During his time as a graduate student at the University of Florida, Bryant Davis studied under Dr. Jim Hobert, whose mentorship played a key role in shaping his academic path. In his first year, he received the Mendenhall Award, a departmental honor that marked an early milestone in his graduate studies. His graduate work and studies emphasized Bayesian methods, which has proven invaluable throughout his professional career, particularly in the development and refinement of predictive models emphasizing uncertainty quantification.
Beyond research, Davis was actively involved in teaching, instructing undergraduate courses such as Introduction to Probability and Introduction to Statistical Theory. These experiences not only solidified his understanding of the material but also deepened his appreciation for communicating complex concepts effectively.
Davis began his professional career in baseball with an internship at the Tampa Bay Rays during the summer of 2019. This experience provided him with firsthand exposure to the intersection of analytics and professional sports. After graduating, he rejoined the Rays prior to the 2022 season in a full-time capacity. His primary responsibility was enhancing and maintaining their pitcher projection system, which involved deep statistical modeling and forecasting. He collaborated closely with others in the Research and Development department, where he played an integral role in transitioning parts of the organization’s projection methods to a Bayesian framework.
He then moved to the NFL, joining the Dallas Cowboys prior to their 2023 season. In this role, he worked across a diverse set of modeling initiatives aimed at informing both front office and in-game decision making. His projects included evaluating player performance and developing tools for roster and strategic planning. Additionally, he spent time focused on extracting meaningful insights from the NFL’s player tracking data, enabling the organization to better evaluate player traits and quantify individual contributions on the field.
Most recently, Davis joined the Miami Marlins ahead of the 2025 season, where he now leads the Baseball Research department. In this role, he is responsible for developing and overseeing predictive models to project player performance across the organization. His team manages both amateur models, which inform the organization’s draft decisions, and pro projections, which guide roster construction and player development strategies. Leading this group allows him to combine his academic training, baseball experience, and cross-sport analytical perspective to help shape the future of the Marlins through data-driven insights. His work reflects the Bayesian foundation he built at UF, which continues to inform his approach to predictive modeling.