Butch Davis Talks About Recruiting Portis, Moss, and Sean Taylor (Part II)

KevinE — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 07:21:26 -0000

In Part I in of our conversation with Coach Butch Davis, I really got a feel for how coaches can relate to players and be effective. Coach Davis happened to recruit 3 players during his tenure in Miami, which have become DEAR to Redskins Nation: Clinton Portis, Santana Moss and Sean Taylor.

HH: Can you talk about recruiting Clinton Portis? What was his personality like back then?

Clinton was an unbelievable story. The tape we were watching on Clinton we were actually watching the Quarterback on his football team. Late one Monday night early in the season it was like the first of September, it was Clinton's Senior year. The game by accident we picked up to watch the quarterback, Clinton was absolutely spectacular. Kickoff returns for touchdowns. Everytime he touched the ball. I remember one particular sequence he scored a touchdown... it was a long run, a 67-yard run and there was a penalty and they brought it back. They handed him the ball the very next play, and he did exactly the same thing. It was like immediately, "Get on the phone. Find out who this guy is. Do we have any kind of opportunity to recruit him?" We were fortunate with him being right there in Gainesville. For whatever reason, the Univ of Florida wasn't interested. We went full out trying to recruit him. He was a great player in college and a phenomenal player on the next level.

HH: And Santana Moss?

Santana was a totally different story. He was the biggest secret maybe in the country. We all knew in South Florida what a phenomenal kid that he was. Charismatic. Great personality. He had outstanding track times. He played with a great high school football team at Carol City, but they hardly ever threw the ball. This stat won't be 100% accurate, but he had something like 8-10-12-15 catches. Like maybe one a game. He was in a 3-point stance and blocking down field. Talking about somebody flying totally under the radar. Immediately when he got on our football team, we knew that he was special. He was a difference maker. He might be the most electrifying punt returner that I've certainly ever had the opportunity to be around. There were so many ways he could hurt a defense. Stretch em deep. Great hands. Run after catches. Electrifying. You could do all the reverses with him. We were blessed to have both of those kids on our football team.

HH: You left there right as Sean Taylor was getting there. Were you involved at all in recruiting him?

When I recruited Sean, my son went to the same school as Sean. So, I was over at Gulliver a lot picking up my son and wathing him practice. I'll never forget the year we recruited Sean, he scored 5 TDs in the championship game as the RB. That was one of the things [people don't realize in games]. They see an interception by Sean Taylor in college and the NFL and they didn't realize they just threw the ball up to one of the country's best RBs. At the time we had Willis Maghee, Clinton Portis, Najeh Davenport. We had a host of RBs..it was just more prudent to put him at safety.

HH: When I interviewed Coach Larry Coker on the phone, he had mentioned he recruited Sean.

Well, I was the head coach when Sean was there. I left the week before they all signed. Kellon Winslow Jr, Antrel Rolle. All those guys. That was quite a class.

HH: Man...I bet that 2001 Miami team could have beat the bottom third of the NFL that year.

I don't know about that but they were pretty gifted. When you go to training camp if you would, please say hello to Clinton and Santana, I'd appreciate it.

OK, so the 2001 Miami roster, which won the National Championship, included: Willis McGahee, Najeh Davenport, Andre Johnson, Antrel Rolle, Ed Reed, Sean Taylor, Clinton Portis, Philip Buchanon, Frank Gore, Rocky McIntosh, Vince Wilfork, Bryant McKinnie, Kellen Winslow, Jeremy Shockey, and Jerome McDougle. Ken Dorsey was the QB for this championship team, but wow, what a squad.

Getting to Know the Enemy: Big Blue View

Chris Pokorny — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 23:14:09 -0000

I was pleased to be joined by Ed, our New York Giants affiliate, who has the pleasure of running Big Blue View, to preview Monday's game. We did a question-and-answer segment in the preseason, so I tried as best as I could to differ the questions a little bit this time. Enjoy!

Chris: "The Giants lost Osi Umenyiora in the preseason, and many people projected the defensive line to suffer a dropoff. However, the line still seems as strong as ever, no matter who the Giants throw in there. Is this simply a matter of great coaching? Because the Browns have been searching for a solid defensive lineman since returning to the league."

Ed: "Really, it's simply that too many "experts" did not look closely enough at how much talent was still there. Justin Tuck is playing at a Pro Bowl level and Mathias Kiwanuka is right at home back at defensive end, the position he was drafted to play. On top of that, DT Fred Robbins (4 sacks) is playing very well. Barry Cofield is the other DT, and he is solid, if unspectacular. Also, there is great depth with Jay Alford, Jerome McDougle and Dave Tollefson. It's really the same with the entire team. Talent and depth everywhere."

Chris: "Although I watched the game when the Giants battled the Bengals, I'm curious as to what your take is (briefly) on why it was such a competitive game instead of a blowout. Was there a strategy the Bengals used that the Browns could use this Monday?"

Ed: "Well, you can't blow out every team. The Bengals played well. They used lots of short crossing routes to negate the Giants blitz. Those left the Giants corners, in man coverage, trailing and resulted in some big plays. I have no idea if Seattle tried that last week -- the Seahawks couldn't get out of their own way on offense and couldn't cover anybody on defense."

Chris: "WR Domenik Hixon made a name for himself by catching three touchdowns in the preseason against the Browns. Then, in his first start with Plaxico Burress suspended last week, he had over 100 yards receiving along with a touchdown. How much playing time is this potential "Browns killer" going to see with Burress returning?"

Ed: "I am not sure how much of Hixon you will see. He did suffer a concussion Sunday. If he is ready to go, you will definitely see him returning punts, where he excels. Offensively, he will get time in 4-receiver sets, that's all."

Chris: "The Giants are first in the league on offense, and third in the league on defense, so I'm not even going to bother asking what weakness the Browns should attack. However, I will ask this: which starting player are you most disappointed with on the Giants this year, either on offense or defense?"

Ed: "Plaxico Burress. I am disappointed by his suspension, and by his seeming lack of remorse -- One beat writer said he is "30 going on 13," and that is probably accurate. I don't see any short-term impact on the team -- the players are solidly behind Tom Coughlin and have said repeatedly that Burress deserved what he got. Long-term, I am wondering whether Plax will be a Giant at the end of the 5-year contract he just signed."

Chris: "This will be the Browns' first Monday Nighter in a few years. Predict the final score, and please feel free to be as lopsided as you'd like."

Ed: "900-0!! No, seriously, I don't see the Giants putting a Seattle-like beating on the Browns. That game was fun, but it won't happen every week.
Giants 31, Browns 17"

Once again, I'd like to thank Ed for taking the time to answer my questions this week. We plan on doing another little feature later on this week, and I'll also be answering five of his questions about the Browns soon.

SB Nation - Jerome McDougle

Butch Davis Talks About Recruiting Portis, Moss, and Sean Taylor (Part II)

Getting to Know the Enemy: Big Blue View