Kentucky now has a new Big Man on Campus.
His name, as you have heard by now, is graduate transfer Ray Davis, a 5-foot-10, 216-pounder who came to Lexington after two years at Vanderbilt (2021-22) and two years at Temple (2019-20).
Davis set the college football world on fire Saturday afternoon with his stunning performance on ESPN and before a sellout crowd during unbeaten Kentucky’s dominating 33-14 win over No. 22 Florida at Kroger Field.
Davis gained a career-high 280 rushing yards in 26 carries. He also scored four touchdowns, including a 75-yard TD run and a nine-yard TD reception, both in the first quarter.
Davis’ 280 rushing yards are the third-most in a game in school history, and were just 19 short of the UK record. Moe Williams holds the school record for most rushing yards in a game with 299 yards against South Carolina in 1995. Lynn Bowden Jr. is second with 284 yards against Louisville in 2019.
After the game, UK coach Mark Stoops tossed the game ball to Davis in the jubilant locker room.
Davis, who averaged a whopping 10.8 yard per carry against a tough Florida Gator defense, credited his success to the team’s offensive line, popularly known as the Big Blue Wall.
“I didn’t make history, our o-line made history today,” said Davis. “We ran for what, 300 yards or something like that total, so as a collectively unit we made history. But for me, it was just going into another game and hitting holes and things were opening. I just have to see it right.
“Last week, someone had asked about consistency with the running backs and for me that Vanderbilt game, I took it personally, because for me we were not hitting the right holes and that falls on me. I went back to the lab, got in the film room and had to see why I was missing the holes and what the o-line was creating. Today, I think you saw that.”
Despite his struggles during UK’s 45-28 win over Vanderbilt in Nashville on Sept. 23, Davis still had a nice performance while gaining 78 yards in 17 carries for an average of 4.6 yards.
Davis’ 280 yards were also the second-most rushing yards of any player on any team against Florida. Tyrion Davis-Price of LSU holds the top spot with 287 yards against the Gators in 2021.
Going into this weekend’s game with top-ranked Georgia (7 p.m. ET, ESPN), Davis leads the SEC with 594 yards and has the league’s best average with 7.82 yards per carry.
Added a very pleased Stoops, “You have to give an individual shout-out to Ray Davis. What a great individual performance. He will be the first one to tell you the line obviously did a great job pushing people around, but he made people miss and he ran around people and through people and over people, you name it. Give him a lot of credit for individual effort.”
Jamie H. Vaught, a longtime sports columnist in Kentucky, is the author of six books about UK basketball, including recently-published “Forever Crazy About The Cats: An Improbable Journey of a Kentucky Sportswriter Overcoming Adversity.” He is the editor and founder of KySportsStyle.com Magazine, and a professor at Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College in Middlesboro. You can follow him on Twitter @KySportsStyle or reach him via email at KySportsStyle@gmail.com.“It was a great day,” said Davis of his electrifying performance. “But I didn’t really do much today. You have to give credit to the o-line, tight ends and receiving corps. Those guys were blocking down the field, 20 yards. They were just staying with it and constantly going. Obviously, today, running the ball was something we were good out so the receivers decided to step up and block. When it was time to get the ball thrown, those guys stepped up and did what had to do.
“Honestly, our o-line has been receiving a lot of criticism, but I think today, they showed up and stepped up and they are making strides. No one is perfect in this world. We are evolving and getting better each day. Those guys are getting better. As an offense, we are getting better. We are not going to be content with this performance. We have a lot more left in the tank and we have to get back to work on Sunday. We will enjoy this for 24 hours and then get to work.”
Davis, who ranked fourth in rushing yards in the SEC last season while at Vanderbilt, said he was going to buy dinner for his offensive line.
“Yeah, I am definitely going to take those guys out to dinner,” he said. “I have to take the tight ends and the o-line. That will probably run a hole in my pocket. I don’t know what that check is going to be like, but I am not going to want to see it.”
Offensive lineman Eli Cox added, “That’s an expensive tab. I’m not going to complain either way. I bet (teammate) Jeremy Flax could give him a run for his money.”
Davis, who grew up in the foster care system, is currently working on an undergraduate certificate in business after graduating from Vanderbilt in December of 2022 with a degree in communication studies. He is also good in writing poetry.
Other than playing pro football, Davis says his dream job is to work for ESPN.