FB: Davis keeps his 'eyes on prize'
the Class 1A D-II state championship game against Munday in Cowboys
Stadium. (Photo by John Krueger)
Although on the outside, most fans might think that Tenaha's Reginald Davis has lived a 'charmed life.' nothing could be farther from the truth. But after a very tough childhood, one that could have tempted some youngsters to get in trouble, or possibly land them jail time by the time they were 18, the Tiger senior appears to be reaping the benefits of staying on the 'straight and narrow' during his teen years.
In fact, the rewards that have come Davis' way for his determination and his hard work in the last 12 months are proof that good things do come to those who wait and keep their 'eye on the prize.'
And despite having gone to the state finals in basketball, winning a gold medal at the state track meet, verbally committing to a Division I college to play football and then capturing the state's Class 1A D-II state championship on Thursday, the best still could be yet to come from this 6-0, 190-pound young man.
A Rough Start to Davis' Youth
Most high school athletes take for granted that they have parents and other family members in the stands that cheer and encourage them to be the best they can be. They don't have to search for someone to inspire them or ask advice.
But Davis has had to look in other areas for someone to be his role model. With the death of his mother when he was two, and then losing his father just six years later, he found himself being raised by his grandmother when he was only eight years old.
His grandmother was a role model for him for the next five years, until she passed when he was 13. Once again, Davis personal life was at a point where he could have strayed from good and fallen into bad influences.
But this didn't happen. The young man from this small East Texas rural community has lived for the last five years with his brother in the trailer house that was left to him by his grandmother. But yet, somehow, he has almost raised himself, becoming one of the top students in his class and top athletes in the state.
Since they played peewee football, Davis and his friends have talked of nothing more than capturing the state football championship from this tradition-rich town. He wasn't in school when the 1998 Tigers, led by quarterback Chavis McCollister and Coach Raymond Jackson, captured the last Class 1A football crown for the school with a 30-13 win over Wheeler.
Like many small-town boys, Davis wanted to make something of himself, dreaming of someday becoming a high school star, earning a college scholarship and maybe - just maybe - making it to professional football.
Davis has been a outstanding athlete for Tenaha, but started high school by hiding in the shadow of the likes of Marlon McClure and Cameron Choice, who went on to play football at the University of Texas-El Paso in 2009.
The Move to the Quarterback Position
When given a chance to step into the limelight in his junior year for the Tenaha football team, Davis wasn't exactly sure where he fit in. But he had the confidence of then second-year head coach Terry Ward, who placed him at the quarterback position.
During his first scrimmage Davis walked up to Ward and said, "I don't want to do this coach. Just let me run the ball.
But Ward knew he was a 'diamond in the rough', telling him, "Just be patient. It'll take some time, but just be patient. You'll be fine."
Truer words have never been spoken.
"Yeah, I remember that day," Davis said last week as he looked back to August of 2010. "I didn't want to play quarterback. I just didn't feel good about it. But now I like it because I've been doing it so long and I've learned how to do more things at the quarterback position.
"It just took a lot of reps and the coaches teaching me a lot about the position. Now I'm comfortable doing all that I do. I think it's 'my' position. It's like I've kind of evolved into it."
The Recruiting Battle Heats Up
Davis struggled somewhat during his junior season, but still threw for 681 yards and five touchdowns, completed 47.1% (40-of-85) of his passes and rushed for a team-high 1,346 yards and 30 touchdowns, which was good enough to draw the attention recruiters from the likes of Texas Christian, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Missouri, Notre Dame and Michigan.
In fact, Davis was so much of a wanted commodity, that Texas Christian head coach Gary Patterson was in attendance in the Tenaha Special Events Center in February for a 30-point Tenaha basketball game blowout.
There was a lot on the mind of this young man, who didn't have mom and dad at home to talk to. He spoke to his brother, and received invaluable and concrete guidance from other community leaders that truly wanted Davis to achieve his goals. There was Ward and high school principal and former Tenaha head football coach Scott Tyner, and TISD Superintendent Don Fallin, who is a former coach himself.
"I had to pick the role models in my life, and the people who inspired me where the people who made something of themselves with hard work," Davis admitted. "I know it takes a lot of hard work to get you to where you want to be in life.
"I remember last summer I went to a Texas Tech camp and they told me I could be good enough to play at (Stephen F. Austin) or somewhere like that, but if I continued to work hard I can get better and better and play wherever I want to.
"So I started running bleachers and lifting weights really hard. Then the next thing you know (Texas) A&M was offering me a scholarship, then (Texas) Tech, TCU and others.
"It's really like a dream come true for me. And I know you've got make the most of my opportunities, and I plan on doing just that."
With some tough decisions to make, Davis finally decided to verbally commit to Texas Tech University. He'll be putting that decision in writing on National Signing Day on Feb. 1, 2012.
Eyeing a Gold in Basketball; Winning it in Track
With that obstacle behind him, he set his goal of helping his team defy the odds and, despite putting a team on the basketball court with no seniors, the Tigers overcame two huge deficits at the regional tournament and land a spot in the state basketball tournament in March of this year.
Tenaha advanced to the state finals before being falling just short of the title with a 64-49 loss to Clyde Eula, leaving a 'bad taste' in the mouth of Davis and his teammates.
"We talked about that feeling of losing in the championship last spring and I didn't want to have that feeling again," Davis said in the postgame championship game interview Thursday after Tenaha won the 2011 Class 1A D-II state football title with a 52-28 win over Munday. "It's a whole lot better winning the gold than it is taking the silver."
Davis then excelled in track, earning a bid to the state track and field meet in Austin in both the 100- and 200-meters. He took the honor as the 'fastest athlete in Class 1A by winning the 100-meter dash in a time of 10.73 and then placed 4th in the 200-meters with a 22.18.
Saving the Biggest Prize for Fall
But the dreams and goals of Davis wouldn't be complete unless they completed that one final run in football, the sport of champions in Tenaha and the state of Texas.
There wasn't much doubt to Tiger fans who watched Davis and the Tigers during the 2011 season, that they were a team of destiny. They posted an unblemished mark of 14-0 on the season, with their biggest challenge coming in a 21-20 win over Garrison, a team that advanced to the 1A D-I semifinals.
Tenaha offense was the juggernaut of the team this season. Combined with a stingy defense, of which Davis is a part of, Tenaha averaged 48.8 points per game this year, gaining 278.8-yards per game on the ground and 131.3 yards through the air.
Davis was one of several deadly weapons of the Tiger offense. But, as the quarterback, he has the opportunity to made any play one that turns from a short gain into a touchdown.
Three weeks ago Tenaha scored touchdowns on the first play of the first half and the second half, which helped put a dagger in the Hubbard Panthers in the Regional Semifinal round. Davis found the endzone from 60 yards away to begin the second half.
Two weeks ago in the 63-28 semifinal win over Burton, Tenaha's tenacious defense caused a turnover early on and Davis found the endzone on the first offensive play of the game for THS. It was the first of six rushing touchdowns in the game. He also threw for two more scores.
On the year Davis had scored 35 rushing touchdowns, picking up 1,915 yards and averaging 11.1-yards per carry.
When he droped back to pass he was a double threat to score. He was a prolific passer, completing 101-of-169 passes (59.8.5%) for 2,015 yards, 24 touchdowns and just five interceptions.
Davis led the Tigers to an offensive point production in the playoffs of an average of a staggering 56.6-points per game offensively, while allowing just 19.2, for a margin of victory of 37.4 on the way to the title.
Davis saved one of his best performances for last, rushing for 226 yards and three TDs, passing for 242 yards and a pair of touchdowns and running back a punt return for an 80-yard score to account for 556 yards in the championship game.
Davis said before the Munday game that he and his teammates weren't planning on letting the championship game become close and they lived up to that plan.
What's ahead for the Tenaha senior and his teammates in the spring is yet to be seen. It didn't take his mind long to shift to basketball. Just two days after their state football championship, Davis was posting positive thoughts on his Facebook page after the team's first basketball practice, saying, "Just getting out of our first basketball practice. Them Tigers looking good already."
what makes the achievements of this young man even more amazing is knowing what he overcame to accomplish them. And now that he's well on his way to stardom at the next level as he finishes his high school career, the sky is truly the limit for one Reginald Davis III.