Jamoi Mayes could have dwelled on the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga football team's last game of the 2021 spring season.
It certainly had its bright spots for the 5-foot-10, 200-pound freshman, but he also fumbled two punts, losing both and each resulted in Mercer touchdowns in what turned out to be a 35-28 win for the Bears at Finley Stadium. Two days after that game, UTC opted out of the spring season.
But the good thing about football is it constantly provides new opportunities. Plays last around 5-10 seconds, then it's right back to the huddle to recalibrate, so Mayes got the chance to move on quickly as it's the nature of the sport. Plus he realized there was a big opportunity for him to break into the rotation as receiver for an upperclassman-heavy Mocs' team after Bryce Nunnelly decided to graduate from UTC and play his final season at Western Michigan in January, which opened up a spot in the starting lineup.
Mayes has averaged just under 20 yards per reception in the spring and fall seasons, with 355 yards on 20 catches and his first career touchdown coming in that same Mercer game. He's one of three freshmen on the offensive side that have started games for the Mocs this season, with receiver Tyler Walker and tight end Keyshawn Toney being the others (each has at least one touchdown reception).
Getting on the field was an opportunity Mayes - a former three-star prospect - felt he was ready for, especially after receiving advice from former Mocs defensive back Ryan Andrews, Mayes' assistant coach at Griffin High School in Georgia.
"He just told me to go do your work and everything should play out for you," Mayes said. "(Receiver coach Adam) Mims basically told me the same thing. He said, 'You're a great athlete. Just come in, learn the plays and you'll get into the rotation. You should get a lot better."
So Mayes did his work. He found his way into all eight contests for the Mocs (5-3, 4-1 Southern Conference), who travel to face Wofford (1-7, 0-6) Saturday at 1:30 at Gibbs Stadium in Spartanburg, South Carolina. He made starts against East Tennessee State and Samford and has 11 catches for a 17.3-yard average on the year, with three grabs of at least 30 yards or more, which is tops on the team. He's also tied with senior Reginald Henderson for most games with at least 50 receiving yards with three, and 64% of his 11 receptions have gone for first downs, which is the best percentage on the team.
"It's about going out everyday and competing hard in practice to get the guys the best looks they need," Mayes said. "Hopefully the other guys give the defense the looks they need so we can all go out and compete on Saturdays."
He didn't make a catch last week against Furman, but head coach Rusty Wright noted that he told Mayes that it was one of his better performances of the season.
"He's got a bright future ahead of him. A super future," Wright said. "He's another one of those guys that has gotten a little more serious about doing things. He's not accepting being a freshman, and I think he has all the tools and the skill set there to be a really good player in this league for a long time. We have to figure out ways to get him the ball more, but he's worked extremely hard, he's practiced better, he's done those things better and he's made himself better."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3.