Slippery Ed Davis regaining steam, just in time?
Ricardo Cooney | SpartanMag.com
EAST LANSING - Amid all the disappointments brought on by Michigan State’s last three weekends of football, all losses, the Spartan defense received some welcome news this week.
Sixth-year senior linebacker Ed Davis has declared himself ready to return to the lineup as an every-down contributor.
It remains to be seen whether he will be deployed to play every down for Saturday’s game against Northwestern. But he feels he’s ready - something he hasn’t felt since August of 2015, when he went down with a knee injury which sidelined him for all of last season.
Davis, who was granted a sixth-year of eligibility this season, has been working himself back into game shape since the season began, getting reps in MSU’s delta package - one that utilizes an extra linebacker, usually on third downs.
While fitness issues and the emotional turmoil required to trust a repaired joint like Davis’ knee has been slow, he said he felt like he was almost back to the form that saw him finish the 2014-15 season with 58 tackles, good for fourth on the team.
“Actually, I’m pretty good where I’m at right now,’’ Davis said. “I think I’m on schedule.
“When I first start playing (this season), it (the knee) was hurting a lot and I didn’t know if I would be able to keep going back-to-back but eventually it stopped. After one day, it wouldn’t hurt so bad the next day and I would just keep building on that. Ever since then, a couple of weeks ago, it’s been like that and it’s been getting stronger and stronger. I’ve been getting faster, better, cutting more and doing everything I used to do. So I feel like I’m right on schedule and I just need to keep working on getting better.’’
Getting better would mean a return to his 2014 status.
During that breakout season, Davis’ first as a fulltime starter, he finished third on the team in tackles for loss with 12, which included seven sacks. He also had two pass breakups and a forced fumble, earning honorable mention All-Big Ten honors from both the coaches and the media.
And while his rehab has been a longer process than he would have liked, he pointed to a few specific plays in the Spartans’ 31-14 loss to BYU that gave him the confidence that he could be closing in on the form he showed back when he teamed up with former Spartan linebackers Taiwan Jones and Darien Harris.
“Honestly, it was last game with me getting so many snaps in the fourth quarter, back-to-back,’’ Davis said. “Usually, I was going in on third down and pass rushing downs but with me being in there for all three downs, I got cut-blocked on one play and then had to fight off the block to try and make the tackle on another, and then running to the ball, that really gave me confidence in my knee going back to the huddle, and me knowing that my knee really is all right.
“That was the exact play with me getting cut and I said, ‘Okay, you know what? I’m good. I’m ready to go.’”
With a pair of linebackers nursing injuries in 5th-year senior Riley Bullough and juniorJon Reschke, a confident Davis could give the Spartan defense a real boost against Northwestern and through the remainder of the season.
Junior Chris Frey, who has logged additional downs at linebacker during the absences of Bullough and Reschke, feels that Davis’ return to form could be a huge boost to the overall improvement of MSU’s defense.
“He’s getting better every single week and I think he’s starting to trust his knee more,’’ Frey said. “But it’s going to come in time. He keeps growing and if he can get back to where he was before the injury, it’s going to mean a lot because we know the ability that he has. We call him Slippery Ed for a reason. We put him out there on delta and he makes plays, so we’re really looking forward to him working his way back up to 100 percent.’’
Frey added that MSU linebackerscoach Mark Snyder expressed the same excitement in film study this week.
“We’re watching film and Coach Snyder goes, ‘Hey, you got cut on your bad knee and you’re still running! Forget about it! you’re fine,’” Frey said. “And the next play, they come out and they crack (back block) him with the receiver and throw a screen out and he got out there. And coach (Snyder) says, ‘You’re fine. You got out there. Just keep playing, you’re good.’”
Ed Davis and Demetrius Cooper have 17.5 career sacks, but none so far this year. MSU's defense could use a return to form for both players this weekend against Northwestern.
Ricardo Cooney | SpartanMag.com
EAST LANSING - Amid all the disappointments brought on by Michigan State’s last three weekends of football, all losses, the Spartan defense received some welcome news this week.
Sixth-year senior linebacker Ed Davis has declared himself ready to return to the lineup as an every-down contributor.
It remains to be seen whether he will be deployed to play every down for Saturday’s game against Northwestern. But he feels he’s ready - something he hasn’t felt since August of 2015, when he went down with a knee injury which sidelined him for all of last season.
Davis, who was granted a sixth-year of eligibility this season, has been working himself back into game shape since the season began, getting reps in MSU’s delta package - one that utilizes an extra linebacker, usually on third downs.
While fitness issues and the emotional turmoil required to trust a repaired joint like Davis’ knee has been slow, he said he felt like he was almost back to the form that saw him finish the 2014-15 season with 58 tackles, good for fourth on the team.
“Actually, I’m pretty good where I’m at right now,’’ Davis said. “I think I’m on schedule.
“When I first start playing (this season), it (the knee) was hurting a lot and I didn’t know if I would be able to keep going back-to-back but eventually it stopped. After one day, it wouldn’t hurt so bad the next day and I would just keep building on that. Ever since then, a couple of weeks ago, it’s been like that and it’s been getting stronger and stronger. I’ve been getting faster, better, cutting more and doing everything I used to do. So I feel like I’m right on schedule and I just need to keep working on getting better.’’
Getting better would mean a return to his 2014 status.
During that breakout season, Davis’ first as a fulltime starter, he finished third on the team in tackles for loss with 12, which included seven sacks. He also had two pass breakups and a forced fumble, earning honorable mention All-Big Ten honors from both the coaches and the media.
And while his rehab has been a longer process than he would have liked, he pointed to a few specific plays in the Spartans’ 31-14 loss to BYU that gave him the confidence that he could be closing in on the form he showed back when he teamed up with former Spartan linebackers Taiwan Jones and Darien Harris.
“Honestly, it was last game with me getting so many snaps in the fourth quarter, back-to-back,’’ Davis said. “Usually, I was going in on third down and pass rushing downs but with me being in there for all three downs, I got cut-blocked on one play and then had to fight off the block to try and make the tackle on another, and then running to the ball, that really gave me confidence in my knee going back to the huddle, and me knowing that my knee really is all right.
“That was the exact play with me getting cut and I said, ‘Okay, you know what? I’m good. I’m ready to go.’”
With a pair of linebackers nursing injuries in 5th-year senior Riley Bullough and juniorJon Reschke, a confident Davis could give the Spartan defense a real boost against Northwestern and through the remainder of the season.
Junior Chris Frey, who has logged additional downs at linebacker during the absences of Bullough and Reschke, feels that Davis’ return to form could be a huge boost to the overall improvement of MSU’s defense.
“He’s getting better every single week and I think he’s starting to trust his knee more,’’ Frey said. “But it’s going to come in time. He keeps growing and if he can get back to where he was before the injury, it’s going to mean a lot because we know the ability that he has. We call him Slippery Ed for a reason. We put him out there on delta and he makes plays, so we’re really looking forward to him working his way back up to 100 percent.’’
Frey added that MSU linebackerscoach Mark Snyder expressed the same excitement in film study this week.
“We’re watching film and Coach Snyder goes, ‘Hey, you got cut on your bad knee and you’re still running! Forget about it! you’re fine,’” Frey said. “And the next play, they come out and they crack (back block) him with the receiver and throw a screen out and he got out there. And coach (Snyder) says, ‘You’re fine. You got out there. Just keep playing, you’re good.’”
Ed Davis and Demetrius Cooper have 17.5 career sacks, but none so far this year. MSU's defense could use a return to form for both players this weekend against Northwestern.
