We’ve been talking about Wendell Smallwood and his Charles Sims role for 20 months now, going all the way back to the final game of the 2013 season when I just had to ask, “Hey, Dana. Is Wendell basically Sims?“

It seems now’s the time for Smallwood, because the offense could very well revolve around him like it did Sims two seasons ago, and that was the scenario many observers crafted and explored at the Big 12’s media days earlier this week. He’s a modular part of a modular offense. Versatility is his calling card. “I never used the word until I got to college, but yeah, I used to love catching the ball, running the ball, lining up in the slot and doing a lot of things,’’ Smallwood said. “Once I got to school, Dana just made me do more of them. He’s kind of made it all up for me.’’

But stop right there for a second: Smallwood was in Dallas. A year earlier, he was behind bars.

Did Smallwood do anything wrong? Well, yes, by merely discussing witness tampering with a man accused of murder. That alone left a black mark on his reputation, even if it was just talk. But it also taught him a lesson.

“I think mentally it humbled me. I learned from it, I know that,’’ Smallwood said. “I’ve got to watch who I hang around with, watch my friends, just stay around good people, around players. Just not wander off. It made me a better man.’’

There was a point, Smallwood said, when things were so bad and he seemed so backed into a corner that it didn’t look like there were many ways out. In the middle of all of this, his teammates were getting ready for camp. Some of the best ones were in Dallas. For however brief a time, the thought crossed his mind that, hey, it’s over for me.

“Yeah, it did,’’ Smallwood said, as he sat about as far away from a jail cell as one could possibly get, in a swank hotel in Dallas as one of just a handful of players selected to represent their schools at media days. “Fortunately, the school gave me another chance and God gave me another chance. I’m just happy to be here.’’