Going on Defensive

Make no mistake, Ennis Davis is one of the largest high school football recruits to come out of the Valley. But the skinny on him is that he may be bigger than he is talented.

At 6 feet 5, 300 pounds, Davis, Reseda High’s three-year starter at defensive end, could have been nicknamed The Intimidator on sheer size alone. And the prescription goggles only helped promote his image.

He led Reseda High to the City Section 3-A Division title and was named 3-A player of the year. The accolades didn’t end there. Davis made the Cal-Hi Sports All-State list and was deemed a high school All-American by USA Today.

Yet, the jury is still out on whether Davis has the talent to be a successful Division I lineman. Reviews have been mixed.

Davis, one of five area players selected to play in tonight’s California-Texas Shrine all-star football game at Cal State Fullerton, took only two recruiting trips for one reason--that’s all he was offered.

Considering his size, it seems odd that only two universities thought enough of Davis to offer him a trip and a scholarship. The two schools that did, Iowa State and USC, couldn’t be more different.

What gives?

Davis, who committed to USC on Jan. 29 and signed Feb. 7, believes other college coaches were misled. He said word got out early that he was headed to USC and that there was no changing his mind.

In the middle of his senior season, schools that had been sending him letters since his sophomore year--such as Colorado and Nebraska--dropped out of the race.

Iowa State got in the hunt during his junior year and never quit calling. That’s what he liked most about Iowa State.

What he liked most about USC far outweighed the Cyclones. Fact is, it was a no-brainer.

“I’ve wanted to play for USC since I was real little,” Davis said. “Since [USC’s] Rodney Peete and [UCLA’s] Troy Aikman used to go at it.”

Another aspect that may have hurt Davis’ stock was that he started both ways at Reseda and was less than impressive at offensive tackle despite his size.

“I will tell you that he’s a much better defensive player,” Reseda Coach Joel Schaeffer said. “I wish I had the depth to have guys go only one way. It would have been better for him.”

Even Davis admits that his offensive work was uninspired because he finds offense “boring.”

But USC found his defensive prowess encouraging. The Trojans have been sending Davis letters since his sophomore year, even before the coaching staff got a look at Reseda’s film of a game against Monroe during his junior year.

Apparently, that film did the trick.

“[USC Coach] John Robinson said it was the best film he had seen on any recruit that year,” Schaeffer said. “He blocked a punt, had three or four sacks, three knockdowns, recovered a fumble and made a lot of tackles. He had a couple of games like that.”

Robinson is on vacation and unavailable for comment, but he must have had Davis in mind when he called his 22 recruits “the best group we’ve ever recruited at USC,” on the first day of the NCAA national signing period.

The fact that USC recruited him is enough for Davis to discount the critics who say he is lazy.

“Hey, I don’t care what people say,” he said. “I think I’m good. A lot of other people think I’m good and SC thinks I’m good, so. . . .”

Davis says he has nothing to prove but is training harder than ever.

“I never ran four laps [before] without stopping,” said Davis, who also competed in the shotput for Reseda for three years. “Now, that’s just a warmup.”

Workouts aren’t the only thing that have changed recently for Davis. He no longer rides a bus to school from his home in Athens, just north of Gardena near Vermont Avenue off the 105 Freeway. The bus ride took as long as 1 hour 45 minutes in the morning, and as long as two hours to get home.

Davis, who attended Portola Jr. High in Reseda, endured bus rides for nearly seven years before his parents bought him a car this year.

Davis chose to be bused to Portola and Reseda because that’s where his neighborhood friends went. Davis’ father thought a school rich in football tradition would better suit his son. Some place like Carson High.

“That’s where my dad wanted me to go,” Davis said.

But Davis enrolled at Reseda and stayed put.

Schaeffer couldn’t be happier about it.

“He is a gut-level, emotional-type football player,” Schaeffer said. “He has good lateral movement, good pursuit, and good speed for a big kid. He can chase down people and make a lot of tackles on the wide side of the field.”

Making tackles is one thing, simply seeing the opponent is another. Davis, who is farsighted and has worn glasses since age 5, lost his glasses at Grad Night and has a tough time reading.

But his future is quickly coming into focus for him even though others may still see a blur.

“I know a lot of stuff will change,” he said. “In high school I was faster than most of the offensive linemen I played against, and I was stronger so it wasn’t too hard. [But] next [season] they’ll all be faster and stronger, too. So, we’ll just have to wait and see.”

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California-Texas Shrine Football Game

* When: Tonight.

* Time: 7 p.m.

* Site: Cal State Fullerton.

* Admission: $15 & $10, reserved seating; $8, general admission.

* Directions: 101 Freeway to 5 Freeway south to 91 Freeway east to 57 Freeway north. Exit Yorba Linda, turn left. Two blocks, stadium and parking on left.