Beckman tailback Jett Daviss stars on the field and leads teammates by example

Beckman senior Jett Daviss has been one of the offensive stars for the Patriots. (Photo Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone)

Beckman High School tailback Jett Daviss has made quite an impact both on the football field and off it for the past four years.

Friday night, Daviss and his Patriot teammates will wrap up their abbreviated spring season and try to leave the field with a victory and some long-lasting memories against Rancho Alamitos at Tustin High.

It will be his final high school football game capping a successful career.

“Jett’s impact on Beckman football goes way beyond his performance on the field,” said Beckman Coach Marcello Giuliano. “He’s the embodiment of our core values, he’s a respected leader, he has great relationships with teammates and coaches. And he’s always smiling, singing and dancing through practice which uplifts everyone on the field.”

Daviss, who will be supported by his family including his parents at Friday’s game, said it will be difficult to see his career come to a close.

“It’s going to be hard because football has really helped me grow into being a better person and playing with my teammates since my freshman year, and some of these people I’ve known since I was in kindergarten, so it’s going to be hard saying good-bye,” he said.

Daviss said football has taught him how to be a leader and be an example for his teammates during practices and games.

“When we’re practicing, I can’t be goofing off,” he said. “If the younger guys see me goofing off, they will think they can do the same thing.”

Daviss’ talents were on display in last week’s 47-17 league loss to Irvine. In that game, he rushed for 257 yards on 37 carries and one touchdown.

“It was not a school record, but it’s been a long time since a running back has put up those kinds of numbers here,” Giuliano said.

Through four games, Daviss has rushed for 704 yards on 112 carries and six touchdowns for the Patriots.

Daviss was hoping his team could capture a victory in last week’s league championship game against Irvine at Irvine Stadium, where he started playing for the Irvine Chargers youth football team. During his time with the Chargers, Daviss, an Irvine resident, made many friends who have also gone on to play high school football. He remains in contact with many of them.

“It was the first stadium I played in and I really wanted to do good since that was my last time playing there,” he said.

Daviss, who has also played linebacker for the Patriots, said he has a number of memories of his career at Beckman.

Last year’s opener against Troy stood out when he scored a late 2-yard touchdown to clinch the 27-18 victory.

“It was a hard-fought game against a team we’ve never played before,” he said. “So I was excited to get the win and score a touchdown to put the game away.”

This year has presented its share of challenges with the season delayed twice due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“It’s been hard, we were supposed to start in August,” Daviss said. “Then they said we would start in January and they kept pushing it back. But we know that every game we get to play is a blessing because have been a lot of teams who have had their seasons cancelled or games cancelled like Uni and Woodbridge and Northwood. So we know we’re lucky to continue to have games.”

Daviss takes football seriously but he also tries to make it fun for his teammates and coaches at practice.

“I try to joke around so that everybody is having fun and it doesn’t become such a grind,” he said. “And I sing a lot.”

Daviss said he appreciates the backing of his head coach.

“He’s been really supportive and put a lot of trust in me,” Daviss said.

The 5-10, 190-pound Daviss hopes to continue his career next year in college. He has offers from Pacific University in Oregon and University of Puget Sound.

“I’m still deciding,” he said.

His coaches and undoubtedly his Beckman teammates will definitely miss him.

“He’s a real joy to coach and will be deeply missed once he graduates from our program,” Giuliano said.

-Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com