STILLWATER — Kyler Pearson has never once passed the eye test of a football coach.

As a college senior measuring 5-foot-6 and 140 pounds, he never has and never will.

“He doesn’t pass the eye test for me, and I’ve been a football coach for 34 years,” said Kyler’s father, Preston Pearson, who recently was hired as the head coach at Skiatook High School. “When he was in third, fourth, fifth grade, he did not look like he belonged on that field, but he was the one who always made the plays.”

That last part is why Kyler is entering his second season at Oklahoma State and fifth season of college football, despite looking like an eighth-grader snuck onto the field.

He made plays in little league. He made plays at Tulsa Union High School. He even made plays at Kansas, which gave him a scholarship in 2020 when Les Miles was the head coach.

Now, he’s carving out his role at OSU, cwhere oach Mike Gundy has suggested Kyler could be used in the return game.

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“This spring, they’ve been on me about catching punts and catching kicks, trying to make sure I’m ready,” Kyler said. “I was on punt return and kick return at Kansas, especially kick return. I was the backup on punt return there to a guy who’s playing for the Bengals now, so it was hard to get above him. But I’ve got experience. I’ve done it and it’s nothing new.”

The Cowboys, of course, have Brennan Presley entrenched in both of those roles, and his biggest asset is what he does with the ball in his hands. But protecting Presley also has value, so that’s where Pearson could step forward.

“I grew up playing against BP my whole life, being at Union and him at Bixby,” Kyler said. “Now, he’s someone I look up to. He’s been here, he’s experienced, and he’s someone I look up to and aspire to be like.”

Kyler’s journey to OSU has been anything but typical.

Miles offered Kyler a scholarship when he was a junior at Union, and he played his first two years at Kansas. He earned the starting kick return job as a freshman.

But in the transition from Miles to Lance Leipold, the new coaching staff didn’t see Kyler as a fit in their plans

“The head coach was like, ‘I think we should go our separate ways. I don’t think you’re gonna be involved in our offense, and we’re gonna take you off scholarship,’” Kyler recalled. “I didn’t hold a grudge. If they didn’t want me there, I didn’t want to be there.”

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One of the assistants from Miles’ staff was hired at Tennessee-Martin, so Kyler joined him there, but they chose to redshirt him.

During that time, Preston began to battle what turned out to be a year-long illness, and the family started to discuss the need for Kyler to get back closer to home. Walking on at OSU became the obvious choice.

“He was about nine hours away, and we were to the point where we almost never saw him,” Preston said. “Now, he’s only a little over an hour away. We can help with whatever he needs, and he can come see us.

“He absolutely loves Stillwater. He loves Coach Gundy and Coach Kasey Dunn. They treat him good, and as a dad, that’s all you can hope for. Nobody’s ever gonna coach him as hard as I did.”

Kyler arrived at OSU last summer, but had to sit out the 2023 season because at that point, the NCAA still penalized players who were transferring for a second time.

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So Kyler worked on the scout team and showed off his athleticism enough to stay on the coaches’ radar.

He began this spring as a backup slot receiver, but as the team dealt with injuries at running back, he moved there to bolster depth.

“I’m loving it,” Kyler said of the position change. “My body’s not. It’s a lot different than receiver, but it’s been fun.”

And while he doesn’t look the part of a college running back, the size difference is nothing new.

“It’s not like he’s the smallest guy out there for the first time,” Preston said with a laugh. “His whole life, he’s always been that guy.

“He’s got a good knack for finding creases and he’s football-savvy. I don’t know how to explain it, but he knows how to make plays.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OSU football's 140-pound Kyler Pearson just keeps making plays