TOP 20: Deshaun Davis
Nobody would fault Deshaun Davis for being bitter.
He missed his senior season in high school after suffering a torn knee ligament, which vaporized most of his scholarship offers. Auburn stuck with him, but his redshirt season on the Plains was defined by former defensive coordinator Will Muschamp's opinion that Davis wouldn't amount to much. The knee injury hadn't fully healed. Davis' explosiveness hadn't returned and, in that state, he was a 5-foot-11 linebacker with below-average sprint speed and well below-average agility.
In that sense, Muschamp's assessment wasn't ridiculous. What he saw didn't match his vision of Auburn's next great middle linebacker.
What Muschamp didn't see, however, was the way Davis managed the disappointment. He didn't let the disappointment define him; he instead used the disappointment as his own personal north star. He kept his head up. He followed the path. He kept faith that his knee would cooperate (eventually) and let him become the terrific middle linebacker he so badly wanted to become. Back when his body wasn't cooperating, Davis compensated by delving deeply into defensive strategy with unreasonably long, completely voluntary film sessions.
He wasn't just watching footage on the screen; Davis was rebuilding himself as a player. He endeavored to become the most driven, aware, wise linebacker alive. Would he get there? Davis had no doubt. When his knees finally acquiesced, Davis was playing for a new coordinator (Kevin Steele) and a new position coach (Travis Williams) and they both very much believed in him. They saw a different player than Muschamp saw. A better one.
Davis' 82 tackles last season led the Tigers in that category — by a margin of 23 tackles. He basically refuses to come off the field because, well, he promised himself during the tough times that he'd cherish every opportunity to play. Steele had to force Davis off most special-teams units because Davis genuinely wanted to play on all of them.
As a player, Davis is a thumper who considers the 'A' and 'B' gaps his home. If ball-carriers want passage through that area, he considers that a personal affront to his value as a football player. He's not always great at getting off blocks quickly, but he's great at creating a bottleneck when the blocker extends to him. He's a headache for the offensive front. He forces changes in plans and then he'll shut it all down with a hard lick.
That sounds like Travis Williams during his playing days — short, not many offers out of high school, a spirited, commotion creator. It's not coincidence that Davis and Williams always are on the same page. The two have a synergy that improves everything Auburn's linebackers aim to achieve because both guys are exceedingly positive, energetic and emphasize getting the job done.
Davis is one of the great Auburn success stories of this generation. It's one thing to be a top tackler and a defensive MVP, but it's another thing to become those things after being left for dead just a few years earlier. Appreciate him while he's still here.
ON THE UP SIDE: Tactical awareness, finishing, spirit, leadership
ON THE DOWN SIDE: Explosiveness, agility, pass rush
VOTING RESULTS: No. 4 (The Bunker), No. 7 (Jay G. Tate and Jeffrey Lee), No. 8 (Bryan Matthews)
PREVIOUS RANKINGS: No. 7 in 2017
THE AUBURNSPORTS.COM TOP 20 FOR 2018: