Brennan Miles dislocated his thumbs during the 2025 boys state volleyball championships, but that didn’t stop him from finishing the match.
After his team, Discovery Canyon, lost in the first round consolation game to Valor Christian, the junior was diagnosed with a concussion.
Neither injury was going to stop Miles.
“To be honest I just took some pain meds and went back out there, my team needed me,” Miles said. “I love (the seniors) like brothers and I’m really going to miss them next year. I knew it was our last time playing together and I just didn’t want to let them down.”
That mentality of putting everything on the line has resulted in a huge season for Miles, who led the team with 300 kills, good for No. 9 in the state, and ended with a .276 hitting percentage this season.
“Brennan’s impact for our team was immense this year, he was one of our powerhouse hitters which was very much visible in every game,” Thunder coach Mallory Richardson said, “He is an overall consistent player and someone our kids could look to with assurance that the job would be taken care of.”
Miles has gained much of his hitting strength from his time living on a farm. In the evenings he can be found peppering the volleyball back and forth with his sisters in the wide open space of the barn.
He has also worked construction since he was 12-years-old, giving him the physical work needed to be a big hitter.
After choosing to quit football last year and solely focus on volleyball, Miles is seeing the improvement he has hoped for since his sisters introduced him to the sport five years ago.
Over the summer, he put in more work than ever to earn a spot on varsity, which he did with flying colors.
“We saw a different side of him that was more competitive, more of a go-getter,” Richardson said. “Being able to see him open up and bring that to the table … he was willing to outwork anyone on the court. It didn’t matter if the player on the other side was 10 times better, he was willing to work for that position.”
Despite his standout season, it’s his teammates he will always think of first.
“I think I had some good stats, but I couldn’t do it without my team,” Miles said. “It’s hard for a player to stand out if they don’t have a team to build off of. I have great teammates who helped me look good. That’s where I found my success.”
Miles’ commitment to his teammates was evident when he was chosen as a team captain after another team captain was injured.
“We put him in a couple tough situations to see if he would break under pressure, build up the team, things like that. And he excelled beyond our beliefs,” Richardson said.
“With the leadership thing I think so much of it is humility,” Miles said. “Knowing that I’m no more special than my teammates around me and I can’t do any of this without them. A lot of it is just putting them first and making sure they know how much they mean to me. I don’t think I did much more than try to be a light for Christ and build them up.”
After losing several varsity players to graduation last year, Miles and his team recognized that this year would be a year of growth. They didn’t expect to make it past regionals, so to end their season at state was more than they could have hoped.
Miles was a large part of the team’s leadership, but he still credits Discovery Canyon’s performance to his teammates.
“A lot of my team took charge and helped us out a lot so along with the coaches they are the reason we made it, I’m just another piece in the puzzle,” Miles said. “We went further than expected so we are very happy about that but sad to lose teammates.”
Miles has dreams of playing college volleyball, but also wants to become a better leader and overall player. He loves the game, and most of all he wants to make his teammates proud.
“He is an extremely caring and motivated kid,” Richardson said. “He takes into account everything and wants to be on top of things. He wants to be the best of the best, perform well, make sure everyone is proud. He is a naturally talented player but also a good kid outside of gym and that attributes to how he is as an athlete.”
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