Another Diamond

[War Eagle!!!]

At the risk of sounding like Prowler, I am going to say this dude is going to be a fucking player somewhere. He was just offered a scholly to Auburn and his coach is saying that we should expect a commitment at any time. This guy is 5'10", 180, and supposedly runs a 4.45.

I watched some film on this dude...and damn. Seriously. This guy just doesn't run around people with his speed. He is quick and not only can hurt you in open field, but can hurt you in a crowd. He catches the ball well in a crowd and goes up to get the ball over defenders. What I like is on some of the reverses, he doesn't just try and use his speed to run around people. He hits a hole and gets verticle. A lot of times you will see a HS guy that's faster than everyone just try to run past people, and may go backwards 10 yards to run around the defenders. That shit doesn't work in college and I hate seeing that from young players. This dude however, looks like a baller. I am impressed...

Not one fucking star from Rivals and Scout doesn't even have him listed...

Enjoy. The third play on the clip made me say wow...

[War Eagle!!!]

FROM THE BAMMERHAM NEWS...not an Auburn guy...

http://blog.al.com/sentell/2009/11/sentell_fairfields_chris_davis.html

Sentell: Woodlawn's Chris Davis is diamond in the rough

By Jeff Sentell -- The Birmingham News
November 04, 2009, 6:46AM

Woodlawn star Chris Davis has flown under the radar for most college recruiters. (For The Birmingham News / Rick Zerby)Pssst. Wanna know a secret?

There was a football player in the state who went undiscovered by the recruiting Web sites. He's been here in Birmingham all along.

But somehow Rivals.com has yet to put stars next to his name. Somehow Scout.com doesn't have the 5-foot-11 Chris Davis of Woodlawn on its hot prospects list.

There is not a single player in the Yellowhammer State more likely to make a man miss on a given play. Players like Stanhope's DeMarcus Milliner may be just as good, but I'd need to see reels of game film to be convinced they are any better playing the game now than Davis.

Davis has legit height, legit size and a dazzling array of moves not seen on area prep fields since Deuce Palmer lit up Friday nights.

Fairfield coach Jim Vakakes has gone on record with that comparison several times over the years he's lost sleep gearing up his defenses to face Davis.

"Palmer had a little more help with him when he played," Vakakes said. "Chris Davis has all the potential in the world. If we would have had him, there is no telling how explosive our offense would be. I bet he's in the top five in the state. He has to be. There's nobody we played this year with more God-given talent."

Davis was named to the News' All-Metro team as a sophomore. If the 5-foot-11 senior athlete was at a Clay-Chalkville or a Hoover or a Vestavia Hills, he would be a serious candidate for Mr. Football.

But he's finally gotten noticed. South Carolina was the first SEC school to offer last month. Auburn offered him the day before Halloween.

Auburn assistant Curtis Looper offered Davis. The Tigers wanted him to come on a campus visit earlier this season. But that was the day where almost every game around Birmingham got postponed by rain until Saturday.

Davis has a solid academic transcript and only awaits his first ACT score before he's fully qualified. It appears that Auburn will be his eventual destination.

"That was where he was leaning all along since Auburn is so close," Woodlawn coach Bruce Breland said. "He really liked Auburn. It is a good fit for him and he'd told me the last time we talked about it if they offered he was going to take that offer. And they've offered now. I think it's just a matter of time."

Davis scored 60 of the team's 109 points this year. He ran for 877 yards. The official average was 6.5 yards per carry.

Anyone who saw Woodlawn try to block and tackle on a consistent basis would know Davis got at least 450 of those yards on his own.

His presence at Woodlawn underscores how even elite recruits can fall through the cracks. The Colonels do not have the resources of other state programs.

It's hard for Davis to go to those elite recruiting combines and evaluation camps for those Web analysts to ply his wares against the likes of the household names with the kids and all the stars.

Recruiting in 2009 is all about marketing. The most aggressive traits like Youtube.com and DVD sleeves going out in the mail after every game are the norm.

It's good to see that maybe Birmingham's biggest star was finally found.

[Saniflush]

Based on the tackling on the other team I would say he was playing against a Ted Roof defense.

[Argo]

I didn't read anything past......

At the risk of sounding like Prowler,

I did watch the video though.  Kid's got some serious talent. 

[War Eagle!!!]

Based on the tackling on the other team I would say he was playing against a Ted Roof defense.

I agree, but you have to look at how he plays the game. He has got good vision, good speed, he can make people miss but he doesn't avoid contact, good hands, just looks like good football instincts with good ability to me...

[Godfather]

His punt return was a thing of beauty...to bad we are rollin 5 deep at that spot.

[AUChizad]

His punt return was a thing of beauty...to bad we are rollin 5 deep at that spot.

Fun fact: we are dead last in the SEC for punt returns with like 3.4 yards average...

 :thumbsup:

[Saniflush]

Fun fact: we are dead last in the SEC for punt returns.

 :thumbsup:

I find nothing fun about that.

[The Prowler]

Question is, and this is a very VERY serious one....can he long snap?  If he can, then he's a bonafide 6 Griller, if not, then he'll be moved down to 5 Grillz.

[Buzz Killington]

Question is, and this is a very VERY serious one....can he long snap?  If he can, then he's a bonafide 6 Griller, if not, then he'll be moved down to 5 Grillz.

Why do you hate Harvey so much?

[AUTailgatingRules]

Is Woodlawn hurting so bad financially that they can't afford to give him the same number jersey for home and away games?

[dallaswareagle]

Fun fact: we are dead last in the SEC for punt returns with like 3.4 yards average...

 :thumbsup:

Did we get that in the spring game?

[AWK]

Is Woodlawn hurting so bad financially that they can't afford to give him the same number jersey for home and away games?

The answer is yes.

[The Prowler]

It's looking more and more like he'll be wearing Orange & Blue next year, when he commits next week after his weekend visit to Auburn, this weekend (Dec. 11th).

[jadennis]

I know this is a stretch, but there is something he does that reminds me of Reggie Bush.  He cuts off his inside foot to change direction sometimes.  For example, when most people want to cut left, they cut off their right foot (their outside foot in relation to which direction they are about to head).  However, sometimes that causes you to take one more step in the direction you're currently going in order get that outside foot on the ground and make the cut.

Bush would often start his cut to the left even if his left foot (inside foot) was the one on the ground.  He could make the decision and make the cut that quickly, not having to wait for the right foot to get down.  This kid seems to make the same kind of cuts, which almost allows him to glide past people, changing directions instantly and seamlessly.  And like mentioned before, his vision is pretty amazing....he doesn't always take the most obvious path up field, but instead he seems to not only see the next move, but two or three moves ahead.  It's like speeding on I-285 in Atlanta.  You don't look at the car right in front of you, you look 2-3 cars down the road to decide which lane to take.

[jadennis]

Here is what ESPN has to say about him.  (they rate him a 3-star and a 76).

Davis is a multi-faceted athlete that has the versatility to line up on either side of the football and on special teams. He has decent size but could afford to put on some overall bulk and strength. Possesses both speed and agility. As a spread quarterback displays excellent running ability. Follows blockers and makes sharp cuts in the openfield slipping by defenders and making them miss. Shows acceleration and a burst to dash by would-be tacklers. Passing skills and arm strength is limited to shorter and intermediate routes. As a receiver can make the difficult catches when the ball is thrown behind or over the opposite shoulder. Shows the confidence and leaping ability to go up and make the reception in a crowd even if double covered. A shifty runner once he makes the catch and can turn a short reception into a big play. Can be used as a runner on the reverse or counter using his speed to bounce the ball to the outside. A gifted and talented return specialist that fields the football and darts north and south often jetting by the coverage units; makes sharp cuts without losing speed. Shows the talent to take the ball back the distance for six points. Davis is a very versatile athlete that has the ability to play receiver, running back and returner at the next level. Could possibly be a man to man corner on defense.