Raekwon Davis could not wait to dance after he burst through a pair of Florida State offensive linemen in his pursuit of Deondre Francois two weeks ago. Seeing a 306-pound monster with that much speed must have startled the Seminoles’ quarterback as he quickly went down.
The sack was Davis’ first play as a sophomore, following a preseason shooting incident in August when he took a stray bullet to his leg after walking out Bar 17 in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Despite the mishap, he maneuvered quite well in Atlanta and continued his progress last week – totaling eight tackles in Alabama’s 41-10 win over Fresno State at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Davis, who stands at 6-7, was listed a co-starter at defensive end with Josh Frazier but has begun to slowly decipher the Crimson Tide’s system under Nick Saban and assistant Jeremy Pruitt.
Per Saban, the biggest thing for Davis is attention to details.
“I think for Raekwon it’s really important for him to be a good player,” Saban said.
“He works hard and gives great effort. Like all young players they don’t realize all the time the importance of understanding the situation, not just going 100 miles per hour, but playing a draw set or a screen set. I think those are things that good players learn how to do and play fast, hard and aggressive, but still recognize things quickly. That’s the key in developing young players.”
Davis spent the entire summer getting himself in top physical shape with strength and conditioning coach, Scott Cochran. Garnering attention as one of the nation’s top high school defensive tackle prospects, the Mississippi native was a unanimous four-star recruit.
After recording four tackles last season, he doubled his output through two games with nine tackles, a tackle for loss, a sack and a quarterback pressure. Davis’ matchup against Colorado State’s front line gives him another moment of preparation before conference play arrives.
“Hopefully as he gets more knowledge and experience, he’ll continue to improve and even play better,” Saban said on Davis. “But, we have been pleased with his performance to this point.”
Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @Smsmith_TDALMag.
