Humble pie Rex.
Jets coach Rex Ryan said he sees plenty of All-Pro linebacker Ray Lewis’ leadership skills in third-round pick Demario Davis according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News.
“You can have a list of 500 numbers up there on a wall, but how many real leaders are up there?” Ryan said Friday on the first day of rookie minicamp in Florham Park. “It’s easy to say, ‘Well, this guy was a leader for his football team.’ But does he have that thing that he can lead men? That’s rare. Some guys have it. Ray Lewis motivated me as a coach. I’m not saying Demario is that guy, but . . .
“His face. His mannerisms. His passion,” Ryan continued. “I see some things. . . . When you watch (Davis) on the tape, he pops off the tape.”
Davis played both strongside and weakside linebacker in Arkansas State’s 4-3 scheme, but will be moved inside in the Jets’ predominantly 3-4 design.
“We think we’re special here,” Ryan said. “I know we had a bad year (in 2011) . . . but we want it to be special. You can play in this league, but can you play for the Jets? Again, we want that attitude and that mentality that this is the place to be. We want everything you got. . . . I think that young man understands it.”
55 replies to this topic
#2
Ryno the Jet
-
- Members
- 3,964 posts
AGS WIN
Posted 06 May 2012 - 08:40 AM
Davis is a player. The entire organization is excited about this kid.
I was listening to the press conference when he made this statement. It wasn't a direct comparison. This is another example of the media making a story out of nothing.
http://www.newyorkje...64-0bd5de020f60
I was listening to the press conference when he made this statement. It wasn't a direct comparison. This is another example of the media making a story out of nothing.
http://www.newyorkje...64-0bd5de020f60
#3
Integrity28
-
- Members
- 25,707 posts
I love it when Idzik's plan comes together.
- Locationwrong guy in the wrong place at the wrong time
Posted 06 May 2012 - 08:45 AM
I wish Rex would just say, "We are excited about all of our rookies. They have a long way to go. We expect to be competitive this year and are relying on them to contribute, but they have a long way to go."
"Idz a process."
#5
Ryno the Jet
-
- Members
- 3,964 posts
AGS WIN
Posted 06 May 2012 - 08:50 AM
Probably too much to ask.
You're asking him to be someone he's not. Rex genuinely loves football and football players, especially defensive players. Davis appears to be one of those guys that just gets it. Rex can't help himself.
Edited by Ryno the Jet, 06 May 2012 - 08:50 AM.
#10
Ryno the Jet
-
- Members
- 3,964 posts
AGS WIN
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:09 AM
Published: Sunday, May 06, 2012, 4:15 AM By Jenny Vrentas/The Star-Ledger
http://www.nj.com/je...rce=twitterfeed
Demario Davis impresses Jets enough to earn lofty comparisons
Demario Davis sat on a couch in Mike Tannenbaum’s office this spring, fielding a battery of questions from the Jets general manager. As is Tannenbaum’s style, very few were about football.
Weeks before the Jets selected the Arkansas State linebacker in the third round of the NFL Draft, they brought him to Florham Park for a visit. They needed to make sure he’d fit in. He did more than that.
Coach Rex Ryan was in Tannenbaum’s office that day, too, and he was captivated. After Davis stood up, and walked out the glass door, Ryan turned to Tannenbaum.
“Wow,” Ryan said. “This is amazing. He reminds me of Ray.”
Ryan, of course, referred to Ray Lewis, the all-time great linebacker he coached in Baltimore. This was a lofty comparison Ryan made public on the first day of rookie mini-camp, because he couldn’t hold it in anymore.
He made sure not to equate Davis to Lewis, a 16-year veteran and future Hall of Famer. But he couldn’t shake the déjà vu he felt in Davis’ passion, his mannerisms, and the way he looked Ryan dead in the eyes.
Ryan expects Davis to be a “major contributor,” someone whose speed (4.5 40-yard dash) and size (6-2, 239 pounds) earmark him for sub packages, while he perhaps grows into a larger role. But the fourth-year coach also had to have Davis for reasons beyond simply his football ability.
“As a coach, you try to cultivate the environment, no question about it,” Ryan said. “But when you really have it is when your players take it. I think he’s going to be one of those guys, fit right in with David Harris, and Sione (Pouha) and Mike DeVito. This is their football team.”
He paused, and added: “Like Tom Brady in New England. Tom Brady runs that team. He runs it, runs the discipline. Runs everything.”
Ryan’s expectant vision for Davis was not built off bluster, but thorough research. The early returns have been encouraging at rookie mini-camp, where Davis naturally took on the role of calling the defense together to break down after drills. Davis seems to be absorbing Ryan-speak, too, in the way that he distinguished between NFL football and Jets football.
It was at Arkansas State where Davis came into his own, changed by a religious rededication during his sophomore year of college. In a meeting with Chuck McElroy, a regional director of the on-campus Christian organization “Campus Outreach,” Davis realized he was claiming his religion but not truly living it.
He stopped drinking and committed to being an example for others.
Davis’ faith was tested in his junior season. He spent 10 weeks in Tampa, Fla., completing evangelism training, and returned to a demotion on the football depth chart.
While the stat sheet says he started all 12 games in 2010, Davis said he was a starter only in selected packages. His playing time, because he spent the summer away from the team, was cut in half. But instead of complaining, he milked every snap he got and earned first-team all-conference honors.
Davis hoped to set an example by the way he handled the situation. But that season, as the team struggled to a 4-8 finish, he also was called on to lead in a different way.
The players were spiraling in different directions, Davis recalled, and there had been several pleas among the teammates to stick together. When that didn’t work, Davis made the rare decision to step in as an enforcer. One or two times, he admitted, that entailed getting in a teammate’s face and putting him into a locker.
“When you see a guy that’s hurting the team more than helping, then everybody feels the same about that guy, it’s just what person is going to go up to them and be like, ‘Get with it or get out,’ ” Davis said. “When I see an opportunity to lead, and no one else is doing it, I feel like it is on me to step up. A team can’t be successful without leaders.”
When Ryan invokes the name Ray Lewis, this is why.
Consider, too, that Ryan said Lewis is the rare player who motivated him as a coach. Davis inspired the new Arkansas State coaching staff his senior year, as a player ambassador who helped Hugh Freeze’s staff reach its goals.
The first player meeting Tom Allen had in January 2011, when he came to Arkansas State as the assistant head coach and linebackers coach, was with Davis. The senior told Allen: “I want to put this defense on my shoulders. I want to take the program where it has never gone before.”
Arkansas State won the Sun Belt Conference title and finished 10-3.
“Not every kid understands, or lot of times they may want it for themselves, but he wanted that for the team,” said Allen, now at Ole Miss. “That’s what stuck out so much.”
Even in the massive pool of NFL hopefuls, Davis managed to keep sticking out. He was a late addition to the Senior Bowl, but turned scouts’ heads as soon as he arrived.
He trained for the NFL Combine at the TEST Football Academy/Parisi Speed School in New Jersey, and Parisi’s Rich Sadiv said simply: “He really doesn’t have a physical weakness.” When the NFL prospects practiced Combine tests like the 40-yard dash before heading to Indianapolis, Davis was the only player who videotaped the critique of his test run on his phone so he could study it at home that night, TEST’s Brian Martin said.
The question now is how his gifts, physical and as a leader, will translate to the NFL. Can Davis be the answer to cover New England tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez? Can he develop into the same kind of force as his linebacker idols, Lewis and Lawrence Taylor?
Nothing is given or guaranteed in the NFL, and right now, Davis is simply an intriguing rookie behind Harris and Bart Scott on the depth chart.“I got that sense, that they look for me, when it’s my time to lead, to be a leader,” Davis said. “But right now, it’s probably not that time. It’s time for me to get in and learn the system, and just find my place here.”
But when it is that time, Ryan knows exactly who he drafted into his locker room: A leader.
For more Jets coverage, follow Jenny Vrentas on Twitter at twitter.com/Jennyvrentas
Jenny Vrentas: jvrentas@starledger.com
http://www.nj.com/je...rce=twitterfeed
Demario Davis impresses Jets enough to earn lofty comparisons
Demario Davis sat on a couch in Mike Tannenbaum’s office this spring, fielding a battery of questions from the Jets general manager. As is Tannenbaum’s style, very few were about football.
Weeks before the Jets selected the Arkansas State linebacker in the third round of the NFL Draft, they brought him to Florham Park for a visit. They needed to make sure he’d fit in. He did more than that.
Coach Rex Ryan was in Tannenbaum’s office that day, too, and he was captivated. After Davis stood up, and walked out the glass door, Ryan turned to Tannenbaum.
“Wow,” Ryan said. “This is amazing. He reminds me of Ray.”
Ryan, of course, referred to Ray Lewis, the all-time great linebacker he coached in Baltimore. This was a lofty comparison Ryan made public on the first day of rookie mini-camp, because he couldn’t hold it in anymore.
He made sure not to equate Davis to Lewis, a 16-year veteran and future Hall of Famer. But he couldn’t shake the déjà vu he felt in Davis’ passion, his mannerisms, and the way he looked Ryan dead in the eyes.
Ryan expects Davis to be a “major contributor,” someone whose speed (4.5 40-yard dash) and size (6-2, 239 pounds) earmark him for sub packages, while he perhaps grows into a larger role. But the fourth-year coach also had to have Davis for reasons beyond simply his football ability.
“As a coach, you try to cultivate the environment, no question about it,” Ryan said. “But when you really have it is when your players take it. I think he’s going to be one of those guys, fit right in with David Harris, and Sione (Pouha) and Mike DeVito. This is their football team.”
He paused, and added: “Like Tom Brady in New England. Tom Brady runs that team. He runs it, runs the discipline. Runs everything.”
Ryan’s expectant vision for Davis was not built off bluster, but thorough research. The early returns have been encouraging at rookie mini-camp, where Davis naturally took on the role of calling the defense together to break down after drills. Davis seems to be absorbing Ryan-speak, too, in the way that he distinguished between NFL football and Jets football.
It was at Arkansas State where Davis came into his own, changed by a religious rededication during his sophomore year of college. In a meeting with Chuck McElroy, a regional director of the on-campus Christian organization “Campus Outreach,” Davis realized he was claiming his religion but not truly living it.
He stopped drinking and committed to being an example for others.
Davis’ faith was tested in his junior season. He spent 10 weeks in Tampa, Fla., completing evangelism training, and returned to a demotion on the football depth chart.
While the stat sheet says he started all 12 games in 2010, Davis said he was a starter only in selected packages. His playing time, because he spent the summer away from the team, was cut in half. But instead of complaining, he milked every snap he got and earned first-team all-conference honors.
Davis hoped to set an example by the way he handled the situation. But that season, as the team struggled to a 4-8 finish, he also was called on to lead in a different way.
The players were spiraling in different directions, Davis recalled, and there had been several pleas among the teammates to stick together. When that didn’t work, Davis made the rare decision to step in as an enforcer. One or two times, he admitted, that entailed getting in a teammate’s face and putting him into a locker.
“When you see a guy that’s hurting the team more than helping, then everybody feels the same about that guy, it’s just what person is going to go up to them and be like, ‘Get with it or get out,’ ” Davis said. “When I see an opportunity to lead, and no one else is doing it, I feel like it is on me to step up. A team can’t be successful without leaders.”
When Ryan invokes the name Ray Lewis, this is why.
Consider, too, that Ryan said Lewis is the rare player who motivated him as a coach. Davis inspired the new Arkansas State coaching staff his senior year, as a player ambassador who helped Hugh Freeze’s staff reach its goals.
The first player meeting Tom Allen had in January 2011, when he came to Arkansas State as the assistant head coach and linebackers coach, was with Davis. The senior told Allen: “I want to put this defense on my shoulders. I want to take the program where it has never gone before.”
Arkansas State won the Sun Belt Conference title and finished 10-3.
“Not every kid understands, or lot of times they may want it for themselves, but he wanted that for the team,” said Allen, now at Ole Miss. “That’s what stuck out so much.”
Even in the massive pool of NFL hopefuls, Davis managed to keep sticking out. He was a late addition to the Senior Bowl, but turned scouts’ heads as soon as he arrived.
He trained for the NFL Combine at the TEST Football Academy/Parisi Speed School in New Jersey, and Parisi’s Rich Sadiv said simply: “He really doesn’t have a physical weakness.” When the NFL prospects practiced Combine tests like the 40-yard dash before heading to Indianapolis, Davis was the only player who videotaped the critique of his test run on his phone so he could study it at home that night, TEST’s Brian Martin said.
The question now is how his gifts, physical and as a leader, will translate to the NFL. Can Davis be the answer to cover New England tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez? Can he develop into the same kind of force as his linebacker idols, Lewis and Lawrence Taylor?
Nothing is given or guaranteed in the NFL, and right now, Davis is simply an intriguing rookie behind Harris and Bart Scott on the depth chart.“I got that sense, that they look for me, when it’s my time to lead, to be a leader,” Davis said. “But right now, it’s probably not that time. It’s time for me to get in and learn the system, and just find my place here.”
But when it is that time, Ryan knows exactly who he drafted into his locker room: A leader.
For more Jets coverage, follow Jenny Vrentas on Twitter at twitter.com/Jennyvrentas
Jenny Vrentas: jvrentas@starledger.com
#11
Klecko73isGod
-
- Members
- 18,974 posts
Anchor Salesman
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:11 AM
I wish Rex would just say, "We are excited about all of our rookies. They have a long way to go. We expect to be competitive this year and are relying on them to contribute, but they have a long way to go."
I don't want Rex to stop being Rex.
Edited by Klecko73isGod, 06 May 2012 - 09:11 AM.
A RYAN ALWAYS SAUSAGES HIS FROSTED FLAKES
#13
Smashmouth
-
- Members
- 10,861 posts
Wrex Cryin
- LocationDallas Tx.
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:15 AM
Humble pie Rex.
Jets coach Rex Ryan said he sees plenty of All-Pro linebacker Ray Lewis’ leadership skills in third-round pick Demario Davis according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News.
“You can have a list of 500 numbers up there on a wall, but how many real leaders are up there?” Ryan said Friday on the first day of rookie minicamp in Florham Park. “It’s easy to say, ‘Well, this guy was a leader for his football team.’ But does he have that thing that he can lead men? That’s rare. Some guys have it. Ray Lewis motivated me as a coach. I’m not saying Demario is that guy, but . . .
“His face. His mannerisms. His passion,” Ryan continued. “I see some things. . . . When you watch (Davis) on the tape, he pops off the tape.”
Davis played both strongside and weakside linebacker in Arkansas State’s 4-3 scheme, but will be moved inside in the Jets’ predominantly 3-4 design.
“We think we’re special here,” Ryan said. “I know we had a bad year (in 2011) . . . but we want it to be special. You can play in this league, but can you play for the Jets? Again, we want that attitude and that mentality that this is the place to be. We want everything you got. . . . I think that young man understands it.”
I listened to the pressconference and Rex did not compare the 2 players at all. All Rex said was he remembered Lewis being a leader from the get go as early as his rookie year and this kid shows the same qualities. He even went as far to say he was not trying to compare the level of leadership just the same type of attitude.
So no Rex does NOT see the Next Ray Lewis as your title may suggest. You applying for the next Jets beat writer job ? because you have all the prereq's
Heres the link to the Jets official site that has the video http://www.newyorkjets.com/
Edited by Smashmouth, 06 May 2012 - 09:29 AM.
No question this is the most talent we've had since I took over as head clown and stuff
I can tell ya this, no ones gonna wanna play the Jets next year
#14
Ryno the Jet
-
- Members
- 3,964 posts
AGS WIN
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:16 AM
The players were spiraling in different directions, Davis recalled, and there had been several pleas among the teammates to stick together. When that didn’t work, Davis made the rare decision to step in as an enforcer. One or two times, he admitted, that entailed getting in a teammate’s face and putting him into a locker.
“When you see a guy that’s hurting the team more than helping, then everybody feels the same about that guy, it’s just what person is going to go up to them and be like, ‘Get with it or get out,’ ” Davis said. “When I see an opportunity to lead, and no one else is doing it, I feel like it is on me to step up. A team can’t be successful without leaders.”
:chills:
#15
Smashmouth
-
- Members
- 10,861 posts
Wrex Cryin
- LocationDallas Tx.
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:21 AM
:chills:
I hope Santonio trys to test this guy and Davis shoves his face in the toilet and flushes
No question this is the most talent we've had since I took over as head clown and stuff
I can tell ya this, no ones gonna wanna play the Jets next year
#16
Ryno the Jet
-
- Members
- 3,964 posts
AGS WIN
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:26 AM
A Leader From the Start
By BEN SHPIGEL
Published: May 5, 2012
http://www.nytimes.c...step-ahead.html
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — In February 2011, in one of his first acts after taking over the 108th-ranked defense in the Football Bowl Subdivision, Arkansas State’s defensive coordinator, Dave Wommack, asked each of his players to fill out an eight-page questionnaire. One answer, written by a redshirt junior named Demario Davis, struck Wommack as particularly memorable: Davis vowed that the Red Wolves’ defense would finish among the top 25.
Davis did not forget. In spring practice, he would visit Wommack’s office to tell him again. In training camp, he restated his guarantee. But during the season, Davis, an outside linebacker, recalibrated his expectations. He told Wommack that they needed to adjust their goals. They were not high enough. At the time, the defense ranked 22nd in the nation. It finished 15th.
“I’ve coached a lot of places over the last 32 years,” Wommack said, “and I thought, man, this guy’s really got the whole package. He was the leader of our pack.”
The Jets were moved to select Davis, who is 6 feet 2 inches and 239 pounds, in the third round of the draft for several reasons — his speed, his special-teams skills, his experience covering tight ends — but also because of his presence, a natural ability to lead through actions, words and force of personality. It shined through during his predraft interviews with scouts, coaches and front-office personnel at the Jets’ headquarters, and on Friday, the first day of rookie minicamp, they witnessed it on the field.
After pursuit drills, Davis gathered the defense. He gave a brief pep talk. Then, at his cue, the players scattered. Coach Rex Ryan said Davis’s aura reminded him of Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis, who motivated Ryan to be a better coach.
“I’m not saying he’s the leader Ray Lewis is,” Ryan said of Davis, “but there are some things even when he talks to you — wow. He’s really an impressive person.”
Growing up in Mississippi, Davis found himself drawn to Lewis and Lawrence Taylor. He knew he would join them someday. An uncle asked Davis, then 6, what he wanted to be when he grew up. Davis said he would play in the N.F.L.
“He never had a doubt,” Sue Magee, Davis’s mother, said. “I know it sounds crazy, but that’s how he’s always been.”
At every level, Magee said, the future motivated Davis. At Brandon High School, he would enter the weight room or step on the practice field and after a workout or a drill tell a coach, “That’ll make me good, but I want to be great.”
Dan Davis (no relation), the former Brandon football coach, said: “Demario never wanted to get just a little bit ahead of everybody else. He wanted to get way ahead.”
So he ran extra sprints. He lifted more weights. He policed the locker room, confronting teammates who did not share his commitment.
“Don’t let it bother you,” Magee told him. “You want to play in the N.F.L. They don’t.”
At which position, Davis did not care. He played mostly on offense, at receiver and tight end, and a bit at safety before switching to linebacker as a senior. Only two Division I teams, Southern Mississippi and Arkansas State, recruited him, for reasons no one seemed to know.
“Could he have played at any SEC school? No doubt about it,” said Wommack, now the defensive coordinator at Mississippi.
Arkansas State lacked the football tradition of Southern Miss, but to Davis it presented an opportunity to revive a program that had but one winning season since 1987. It happened his senior year, after the arrival of a new coaching staff, after Davis answered Wommack’s questionnaire.
“The turnaround occurred quicker than it could have because Demario led it,” said Tom Allen, Davis’s position coach. “He was just an extension of our staff.”
There was a saying at Arkansas State, “Before there’s a reality, there’s a mentality.” At 6 a.m. workouts, Davis would stand before his teammates and repeat it to them. He said that they would win the Sun Belt Conference, that they would play in a bowl game. He stayed on campus during the summer to work out. He spent so much time at the football offices that Wommack wondered whether he had been elevated to coach. If teammates loafed at practice, Davis challenged them. “Because who’s going to say anything back to Demario?” Allen said.
The short answer: no one. Davis wanted a championship, and they wanted what he wanted. When Arkansas State won at Western Kentucky on a last-minute touchdown, Allen ran to Davis on the field. Davis was bawling. Allen hugged him. It was the team’s first conference win, in its first conference game. Arkansas State never lost, going 8-0 to win the Sun Belt, as Davis promised, and earn a berth in the GoDaddy.com Bowl against Northern Illinois, as Davis also promised.
“There was no doubt that Demario was our emotional, physical and spiritual leader,” Allen said.
The Jets suffered from a leadership void last season. They do not expect Davis to fill it, at least not yet. For now, he has a playbook to study, teammates to meet, adjustments to make.
“You have to know how to follow before you can lead,” Davis said. “Right now, I’m in a following mode.”
Ryan again compared Davis to a young Bart Scott, the fiery linebacker who may be grooming his replacement this year. Davis has not met Scott. When he does, he said, he will watch. And listen. And learn. But he will always believe.
By BEN SHPIGEL
Published: May 5, 2012
http://www.nytimes.c...step-ahead.html
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — In February 2011, in one of his first acts after taking over the 108th-ranked defense in the Football Bowl Subdivision, Arkansas State’s defensive coordinator, Dave Wommack, asked each of his players to fill out an eight-page questionnaire. One answer, written by a redshirt junior named Demario Davis, struck Wommack as particularly memorable: Davis vowed that the Red Wolves’ defense would finish among the top 25.
Davis did not forget. In spring practice, he would visit Wommack’s office to tell him again. In training camp, he restated his guarantee. But during the season, Davis, an outside linebacker, recalibrated his expectations. He told Wommack that they needed to adjust their goals. They were not high enough. At the time, the defense ranked 22nd in the nation. It finished 15th.
“I’ve coached a lot of places over the last 32 years,” Wommack said, “and I thought, man, this guy’s really got the whole package. He was the leader of our pack.”
The Jets were moved to select Davis, who is 6 feet 2 inches and 239 pounds, in the third round of the draft for several reasons — his speed, his special-teams skills, his experience covering tight ends — but also because of his presence, a natural ability to lead through actions, words and force of personality. It shined through during his predraft interviews with scouts, coaches and front-office personnel at the Jets’ headquarters, and on Friday, the first day of rookie minicamp, they witnessed it on the field.
After pursuit drills, Davis gathered the defense. He gave a brief pep talk. Then, at his cue, the players scattered. Coach Rex Ryan said Davis’s aura reminded him of Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis, who motivated Ryan to be a better coach.
“I’m not saying he’s the leader Ray Lewis is,” Ryan said of Davis, “but there are some things even when he talks to you — wow. He’s really an impressive person.”
Growing up in Mississippi, Davis found himself drawn to Lewis and Lawrence Taylor. He knew he would join them someday. An uncle asked Davis, then 6, what he wanted to be when he grew up. Davis said he would play in the N.F.L.
“He never had a doubt,” Sue Magee, Davis’s mother, said. “I know it sounds crazy, but that’s how he’s always been.”
At every level, Magee said, the future motivated Davis. At Brandon High School, he would enter the weight room or step on the practice field and after a workout or a drill tell a coach, “That’ll make me good, but I want to be great.”
Dan Davis (no relation), the former Brandon football coach, said: “Demario never wanted to get just a little bit ahead of everybody else. He wanted to get way ahead.”
So he ran extra sprints. He lifted more weights. He policed the locker room, confronting teammates who did not share his commitment.
“Don’t let it bother you,” Magee told him. “You want to play in the N.F.L. They don’t.”
At which position, Davis did not care. He played mostly on offense, at receiver and tight end, and a bit at safety before switching to linebacker as a senior. Only two Division I teams, Southern Mississippi and Arkansas State, recruited him, for reasons no one seemed to know.
“Could he have played at any SEC school? No doubt about it,” said Wommack, now the defensive coordinator at Mississippi.
Arkansas State lacked the football tradition of Southern Miss, but to Davis it presented an opportunity to revive a program that had but one winning season since 1987. It happened his senior year, after the arrival of a new coaching staff, after Davis answered Wommack’s questionnaire.
“The turnaround occurred quicker than it could have because Demario led it,” said Tom Allen, Davis’s position coach. “He was just an extension of our staff.”
There was a saying at Arkansas State, “Before there’s a reality, there’s a mentality.” At 6 a.m. workouts, Davis would stand before his teammates and repeat it to them. He said that they would win the Sun Belt Conference, that they would play in a bowl game. He stayed on campus during the summer to work out. He spent so much time at the football offices that Wommack wondered whether he had been elevated to coach. If teammates loafed at practice, Davis challenged them. “Because who’s going to say anything back to Demario?” Allen said.
The short answer: no one. Davis wanted a championship, and they wanted what he wanted. When Arkansas State won at Western Kentucky on a last-minute touchdown, Allen ran to Davis on the field. Davis was bawling. Allen hugged him. It was the team’s first conference win, in its first conference game. Arkansas State never lost, going 8-0 to win the Sun Belt, as Davis promised, and earn a berth in the GoDaddy.com Bowl against Northern Illinois, as Davis also promised.
“There was no doubt that Demario was our emotional, physical and spiritual leader,” Allen said.
The Jets suffered from a leadership void last season. They do not expect Davis to fill it, at least not yet. For now, he has a playbook to study, teammates to meet, adjustments to make.
“You have to know how to follow before you can lead,” Davis said. “Right now, I’m in a following mode.”
Ryan again compared Davis to a young Bart Scott, the fiery linebacker who may be grooming his replacement this year. Davis has not met Scott. When he does, he said, he will watch. And listen. And learn. But he will always believe.
#17
Klecko73isGod
-
- Members
- 18,974 posts
Anchor Salesman
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:33 AM
I listened to the pressconference and Rex did not compare the 2 players at all. All Rex said was he remembered Lewis being a leader from the get go as early as his rookie year and this kid shows the same qualities. He even went as far to say he was not trying to compare the level of leadership just the same type of attitude.
So no Rex does NOT see the Next Ray Lewis as your title may suggest. You applying for the next Jets beat writer job ? because you have all the prereq's
Heres the link to the Jets official site that has the video http://www.newyorkjets.com/
Well, he doesn't know much about football and hates the Jets so he's got two of the prerequisites covered....
A RYAN ALWAYS SAUSAGES HIS FROSTED FLAKES
#18
Ryno the Jet
-
- Members
- 3,964 posts
AGS WIN
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:41 AM
So, the Jets have added a rah-rah guy on offense and defense. This can go one of two ways.
Sometimes, guys like Tebow, and apparently Davis, annoy the piss out of veteran players, and the team becomes divided between the nerds and the jocks. Winning games under this scenario would prove difficult.
Or, everyone could buy in, show up early, stay late, unite, and become a great team. When everyone has the same goal, winning becomes much easier.
Will the cheerful, upbeat newcomers gain support from me-first guys? It seems Rex and Tanny are hitching their wagons to Jesus.
Sometimes, guys like Tebow, and apparently Davis, annoy the piss out of veteran players, and the team becomes divided between the nerds and the jocks. Winning games under this scenario would prove difficult.
Or, everyone could buy in, show up early, stay late, unite, and become a great team. When everyone has the same goal, winning becomes much easier.
Will the cheerful, upbeat newcomers gain support from me-first guys? It seems Rex and Tanny are hitching their wagons to Jesus.
#19
Jimmy 2 Times
-
- Members
- 242 posts
Póg mo thóin!
- LocationJohnsburg
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:49 AM
Don't exaggerate.According to the jets and some people on this board we got Ray lewis, Julius peppers, and Megatron in this draft...not bad.
The Jets got Peppers, TO, and Ray Lewis.
Talk about rebuilding on the fly!
#20
CTM
-
- Members
- 26,137 posts
At least I'm not a snide little prick
Posted 06 May 2012 - 09:50 AM
According to the jets and some people on this board we got Ray lewis, Julius peppers, and Megatron in this draft...not bad.
Love the offseasons..
How many SB's will rex guarentee given this haul?
Yeah, I'm totally gay
So ****ing this dude. Unreal.
0 user(s) are reading this topic
0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users
