Blue White Illustrated

WHAT HE DID A four-year letterman, Davis actually started playing high school football as an eighth-grader. In fact, he was the 7rst student-athlete to ever letter as an eighth-grader at Kingswood Ox- ford. Over that time, the Wyvrens went 16-14-1, including an appearance in the Evergreen League championship game in 2018. During the past three seasons, Davis totaled 99 tackles and four inter- ceptions. He also scored 21 touchdowns and had more than 1,300 yards receiving on o9ense. O9 the gridiron, Davis let- tered in basketball and track and 7eld. WHAT HE WON Davis was a two-time All-Evergreen League honoree. He also earned All-New England honors in track and 7eld, competing in the 100- and 200-meter races and the 4x100-meter relay. Rivals.com gave Davis a three-star rating. He was the nation's 35th-ranked cornerback and the third-ranked prospect in Connecticut. WHERE HE VISITED Davis earned an o9er from Penn State in November 2019 while on campus for a game. That was ac- tually his second trip, as he had previ- ously camped with James Franklin and his sta9 in July. Like a few other committed players, he returned to Penn State one last time in February 2020 for what proved to be the 7nal junior day before on-campus recruiting was halted. A versatile player, Davis totaled 14 scholarship o9ers for both defensive back and wide receiver. He decided to end his recruitment in April. QUOTABLE Davis: "The main reason why I love Penn State is the immediate love they showed me from the moment I got the o9er at the Indiana game [in 2019]. As soon as I was o9ered, their coaches really showed me how important I was to them. I fell in love with the school right away and I knew pretty quickly that this is where I wanted to be. I just have a great relationship with the coaches. Coach Franklin and all the coaches are great. The entire fan base is awesome." PHIL'S TAKE Depending on his physical development, Davis has the potential to play either the 7eld safety or boundary cornerback position at Penn State. Cur- rently listed at 170 pounds, he's an ex- ceptional athlete with 4.55-second 40-yard speed and a 4.27-second 20- yard shuttle time. He played at wide re- ceiver, cornerback and free safety at Kingswood Oxford and was impressive at all three spots. He does an excellent job of using press man-to-man coverage skills from his cornerback position, showing loose hips and a solid backped- dle in man coverage. At free safety, he's very disciplined with his zone coverage technique and provides solid run sup- port. One thing that stands out about his performance as a defensive back is that he is very capable of catching the football with his hands. He will most likely red- shirt as a freshman, a:er which I expect him to play either at cornerback or 7eld safety at Penn State. ■ POSITION CHANGE Davis excelled at wide re- ceiver in high school but will play in the secondary at Penn State. Photo courtesy of Rivals.com Rivals.com JEFFREY DAVIS JR. RIVALS ★★★ | POS CB | HT 6-0 | WT 170 | HOME West Hartford, Conn. | SCHOOL Kingswood Oxford >>

• Cover