Alex Leon
BURBANK -- Living in the hills above Burbank gives Mike Davis Jr. a
panoramic view of the city where his family lives and the place where his
football dreams are starting to take shape.
Those dreams for the 17-year-old senior from Los Angeles Cathedral
High include earning a football scholarship to a Division I college, as
well as a degree, and maybe a chance to play in the NFL.
"Ever since we moved to Burbank two years ago, I have started to allow
myself to consider the opportunities that football might afford me,"
Davis said. "Since football ended last fall, several schools, including
Arizona State and the University of Washington, have offered me
scholarships and several others have contacted me by letter or by phone.
"I'm still in the process of making up my mind, but it won't be a
decision made entirely about football. The opportunity to study
aeronautical engineering is also a priority for me and I will take my
time in making a decision."
At 6-feet-3 and 185 pounds, Davis may not fit the mold of a typical
defensive back. In fact, he possesses more than the basic instincts to
stop a quarterback from completing a pass to a receiver.
For example, take his final play for the Phantoms in their 18-13 loss
to Orange Lutheran in a CIF Southern Section semifinal playoff game this
past season.
With just seconds left and the Phantoms kicking off after allowing a
safety, the ball touched an Orange Lutheran player following an onside
kick. Davis picked up the ball and ran it in for the apparent winning
touchdown.
However, the celebration by the Phantoms and Davis was short-lived, as
officials ruled that the ball did not touch an Orange Lutheran player
before it was picked up.
"In the matter of just a few seconds, I went from being very happy to
so sad that I was crying," Davis said. "The last high school game for my
school ended very emotionally. But one of the coaches from the other team
spent about 20 minutes with me afterward saying that I had a lot of good
football ahead of me, and any college that recruited me would be proud to
have me as a student-athlete."
*
To his father -- Mike Davis Sr. -- the comparisons between himself and
his son are inevitable. But Mike Davis Sr. says his his son should be
judged on his own skills and ability, and not for who his father is and
what he accomplished during his own football career.
The elder Davis played nine years in the NFL as a defensive back from
1978 to 1986. He competed on two Super Bowl championship teams for the
