State champion wide receiver Wyatt Smiley, senior, will begin his collegiate-level football career at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) two days after graduation. 

Every June, hundreds of seniors take to the stage for graduation. This year, on June 3, the 2025 graduating class will walk the stage for the last time as students of West Linn High School. Once all the caps are thrown, they will continue into their own lives, saying goodbye to the friends they have known for years. 

For Smiley, the period of time between graduation and college will be very brief as he prepares to leave for summer training at UTSA. 

“It’s an opportunity to showcase my name on the biggest stage and also an opportunity to earn a degree to set myself up for later in life and take home those memories,” Smiley said. 

Smiley will be studying business finance at UTSA. Playing at the collegiate level was one of Smiley´s goals from a young age. For Smiley, the recruiting process started during his sophomore year. 

“It was a long process, a lot of ups and downs. It took a lot of faith and trust in the process of how it’s all gonna work out,” Smiley said. 

Growing up in San Diego, he looked up to his family, specifically his uncle, who played Division I football at an East Coast school. 

“Football as a sport is honestly a thing that helps you understand a lot of life values. A lot of people just like the hitting part and the flashy plays, but there’s a deeper meaning to it. You start to understand certain aspects of it beyond the sport,” Smiley said. “We’re here in January and the season starts in August, but we’re here at 6 a.m. every day. So you learn that stuff takes a lot more to achieve what you want to achieve”.  

This year, many of Smiley’s teammates committed to Division I schools as well. The list includes Baron Naone, a tight end who committed to the University of Washington, Jake Normoyle, an offensive lineman who committed to Oregon State University, and Gunnar Huffman, who committed to Linfield University. With the frequency of seniors who commit to play in college, the work that goes into the process can sometimes be overlooked. 

“You see all those guys with commits, and I see them at six in the morning doing what other people aren’t,” Smiley said. 

Smiley started his high school career as a freshman on JV, then played varsity every year after. As a senior, Smiley helped lead his team to two state championship titles. Smiley’s progress wasn’t always linear, but he was able to rely on his family for support. 

“They know what’s best for me and they know when I’m not giving 100% effort, whether that be school or sports, so they push me when they know I can do better and they’re also supportive when I fall,” Smiley said. 

Throughout the trials of his football career, Smiley gravitated towards his faith to keep him on the right path.

“Trusting in God is honestly what helped me get through. There were certain points where I wanted to stop and just go to school for school, and just praying about it and going to church really helped me persevere,” Smiley said. “It’s all God’s timing, and his timing is the best timing.” 

Carson Smiley, younger brother of Wyatt Smiley, also plays football, and for Wyatt’s senior season, the brothers were able to play alongside each other as a quarter back, wide receiver duo one last time.