By Aaron Wilson
Drake Davis’ athletic background consisted of scoring touchdowns, utilizing his rare size and speed combination to dominate opponents.
Now, the former blue-chip LSU wide receiver is using his football background for the Houston SaberCats as an ascending rugby player.
“I feel really good with this team,” Davis said. “I get a lot of support, a lot of help from the people who back me. So, it just makes me more confident with my teammates and confident in me.
“The camaraderie of this team, we’re like brothers. It was an instant thing. I got along with all the boys right away. From last year to now, it’s no different. I feel like that chemistry really helped me get to where I needed to be.”
Davis, a 6-foot-4, 250-pound wing from Baton Rouge, is in his second season of Major League Rugby. He was introduced to the sport of rugby through the American 10 combine and built his fundamentals through the SaberCats’ senior academy.
The parallels of American football are translating smoothly for Davis with his ability to accelerate away from defenders in the open field, make thumping tackles or break tackles when the ball is in his hands by overpowering or outrunning opponents.
“There’s a lot of similarities and it’s easy to correlate football to rugby, if you know what you’re doing,” Davis said. “I get great coaching and support from my coaches and teammates.”
Called up from the academy squad last year, Davis is capable of highlight-worthy plays as an explosive player.
Davis is the latest former college football player to forge a role with the SaberCats, following in the footsteps of prop Pono Davis (no relation), a former SMU defensive tackle.
“Just talking with Drake on the sideline and dapping him up, I told him that’s how you show America that football players can play rugby,” Pono Davis said. “Football players can do this. He had a great game. Drake is really driven and a competitive athlete. That’s the kind of mentality we bring from football and that winning mindset.”
Drake Davis, nicknamed ‘Drizzy,’ is loving rugby after previously excelling in football, basketball and soccer.
He’s a former Under Armour high school All-American selection as an all-purpose back who finished his prep career at the prestigious IMG Academy in Florida.
He averaged 39.2 yards per reception as a high school senior and was also an outstanding kick returner.
Now, Davis is determined to help the SaberCats on their push for the playoffs. Eventually, he would love to compete for Team USA.
“That’s my goal,” Davis said. “It just took a while to get used to rugby because it’s a completely different sport, really. The ins and outs, once you know what you’re doing you can correlate your other skills to this sport. This is the perfect time to be playing, and I’m just enjoying it.”
