 2024 is when it came to be. Just a whole lot of training and putting in work during the offseason preparing for that moment.”

In 11 starts for the Owls in 2024, Bryson compiled 1,495 passing yards and six passing touchdowns, adding 297 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns. In KSU’s upset win against Liberty on Oct. 24, he was named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week after completing 16 of 20 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for 20 yards. 

Following his first full season as the KSU starting quarterback, Bryson met with newly hired head coach Jerry Mack, who informed him that his future at Kennesaw State would be better served as a wide receiver, not a quarterback. Suddenly, he had a very important decision to make. 

Was he going to chase the dream of playing quarterback at another school or was he going to stay at Kennesaw and switch positions for the school he loved three years into his career? 

“I gave it some thought and a lot of prayer,” Bryson said. “I ended up making the decision to switch positions because I love the school, and I trusted Coach Mack and the coaching staff that they had a plan for me. They haven’t lied to me.”

In his first season at his new position, Bryson appeared in 13 games for the Owls, recording nine receptions for 106 yards on the season, while also returning 14 kickoffs for 307 yards. 

“I made the right decision for sure,” he said. “It was definitely some trials and tribulations I had to go through because I had never played wideout before. I spent literally my whole life playing quarterback and then three years into my college career I’m trying to switch positions. It was definitely a learning curve, but I’m lucky to have my coaches and teammates around me. Shoutout to them because I couldn’t do it without them.” 

Now in his second full season at wide receiver, Bryson has fully embraced the position change. On Oct. 28, with the Owls on a losing skid and facing Middle Tennessee State, it was Bryson’s turn. 

He finished the game with a career-high five catches for 46 yards and a touchdown, to go along with 30 rushing yards and a career-high 71 kickoff return yards. He was named CUSA Special Teams Player of the Week and became only the second Owl in program history to record a passing, receiving, and rushing touchdown in his career. 

“We made a conscious decision going into the game that we wanted to put the ball in people’s hands that we felt like it was important to and that we trusted,” said Mack at his weekly press conference following the game. “At the end of the day, no better person to do it than the guy that’s been around here a long time, been through a lot of ups and downs, and practiced his tail off for two or three weeks in a row. We made a decision to get him some touches and see what he does with the ball in his hand.” 

After several years of waiting his turn at two different positions, knowing the coaches had that level of trust in him in a must-win game meant a lot to Bryson. 

“It feels great because there was a lot of work put into that,” he said. “That whole game was just a credit to the whole team and the coaching staff putting me in those situations. It was special to have that moment, but shoutout to the other guys who made it happen.”

Moving forward, getting Bryson the ball and using him in certain situations is something this Owls offensive staff wants to continue. Those opportunities exist because of the work he puts in during the week.

“I don’t know when or how those opportunities are going to present themselves,” Mack said. “But I do know that guy [Bryson] is going to put in the work, put in the time, and when it’s his time to shine, the expectation is he does the same thing he did last week [against Middle Tennessee State].” 

In the current landscape of college athletics, finding a guy like Davis Bryson is rare. Many players choose to transfer when playing time drops or roles are changed. Not for Bryson. 

He decided to stick it out at the university he originally committed to, even when times got tough. 

“It’s a blessing that I’m still able to play this game,” Bryson said. “I could be anywhere right now doing anything, but God gave me another chance to continue to play this game, which I love. And as many ups and downs as that came with, I don’t regret anything about it.” 

With four games left in his Kennesaw State career, Bryson has already left his mark on this program. Whatever he does next is simply the cherry on top of a historic Owls career. 

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