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SALT LAKE CITY — Solomon Enis calls him the team's "secret weapon."
But for those who don't religiously study the Utah football roster, you've probably never heard of wide receiver Devaughn Vele — hence the secret part. It's not that Utah has kept him in hiding, it's that he hasn't had an opportunity yet to showcase his talent under the bright lights.
Sure, he played in all five games of Utah's abbreviated 2020 season, but the ineffective passing game limited his opportunities to only two receptions for 12 yards — not enough to be a household name. But given Vele's growth and determination, that may change as he looks to take on a bigger role in 2021.
"I never like to hype someone up because I think it creates unrealistic expectations, but Devaughn Vele is a great player — crazy athletic," fellow wide receiver and friend Britain Covey said of the 6-foot-4, 205-pound San Diego native. "He's very athletic, but he's coupled that with work ethic."
It's a work ethic that earned him a scholarship nearly a year after walking on to the team in 2019. Vele took an unofficial visit to Utah, showed his film to coaches and was told he could contribute without a tryout. But contribute is a loaded word for any walk-on player who has no guarantee his hard work will be more than just being named a member of the scout team.
It's not a glorious life, regardless of what one may contribute to a team. While most in the program have earned a scholarship and have a clearer path to playing time, a walk-on isn't afforded a guarantee. It's really a last-ditch effort to pursue a sport one loves — and you have to love it.
That's Vele. He was determined to make it work.
"Being a walk-on is hard, especially mentally, because you're really overlooked," Vele said. "If you mess up one time — you don't really get that chance. So, it's always like coming in every day with that hunger to do great every day."
But from Day 1, Vele proved he belonged on the team. He said it wasn't because he made "highlight plays"; it was more about being "coachable" and doing "every little thing the coaches told me." Still, the talent had to be there for Vele to get noticed. Many walk-ons work hard and are coachable, but Vele was someone that could make an impact on the team.
Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham made mention of him several times in his post-camp media addresses in 2019 as a guy that was turning heads. So, it was no surprise when Vele earned a scholarship.
"It was hard. The path of a walk-on is really hard, but one thing I will say for any walk-on that would ever happen to listen to this: It's just continuing to work hard, coming every day with that mentality that 'I'm going to step up — just doing the little things,'" Vele said. "I feel like that's the thing that helped me get my scholarship, was doing the little things."
Now, Vele is considered one of the top returning receivers for the 2021 season, and Utah's fall camp is where he can build off a strong spring in which he cemented himself as an up-and-coming player on offense.
"Without a doubt. He had a good start today, and he's a guy that has a great skill set. He's got great size and he will be in the mix as well," Whittingham said of Vele after the team's first practice Wednesday. "We've got about seven or eight receivers right there in the mix."
But just like when he walked on to the team, Vele has a long road ahead of him. He'll get playing time, no doubt, but it's what he does with it that will be the deciding factor into whether he's just another receiver on the roster or one who can showcase an ability to be a difference-maker for the Utes in pursuit of a Pac-12 Championship.
He showed he could do it at Rancho Bernardo High, where he recorded 980 yards and 11 touchdowns on 52 receptions his senior season. Now, it's just about having the confidence he can do it in Division I football. His coaches and teammates believe he's capable of a breakout season, but only Vele can unlock that potential for others to see.
"Going into a game is really hard when you haven't performed at a certain level in a game. And you go into a Pac-12 atmosphere, it really is a challenge, and I think that there's a mental toughness side that people don't focus on enough — when you're just focusing on physical and footwork and all these drills and things," Covey said of what's holding Vele back.
"But there's something that you have to carry over, and I feel like I have that partly because I've had to have that my whole life being small, being kind of underrecruited and things. And so I'm trying to help Vele develop that because when he goes out there, he needs to have no doubt that he's an all-Pac-12 receiver, you know, an all-conference receiver. We'll see what happens, but he knows that that's the good thing — he recognizes that part."
Vele does recognize that. "I feel like I've gained a lot more confidence," Vele said, while adding that new receivers coach Chad Bumphis, and players like Covey, Enis and Samson Nacua before he transferred to BYU, has helped him unlock his potential on the field.
"I was a little nervous the first time I was playing, and it didn't really let me showcase my true talent," Vele said. "But Coach Bump's been helping me; a lot of the leaders like Covey and Solo, they've been helping me a lot, too. ... But I'm stepping into the role any way I can, whatever they need me to do. The biggest thing I'm focusing on is just contributing to the team any way I can.
"I honestly believe this is the team that we can really win the Pac-12 Championship, and that drives me every day — to any way I can contribute to that win, so that's what I'm trying to do."
Vele isn't the prototypical flashy receiver, he's just a "regular guy" with an "old soul." He loves fishing, his family and playing football for the University of Utah. But he thrives on showing others that he's capable of more.
"I honestly love it. I really thrive on being the underdog," he said. "I've kind of been the underdog even back in high school — I didn't really get any offers or anything. So, I actually love it because that gives me that drive to be better and become great — and I really believe I can do that.
"And with the guys that always consistently remind me that I can have that ability to do that, it really helps me a lot. I really appreciate them, I appreciate my family, I appreciate everybody that's helping me, and I know that regardless — if people know who I am, or if they know who I am or not — I'm still at the end of the day gonna be me and do what I got to do."
