Naples’ Ashton Jeanty scores during the DODEA-Europe Division II football championship game between the Aviano Saints and the Naples Wildcats, Saturday, Nov. 3, 2018. Jeanty is now a junior at Boise State and is one of the leading candidates for the Heisman Trophy. (Stars and Stripes)

Offensive coordinator Cory Taunton noticed something odd in the backfield this season that he brought up to Naples head football coach Jim Davis.

Instead of being hunched over before the snap, the Wildcat running backs were standing straight. Davis recognized that type of stance almost immediately, as he had seen it before.

Perhaps the most memorable time was six years ago, when Ashton Jeanty almost led Naples to a DODEA-Europe Division II title as a freshman in his lone season as a Wildcat.

Now a junior at Boise State, Jeanty once again is showcasing his talents on the football field – this time in the NCAA’s top division. And even though many of the current Wildcats weren’t even in Italy during Jeanty’s time, the Bronco junior’s impact still is felt at Naples – which won its third straight championship this year after an unbeaten season.

“It’s funny how much of an influence he has on my kids now,” Davis said. “The kids talk about it. We have articles around. We have the (No. 2) uniform hanging in the locker … There’s reminders of him. Not that they need it.”

The 5-foot-9, 215-pound running back has gone from that explosive high school freshman to one of the front-runners to win the Heisman Trophy.

A year after he earned first-team All-Mountain West and Associated Press second-team All-American honors, Jeanty has exploded for 1,734 yards and 23 touchdowns over nine games. His clip of 7.7 yards per attempt is staggering, and midway through the regular season, Jeanty was on pace to break Barry Sanders’ single-season records of 2,628 yards and 37 scores.

He still could do so, should the Broncos qualify for and make a deep run in the expanded 12-team playoff for the first time. Boise State is ranked No. 13 in the latest College Football Playoff poll – the highest of the Group of Five schools, which get one automatic qualifier.

His performances have led to talk of him forgoing his senior season and declaring himself for the NFL Draft, with many experts saying he could be the top running back taken.

Naples’ Ashton Jeanty goes to the basket for two of his 13 points in the Wildcats’ 51-44 loss to the Aviano Saints on Friday, Feb. 1, 2019. Jeanty who starred on both the football field and basketball court for the Wildcats during his freshman year of high school, is now a leading Heisman Trophy candidate for Boise State. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)

For all the hoopla surrounding Jeanty now, he doesn’t forget his football roots in Naples.

Not able to play his seventh- and eighth-grade years when his father, Harry – then a chief petty officer in the Navy – was stationed in Italy, Jeanty learned valuable lessons about self-motivation that helped him get to where he is today.

“I really would say just hard work, dedication and discipline,” Jeanty said during a recent teleconference. “I didn’t get to play football for two years over there, but I still had to work out and still develop my football skills while I was over there. When I finally got my chance, I ran with it.”

Davis wasn’t surprised when Jeanty showed up for football practice his freshman year. He had noticed Jeanty during PE in fall 2016 as he saw a smaller Jeanty leap so high it seemed like he might dunk the ball on the basketball court.

After keeping tabs for two years, Davis was ready to see if Jeanty could hack it with tackle football. He had him take on upperclassman Robby Mitchell during the first day of hitting, and when he flattened the veteran linebacker, Davis had no doubts about the star on his hands.

“He got up, and he’s like, ‘Coach, he’s the real deal,’” Davis said of Mitchell’s reaction. “It wasn’t that he was embarrassed that (Jeanty) put him down on his butt. I think he was happy that he was on his team.”

The 2018 campaign turned into a wild ride that saw the Wildcats go 5-1 during the regular season and earn a berth in the Division II championship game. There, they lost to Aviano 42-19.

Naples did hand the Saints their only loss of the season, 41-36, in Week 6. In that game, Jeanty amassed 339 rushing yards and four touchdowns on just 17 carries.

Yet Jeanty didn’t recall a particular game when thinking back to his time at Naples. Instead, he talked of the importance of team bonding.

“That connection with your teammates off the field, it just makes you that much better as a team,” Jeanty said. “I just remember long bus rides around Europe, sometimes 18 hours all the way to Germany. A lot of laughs, a lot of giggles, a lot of fun on the bus rides, but it just made us that more connected as a team.”

Despite a time difference of eight or nine hours – depending on who and where the Broncos are playing – Davis is among those at Naples who get up in the middle of the night to watch at least part of Boise State’s games.

It wasn’t too difficult for him to roll out of bed for the San Diego State game Nov. 1. As an Aztec alumnus, Davis said he wasn’t bitter the Broncos won 56-24 and he always cheers on his former player.

After all, he’s been a fan since 2016.

“It’s like watching him play now,” Davis said. “You sit at the edge of your seat because each time he touches the ball, you think greatness is going to happen.

“That’s how it was that season back in 2018. You just didn’t know what he was going to do each time he touched the ball, and more times than not, it was a score.”