Top Virginia playmaker a native of South Carolina who wasn’t offered by Clemson or USC
Woodland High School football coach Eddie Ford had a hunch that his star receiver — Lavel Davis Jr. — would go in and immediately contribute at Virginia this season.
Davis was not a highly-rated prospect coming out of high school, and he didn’t receive much interest from the major in-state schools in South Carolina. But Ford saw Davis make play after play during his high school career while facing double and triple teams. Davis had the size, speed, ball skills and hands to go make plays in the ACC as well, Ford believed.
A phone call Ford had with Davis during the preseason only confirmed his suspicions.
“Once he figured out the scheme and what they were doing, he called and we talked and he talked about how he was really going after those older defensive backs at Virginia,” Ford told The State this week. “He basically said he was out there killing them. He’s a tough cover, now. He’s a really tough cover.”
The rest of the ACC got to see what a tough cover Davis is last Saturday in Virginia’s season opener as the 6-foot-7 wideout caught four passes for 101 yards and two touchdowns in a win over Duke.
Both of Davis’ touchdowns came in the fourth quarter, a period that started with the Cavaliers trailing 20-17. The fourth quarter ended with a 38-20 Virginia victory, with two of the three scores coming from Davis.
On one, he out-jumped a smaller defender to come down with the ball in the end zone for an 18-yard touchdown. On the other, Davis caught the ball at the 8-yard line, broke three tackles and made his way into the end zone for a 26-yard score.
“He was the difference in the game,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “A good start for him as a freshman in his first game. He’s just gonna get better as he gets stronger and develops. He’s gonna be a problem as he matures.”
While Swinney didn’t know much about Davis going into Virginia’s season opener and couldn’t recall details of any stories involving Davis from the recruiting process, Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall already knew what his team had, even before his two-touchdown performance against the Blue Devils.
“One of our best-kept secrets,” Mendenhall said following the game. “The same plays he made tonight he’s been making against us almost every day. He wasn’t highly recruited, was kind of viewed as a project, but we’ve loved him from the beginning and see a really bright future for him as he learns and grows and develops.”
It’s safe to say Virginia’s secret is now out.
Davis was named the ACC Receiver of the Week and the ACC Rookie of the Week after his performance.
He will look to pick up where he left off on Saturday against Clemson, a team he was interested in playing for out of high school. The interest wasn’t mutual, however, as Clemson filled up its class with more highly-rated recruits.
“Clemson was really high on his radar. So was Carolina. But neither one of them offered. He had Duke, Wake, Georgia Tech, Virginia. Of course he had all the in-state FCS schools,” Ford said.
Some of those schools backed off Davis when he tore his ACL his junior year of high school. Virginia stuck by Davis’ side, confirming his decision to sign with the Cavaliers.
“Everybody started talking slow, but Virginia, they stuck with him,” Ford said. “They basically told him we want you regardless. I think that really hit home for him and sealed the deal. Like ‘look, these guys didn’t waiver. They wanted me from Day 1.’ To him it was a slam dunk.”
The Cavaliers are now being rewarded for their loyalty.
“When everything is good (defensively) he can still go and make plays,” Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables said. “From a matchup standpoint I really thought the DBs with a couple of jump balls from Duke were in a good position, but he just out-competed him for the football. ... Got a lot of respect for him just with what you see on tape from his attitude and his toughness.”
