Recruiting never stops and it's easy to miss the top stories day-to-day. Recruiting analyst Greg Smith recaps all things Nebraska recruiting news, analysis and more so you never miss a thing.
We know that being selected in the NFL would be a dream come true for Carlos and Khalil Davis. Both have good chances at being selected this weekend, which would be another great chapter in their stories. Yet, the journey to get to this point didn’t start at Nebraska.
I wrote a piece in the February 2015 issue of Hail Varsity on the Davis twins. I spoke with their high school coach Kelly Donohue in Blue Springs, Missouri. Coach Donohue spoke very highly of the twins at the time.
“These are just two really good human beings,” Donohue said. “They are happy go lucky young men who I’m not sure have an enemy off the field. You have to give a lot of credit to their parents. People will learn that these are two young people you will want to support because of how they treat people.”
There was one story in particular that stood out to me from their high school days. Here is the excerpt from the story.
They were two of the top handful of players in Missouri this recruiting cycle and they have their own now legendary story to go along with it. Carlos and Khalil’s High School team Blue Springs were locked in a battle with Lee Summit High School. This team was being quarterbacked by the talented Drew Lock. As usual the twins were wreaking havoc and after one particular series, they left the field saying to each other in disbelief that Lock was telling them to come to Missouri. Coach Donohue then informed them that the signal-caller was committed to the Tigers and it was a show of great respect that he would try to sway them in the middle of a game.
The twins managed to not be swayed by Lock’s recruiting pitch. He went on to star for the Tigers before becoming a second-round pick of the Denver Broncos in the 2019 NFL Draft.
A monkey wrench was thrown into the recruitment for the twins though. Coach Bo Pelini and defensive line coach Rick Kaczenski were let go by Nebraska and those were the two coaches the twins bonded with most. That decision by Nebraska’s leadership helped to give new life to schools trying to pry the pair away.
The Huskers knew they were getting a pair of talented players when the twins signed. Back when they officially joined the Huskers, I asked Donohue to tell me what made the pair special. Donohue said then that they are two versatile, explosive and fast defensive linemen. He added that you don’t get players at that size with this type of explosiveness and that is what makes them special.
That explosiveness was seen on display throughout their time in Lincoln. We also saw it at the NFL Combine. A lot of heads were turned with their performances at the combine. Khalil’s 4.75 40-yard-dash was the best among defensive linemen. It was the best time from a 300-plus pound defensive lineman at the combine since 2000. His 32 reps on the bench press was second among defensive linemen. Carlos turned in the third fastest defensive linemen 40-yard-dash and was tied for tenth on the bench press.
The Davis twins came to Nebraska with expectations of being good players. They met those expectations. Now they hope to realize a lifelong dream buy hearing their names called at the NFL Draft this weekend.
Recruit Watch
>> Priority Husker offensive line target Marcus Mbow showed off an edit he got from Nebraska. Mbow has an official set to check out Nebraska in June.
#Gbr #Nebraska 🌽 pic.twitter.com/4USaNSVJqJ
— Marcus Mbow (@MarcusMbow) April 21, 2020
>> Georgia wide receiver Chauncey Magwood committed to Kentucky on Wednesday. He had the Huskers in his final six.
100000% committedddd!! #BBN #GoWildcats #AGTG 🔵🔵🔵🔵🔵🔵🔵🔵🔵🔵🔵 pic.twitter.com/fOjfCKeiBd
— CHAUNCEY MAGWOOD (@illest_magg) April 22, 2020
>> The Huskers made the top 10 for the number one wide receiver in Mississippi, Isaiah Brevard.
TOP 🔟🙏🏾 Recruitment still Open pic.twitter.com/yLnYQLMPZp
— 1️⃣0️⃣K isaiah Brevard (@BrevardIsaiah) April 22, 2020
ICYMI
>> The No. 8 spot on Derek Peterson’s 10 most intriguing Huskers list (Premium) belongs to Chris Hickman.
>> Jacob Padilla explains why the Jordan documentary is just what the nation of sports fans needed in the latest Padding the Stats.
>> In this week’s mailbag we explore transfers, new numbers and changing food preferences.
>> Nebraska proved it belonged but didn’t stay long at the 2001 College World Series.
Greg is the Recruiting Analyst for Hail Varsity and has covered Husker athletics since 2013. He has always had a passion for sports while growing up in the Chicago area. As he got older and had to hang up his cleats and sneakers, he realized his passion for sports went beyond just watching and attending games. He has covered many events from the Rose Bowl to championship boxing matches. If he’s not talking sports, he’s hovering over his grill. He is married to an amazing woman, Kim, and they have a dog that barks when Greg yells at the TV during games.
