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BONE | Recruiting Q&A | Alabama hitting the road | Alabama's Offensive Class
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Raekwon Davis stopped his former defensive line coach mid-sentence during one of their weekly phone conversations earlier this season.
Something didn’t seem right.
“It’s funny because I told him he had a good game and he stopped me,” said Demetrius Hill, Davis’ former defensive line coach at Meridian (Miss.) High School. “He said, ‘Coach you ain’t ever tell me I had a good game. Treat me like you did in high school. Tell me what I’m doing wrong. I know what I’m doing right, just let me know what I’m doing."
At 6-foot-7, 306 pounds Davis can take just about anything that’s thrown at him, especially criticism. According to Hill, that’s what’s allowed the defensive lineman to grow into a key starter on Alabama’s defense this season. That and his God-given size and ability.
“He’s very coachable,” Hill said. “You can see he’s taken the coaching that the coaches have given him and translated it onto the field. He’s reacting a lot better to offensive linemen, so that’s why his form is much better. Plus, he’s been grinding his butt off.”
Hill has taken a tough-love approach with Davis since their days in Meridian, an hour and a half down I-20 from Tuscaloosa. The two talk roughly three times a week on the phone, usually but not always about football. Most of the conversations include some sort of critique or instruction, from pad level to how he takes on certain offensive linemen.
Lately, it’s been harder for Hill to find much wrong.
“His pass rush has really improved,” Hill said. “He’s making a lot of sacks and he’s moving around really well.”
SEC Network analyst Marcus Spears, who played defensive lineman under Alabama head coach Nick Saban at LSU, asked his former coach about Davis during the offseason. According to Spears, Saban circled Davis' pash-rushing abilities as the aspect of his game that needed the most improvement.
Through nine games this season, those worries are have been swallowed up as quickly as opposing quarterbacks. Davis leads Alabama with 6.5 sacks and is tied for the team lead with seven tackles for a loss. He has also been solid against the run and is tied for second on the team with 40 tackles.
"I think Raekwon has just developed more confidence,” Saban said. “... I've seen a big difference in the confidence that he has in pass rush as well as the confidence he has in doing his job. I think he's played better and better throughout the season in all aspects of the game."
Leading into last week’s game, LSU head coach Ed Orgeron was extremely complimentary of Davis, calling the defensive end “rare” and stating that he sees him as a future first-round pick in the NFL one day. The word Spears uses when describing how Davis bullies opposing offensive linemen is “beasty.”
“What surprises me about him is his ability to bend with his height and how low he can play at the line of scrimmage, which has been impressive,” Spears said. “If you can’t do that in the NFL, you won’t be an effective D-lineman. He’s been doing a phenomenal job of playing with leverage.”
Davis’ size and ability have never been in question. The former four-star recruit was rated as the No. 88 player overall in the 2016 class and instantly drew eyeballs while towering over his teammates as a freshman. However, his ability to refine his skills and learn his defensive responsibilities took some time. Playing behind current NFL players Jonathan Allen and Dalvin Tomlinson, Davis appeared in just seven games last season, tallying four tackles and a sack.
“The first year you are in total shock that guys are this big and athletic and fast because when you come out of high school you’ve dominated every single game,” Spears said. “If you are one of the guys that can sign with an Alabama or an LSU, that’s what you did. Then to come into a league with offensive tackles that are as athletic, you have guards that are as athletic and strong. It’s figuring out the little nuances, figuring out what makes you the best.”
Hill helped Davis manage some of his frustration during his freshman year, reminding his former defensive lineman to keep his head down and stay positive. Although, the former coach will be the first to tell you he wasn’t the only one to help mold Davis into what he is today.
A good bulk of that credit goes to Alabama defensive line coach Karl Dunbar, who Hill says he talks to on a regular basis.
“He’s got a lot of experience, and he’s a very down-to-earth coach,” Hill said. “He stays on them and works them hard. You can see that Rae learns a lot from him. I even ask Rae if there are things that he’s learned that I can do with the guys here.”
This week’s game against Mississippi State holds a little extra meaning for Davis. Growing up roughly an hour and 40 minutes away from Starkville, Miss., the Bulldogs were one of the finalists in his recruiting process. During last season’s 51-3 victory over Mississippi State, Davis recorded his first career sack, pushing Bulldogs offensive lineman Darryl Williams back for 7 yards before burring quarterback Nick Fitzgerald.
The Crimson Tide hopes to receive more plays like that from Davis this week, especially after it suffered several injuries on defense during last week’s 24-10 victory over LSU. That game saw Alabama lose two key linebackers as Shaun Dion Hamilton (fractured kneecap) will miss the remainder of the season while Mack Wilson (broken foot) will be out for several weeks.
The Crimson Tide will also be without backup cornerback Nigel Knott, who Saban ruled "out" on Wednesday. Meanwhile, fellow defensive backs Minkah Fitzpatrick and Tony Brown, as well as outside linebackers Jamey Mosley and Anfernee Jennings, were all limited earlier this week during practice.
“Raekwon is a ferocious player, man. Just to have him on our team, on our defense, man, it helps my job,” Alabama linebacker Rashaan Evans said. “Just the fact that he’s able to get back there to quarterbacks and help me sometimes out when I’m in coverage is always a great thing for any linebacker to have.”
No. 2 Alabama (9-0, 6-0 in the SEC) will play at No. 16 Mississippi State (7-2, 3-2) on Saturday at 6 p.m. CT. The Crimson Tide can clinch its fourth straight SEC West title with a victory over the Bulldogs, provided No. 1 Georgia beats No. 10 Auburn earlier in the day.
