Ready to report: Teegan Davis
There’s always a prospect that Iowa tries to keep under the radar with their recruitment. This year that player was Teegan Davis, a 6-foot-3 and 175 pound defensive back out of Illinois. We caught up with Davis as part of our Ready to Report series to discuss Iowa recruiting him and his rehab process after a significant knee injury this spring.
Listen to the interview on our podcast here: Teegan Davis Podcast
Q: What has spring been like for you?
DAVIS: It’s been good. Just getting ready to graduate high school.
Q: When is graduation?
DAVIS: Tomorrow is my last day of high school and then I graduate on Saturday.
Q: This has been a tough time for you recently with your injury. What happened and when did it happen?
DAVIS: At the beginning of track season I went to the indoor state meet and I hurt the lower half of my leg. I have had surgery and now I am rehabbing and getting ready to go to Iowa.
Q: Did you know immediately that it was a bad injury?
DAVIS: Yeah I knew there was a little bit of damage. Iowa has been really helpful to me through all this, so I am just ready to get up there and work.
Q: Have you had any significant injuries in the past?
DAVIS: I have had little injuries in my high school career, but nothing like this. Athletes can bounce back from something like this, so I am ready to bounce back.
Q: One of the things that I am curious about is how quickly do you contact the Iowa coaches to let them know something had happened to you?
DAVIS: We contacted then right away. We wanted to see if they could help us out and get us with their doctors, so we contacted them as soon as possible.
Q: What advice did they give you? Did they say just come here and let our doctors take care of you?
DAVIS: Yeah, they got me in with their doctors. They are really the best of the best out there. They really helped me out and told me that it’s just going to take time to heal. I just need to listen to what they say and then do what I need to do to get back.
Q: Which Iowa coach do you call?
DAVIS: We called Coach Wallace since he really led my recruitment.
Q: Talk about Coach Wallace and building that relationship with you. He seems to be good at building relationships in recruiting.
DAVIS: He’s a great coach and recruiter. He really got to know my family when he came down to visit. The first time I met him, I could tell he was a good guy. He came and watched my basketball game and spent time with my family.
Q: When do you first meet Phil Parker?
DAVIS: I met him on my first visit. He’s a great coach and a great guy. One of the best defensive coaches out there. He has a lot of wisdom and he’s going to teach me a lot.
Q: From a player standpoint, there has to be a real attraction to learning from him since he has put so many players in the NFL. Is that something that stood out to you about Iowa?
DAVIS: Yeah to go and learn from the best of the best is something that I wanted to do. When you think of playing defensive back, you think of playing for Coach Parker.
Q: One of the intriguing things about your recruitment is Iowa tried to keep you under the radar. Was that challenging for you as the process moved along?
DAVIS: When I came on the visit they told me it was going to be a good day for me and it turned out well. I had gone to camp out there over the summer and since then I knew that was the school that I wanted to go to. Once I got the opportunity I took it.
Q: They offered you officially in December, right?
DAVIS: Yeah just a couple of days before signing day.
Q: Did you know they were trying to keep this whole thing under wraps?
DAVIS: They were talking to my coach and other schools where talking to him too.
Q: You were committed to Eastern Illinois at that point. Was that a hard conversation?
DAVIS: It was a tough call. They treated me really well and they were my first offer. But, knowing this was my dream school I knew this was an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up.
Q: Were there other schools kind of kicking the tires on you at the buzzer?
DAVIS: I had other schools contacting me, but Iowa was the really the first one to reach out and get me on a visit. It was a really good opportunity.
Q: Did you grow up a Hawkeye fan?
DAVIS: Yeah, my mom is actually from Iowa. I have a lot of family out there.
Q: You did several other sports at the high school level. Which sport will you miss the most?
DAVIS: I will miss track a lot, but basketball will be the one that I miss the most. When you are doing track, there aren’t many people there and most of the people around here know me as a basketball player. They would come out and watch me and watch some of my dunks.
Q: Who is a better dunker, you or Cooper DeJean?
DAVIS: (laugh) I would try to give him a match-up, but he was a stud in high school.
Q: Coming back from the injury, do you have a timeline to get back on the field?
DAVIS: Not really. It just depends on how the rehab goes.
Q: You are almost certainly out this year?
DAVIS: Yeah, I will be redshirting.
Q: Does it take some of the pressure off in your freshman year or trying to play vs. redshirting?
DAVIS: Yeah, a little bit. It will be nice to get out there and do the work and to be around the staff. I just need to try and put weight on and be as ready as I can be.
Q: What do you weigh now?
DAVIS: Right around 175-180.
Q: What’s your relationship with some of the other recruits?
DAVIS: I know one of the guys coming in Rusty VanWetzinga. I played some 7 on 7 with him when I was a sophomore.
Q: Have you gotten to meet many of the other guys?
DAVIS: All of the guys have really welcomed me with open arms and everything.
Q: You live in a relatively small down. Was it a big deal around town that you got the offer from Iowa and will play football for the Hawkeyes?
DAVIS: It was for sure. Being a small town kid, everyone knows everyone and they are very supportive and have been there for me. Coach Ferentz came to town for a basketball game, so that was really cool for all the people here.
Q: Had Phil Parker told you what position you are playing in the secondary?
DAVIS: I think it’s still open, but they are probably leaning towards corner. That’s where I want to be.
Q: Are you more Riley Moss or Cooper DeJean? Riley talked more and Cooper just goes out and makes plays.
DAVIS: I am more like Cooper. I tend to keep my mouth shut and go out and make plays.
Q: What was it like to get to meet and know Kirk Ferentz? What was it like for your parents?
DAVIS: That is what was neat. We went out to eat the night after my basketball game and we really got to talk to him. It was nice to build that connection. My parents really liked him. He’s a great coach and a really down to earth guy.
Q: Is the hope that by next spring, you are out there on the field?
DAVIS: Yeah that’s the hope.
Q: What is your area of study at Iowa?
DAVIS: I want to be an athletic trainer.
Q: Are you kind of taking notes during your own rehab process?
DAVIS: Yeah I am definitely learning a lot from them.
Q: What has been the biggest challenge in the rehab process?
DAVIS: Just learning to take it slow. I have always been an upbeat guy, but it has been tough to sit back and relax.
Q: Where are you at in the rehab process? Have you started a little running or biking?
DAVIS: I am working on bending and getting that all the way.
Q: But, you still plan to move to Iowa next month?
DAVIS: Yeah the plan is to move in on June 11th.
Q: Guessing it will be nice to working with the Iowa trainers to get you back on your feet?
DAVIS: Yeah, getting to work with them will be good. They have a great staff out there and they will help me get to 100%.
Q: What number will you be wearing?
DAVIS: I wore #2 in high school, but one of the guys on defense just switched to #2. I guess we will see when I get out there.
Q: What are you looking forward to most about being a Hawkeye?
DAVIS: Just the atmosphere, the coaches, the players, and the tradition that they have there. It’s like no other team around. It’s special and you will be a Hawkeye forever.
