UCLA’s Davis Proves Patience Can Pay Off

He seemed sort of lost in the evening, even though he carried 25 times, more than anyone else, and gained more yardage against Arizona than any team had all season.

Sixty-nine yards turns few heads when it’s done two, three or four yards at a time, with a 17-yarder thrown in to compensate for the times Ricky Davis was tackled in the UCLA backfield.

“It seemed like all we did was pass and run the draw play,” quarterback Wayne Cook said Monday.

The draw play meant Davis, running out of the shotgun. But the pass meant Davis, too, though none were thrown his way.

“We went with Ricky because he is better at knowing who to block on pass protection than Skip (Hicks) and Derek (Ayers),” Coach Terry Donahue said of one of the keys to UCLA’s 37-17 victory over Arizona on Saturday night. “In hindsight, I wish I had played them more. But we were moving the ball and we were winning.”

The Bruins have done both since losing their first two games. Davis sat, watching his senior season from the sidelines, slowed because of an ankle injury he suffered in training camp, then discarded as a relic when younger, more gifted backs began to excel in the UCLA running game.

Daron Washington, a junior, started against California and rushed for 54 yards before being injured.

Hicks, a freshman, rushed for 47 yards in two carries in a reserve role against California, then for 148 yards and a touchdown against Nebraska before being injured.

Sharmon Shah, a sophomore, gained 56 yards against Nebraska and 187 against Stanford, running on injured knees that cost him the rest of the season.

Davis’ claim to fame was a 124-yard day against Arizona State, but that was two years ago. He finally had two carries for three yards against Stanford. But his effort in UCLA’s first victory was rendered insignificant by Shah’s performance.

The back who had been with the Bruins longest, Davis was the forgotten man until they began to run out of runners.

“Programs are just like that,” he said. “After they see people like Skip perform, Daron (Washington) perform and Shah perform right there in front of their eyes, well, my performances were a year or two ago. I thought I had proven myself. For me to do it all over again, well, I just have to do it. I can’t get an attitude, or I won’t play. I can’t just chuck it in. That’ll make me look bad. I have to keep my head up--for myself.”

It’s easy to take Davis for granted because there are more flashy guys, running back coach Wayne Moses says.

“Hicks, Shah and those guys are flashier and bigger and faster and all that stuff, but the underlying factor is that at some point, you have to have somebody in there that you are comfortable is going to do the right things. That’s where Ricky comes in,” Moses says.

The experience factor has come into play as the Bruins have continued to win, particularly in Pacific 10 games. Davis led the Bruins in rushing against Washington with 57 yards in 13 carries. At Oregon State, Hicks got the call early, but struggled.

“We almost lost to Oregon State,” Moses says. “We had a faster guy out there, but he wasn’t getting the job done, so we went with somebody else.”

Davis rushed for 79 yards in 18 carries. On fourth down in the closing minutes, the Bruins bridged the generation gap with Davis carrying for three yards behind the block of freshman fullback Jeff Ruckman.

The play enabled UCLA to advance to the Arizona game with an opportunity to determine its Rose Bowl destiny. This time there was no question as to who would start.

Washington moved to fullback, replacing injured James Milliner. Davis was the tailback. With the Bruins passing on 12 of their 15 first-down plays in running up a 20-0 lead in the first half, his role was plain. Block on first down, carry the ball on second. He did so on 10 of UCLA’s 13 second-down plays in that first half, with 12 carries overall against the nation’s toughest run defense.

Hicks finished with two carries for five yards, both on second-down plays in the first half.

No longer was Davis taken for granted.

“I was happy I was able to get an opportunity like this before I graduate,” Davis said. “This is why I came to UCLA, for games like this--on national TV and friends and family get to see you play.”

Although he continues to have NFL aspirations, he knows that reality must take hold.

“My expectations have changed,” he said. “I have had to look at my future from every angle, not just one angle. Some people can do that, because they know what’s going to happen to them. Me, I’m not really sure.

“I want to make sure I have a chance to get a good job when I get out of here. That is probably first on my list.”

It’s a blue-collar answer from a blue-collar back.