The Daily Campus

Issue date: 4/22/08 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Erik Kong Dan Davis breaks through the offensive line and chases down the ball carrier in UConn's game against Temple on Sept. 15.

Each day this week, The Daily Campus will highlight one UConn football senior and his chances of being selected in this weekend's NFL Draft.



Dan Davis isn't na've.

He knows that, despite helping to bring the UConn football program to new heights this past season, his chances of drafted in this Saturday's NFL Draft are slim.

And he's OK with that.

"Am I expecting to be drafted? No, I'm obviously expecting the worst," Davis said as he watched the Huskies practice Thursday at the Shenkman Training Facility. "I'll hopefully get into a camp and I'm not expecting anything more."

But while he's not fretting over hearing his named called, he's also not going to let that stop him.

While most prospects are willing to rest on their laurels and let fate take its course, the UConn senior defensive tackle is doing everything he can to optimize the golden opportunity that he sees before him.

From studying the type of players teams prefer, to curbing his weight to what he feels will give him the best shot, to even doing an independent study this semester in order to learn the agent-player dynamics, Davis has worked hard - on and off the field - to make his NFL dream comes true.

"Knowing the game and realizing certain situations to put yourself in the best case scenario is what I've been doing from now on," he said. "That's why I'm not too worried about it. Even when you talk to the scouts and the GMs, they don't want to disclose any type of information. All you know is put yourself in the best position, perform when you're supposed to perform and hope for the best."

As a leader, Davis was irreplaceable last season. Viewed by teammates and onlookers as the heart and soul of the program as it rose from obscurity to Big East co-champions, Davis was always at the forefront and willing to do what he could to help his team.

But that selflessness may have hindered his chances in the long run.

After playing defensive end for his first three years in Storrs, Davis slid inside to defensive tackle and saw a dramatic fall in production.

Continued...

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