Washington State Lands RB Dominic Davis

Washington State football fans have a reason to be excited, as 3-star RB Dominic Davis has verbally committed to the Cougars.

Davis was heavily scouted by both USC and UCLA, and it was his blinding speed that has peaked their interest.  He runs a 4.4 forty-yard dash, and clocked in a 4.28 shuttle drill.  His 39-inch vertical is also impressive, as well as his ability to take a solid hit and remain on his feet.  However, he is only 5’10, 175 pounds.  That weight is going to be an issue in the NCAA, especially in the PAC-12. My guess is that he will be red-shirted for his first year, allowing him time to bulk up and prepare to play the following season.

Speed is something more and more colleges are hanging their hats on. The success Chip Kelly had while coaching at Oregon got the rest of the PAC-12 considering changing their approach to offense.  The Fast Is Faster Nike campaign helped fuel the new trend.  Dominic Davis offers exactly the kind of speed coaches across the country are craving.  Besides his weight, Davis will need to improve on his vision.

Davis’ run style is very similar to New York Jets running back, Chris Johnson.  If you can bounce him to the outside of the tackles, in open space, he is nearly impossible to catch.  However, he is not physically gifted enough to run over a linebacker when shooting up the middle, so he ignores holes his guards create, and tries to run off tackle too often.  Fortunately, these are fixable issues, and the Washington State coaching and training staff will be sure to remedy them.

Dominic Davis will be unbelievably exciting to watch once he developed a bit more.  Washington State just secured themselves a gem for the future.