Starkville, Miss., quarterback Brady Davis has throw nine touchdown passes in two games this season. Photo by Thomas Brown for Starkville High School.
A little change of scenery has made all the difference for Starkville, Miss., quarterback Brady Davis. Last season, as a junior at New Hope (Columbus), he threw for 2,626 yards and 23 touchdowns, but with the Trojans finishing 4-7, he had only a smattering of Division I offers, including none from the Southeastern Conference. He committed in June to Memphis.
In February, his mother Rhonda moved the 24 miles from Columbus to Starkville, allowing him to transfer to the Yellow Jackets, who made it to the state 6A quarterfinals last season. On Friday, he completed 21 of 32 passes for 411 yards and six touchdowns to lead No. 32 Starkville to a 52-29 defeat of Oxford, which had been ranked No. 1 in the state.
“He’s much more of a pocket guy, though he’s certainly capable of running,” Starkville coach Jamie Mitchell said. “He’s a big-time thrower for sure. He’s had probably a dozen mid-major offers but we’re still hoping there will be bigger offers for him. He’s 6-4, 190 and I feel like he’s going to have good things happen for him.”
Though he’s only been with the team a short while, it helps Davis that he also ran a no-huddle spread last season. It also doesn’t hurt that Starkville has plenty of weapons in running back Matt Fuller and receivers Raphael Leonard and A.J. Brown.
“He’s a highly intelligent kid,” Mitchell said. “He’s done a good job of picking things up. He’s surrounded by a bunch of good players, but he’s the straw that stirs the drink.”
VIDEO: Davis throws six touchdowns against Oxford
Through two games, Davis is 32-for-50 for 594 yards and nine touchdowns with one interception.
“I think he did a great job,” Oxford coach Johnny Hill said. “I’ve faced him four years now and he looked like a quarterback against us. We didn’t put any pressure on him and he got very comfortable.”
Davis leads our list of American Family Insurance ALL-USA Performances of the Week. The rest of the list:
Jake Browning, QB, Folsom, Calif.
Senior, who has committed to Washington, passed for 511 yards and seven touchdowns with no interceptions in a 55-10 defeat of Cathedral Catholic (San Diego) on Friday.
Tianna Friese, girls soccer, Marantha Christian, Brooklyn Park, Minn.
Junior forward scored five goals and had two assists in her team’s 7-0 defeat of PACT Charter (Ramsey) on Thursday.
Jesse Hubbard, DB, Sardis, Boaz, Ala.
Senior grabbed four interceptions, including one in the end zone in the final minute, to preserve his team’s 21-16 defeat of Sylvania. He also ran for a touchdown.
Andrew Kakaley, LB, Hickory Grove, Charlotte
Junior had 11 tackles and two sacks in a 27-7 defeat of Wake Christian (Raleigh) on Friday. In his team’s first two games, he has 29 tackles.
Kyler Murray, QB, Allen, Texas
Senior, who has committed to Texas A&M, completed 19 of 30 passes for 393 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 106 yards and three touchdowns on seven carries to lead the No. 4 Eagles to a 55-41 defeat of Guyer (Denton) on Friday.
Grant Petersen, RB, Bondurant-Farrar, Bondurant, Iowa
Senior ran for a school-record 386 yards and six touchdowns in a 42-6 defeat of North Polk (Alleman). He also had an interception.
VIDEO: Petersen gets the game ball following defeat of North Polk
MORE: American Family Insurance ALL-USA homepage
Moses Reynolds, QB, Jay, San Antonio, Texas
Junior completed 15 of 26 passes for 297 yards and three touchdowns and ran 11 times for 278 yards and four TDs in a 66-45 defeat of Breckenridge (San Antonio) on Friday.
Ben Taylor, QB, Valley, Hazelton, Idaho,
Junior ran for 114 yards and three touchdowns and passed for 173 yards and four touchdowns in a 58-14 defeat of Castleford on Friday.
Jo Jo Wicker, DT, Long Beach Poly
Senior had six sacks in the No. 25 Jackrabbits’ 54-14 defeat of Crenshaw (Los Angeles) on Saturday.
Anthony Williams, cross country, South, Bloomington, Ind.
Senior won the Conference Indiana 5K meet Saturday with a time of 15 minutes, 47.1 seconds, to edge Columbus North (Columbus) senior Seth Williams, who finished in 15:52.2.