{"id":172595,"date":"2021-05-12T07:14:01","date_gmt":"2021-05-12T11:14:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=172595"},"modified":"2021-05-07T16:37:05","modified_gmt":"2021-05-07T20:37:05","slug":"uconn-graduate-lives-out-nfl-dreams-in-a-covid-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2021\/05\/uconn-graduate-lives-out-nfl-dreams-in-a-covid-world\/","title":{"rendered":"UConn Graduate Lives Out NFL Dreams In a COVID World"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Playing in the National Football League had been a lifelong dream for Tyler Davis \u201919 (CAHNR) since growing up on Long Island in Bellmore, N.Y.<\/p>\n<p>The reality that he had fulfilled that journey as a rookie tight end for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2020 became clear in one particular moment for Davis.<\/p>\n<p>It was the fifth week of the season, and Davis and the Jags broke the huddle for another play against the Houston Texans.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI came up to the ball and put my head down like I always do,\u201d says Davis. \u201cThen I look up to see who is across from me and see what I am dealing with, and it\u2019s J.J. Watt. This guy is one of the faces of the league and I\u2019ve been watching him on TV for years.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Playing against the three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year (now of the Arizona Cardinals) is just one of the many special moments Davis has enjoyed in the game.<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"UConn Grad Tyler Davis, On His NFL Debut and Playing During Time of COVID\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/jW16LjdI4H0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>He originally came to UConn as a 17-year-old quarterback in the spring of 2014 after graduating early from Mepham High School. Davis transitioned to the tight end spot for the 2016 season and had six touchdown receptions in 2018.<\/p>\n<p>After earning his undergraduate degree in agriculture resource economics, he also took graduate classes at UConn in financial risk management in the School of Business.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe program was definitely something I had an interest for and was able to learn some valuable lessons,\u201d says Davis.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_172601\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-172601\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-172601 img-responsive lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Tyler-Davis-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"a footblal player\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Tyler-Davis-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Tyler-Davis-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Tyler-Davis-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Tyler-Davis-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Tyler-Davis-630x354.jpg 630w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Tyler-Davis-1182x665.jpg 1182w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Tyler-Davis.jpg 1920w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/169;\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-172601\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Tyler Davis &#8217;19 (CAHNR) earned his undergraduate degree from UConn in agriculture resource economics.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>One of the strongest influences at UConn for Davis was strength and conditioning coach Matt Balis, who now holds a similar position at Notre Dame.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Matt Balis way was to attack everything you do with a full effort,\u201d says Davis. \u201cThat mindset is still with me today. He taught me to give great effort in football, but also to do the same things in relationships and every part of your life no matter what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis also remains close with freshman roommate and former UConn teammate Luke Carrezola \u201917 (CLAS), who is now a defensive graduate assistant coach with the Huskies.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am really happy for Luke, he loves UConn through and through,\u201d says Davis. \u201cThe players at UConn should be thankful he is there. He knows what it takes every day and is a great example for them. If you want the blueprint, Luke will take you along and show you all the right ways to be successful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis wound up playing the 2019 season as a graduate student at Georgia Tech and then it was time to begin pursue his NFL aspirations. It was also the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>He went out to train in California in early 2000, but failed to get in invitation to the NFL Combine, the annual audition for college players to perform in front of pro coaches and general managers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat bummed me out, because it was something I had bene looking forward to, and I thought I was an athletic type of guy who would do well there,\u201d says Davis.<\/p>\n<p>He was, however, able to show off his skills at Georgia Tech\u2019s pro testing day, one of the last ones held before the whole country shut down to in-person events due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was able to have a lot of visits with teams before the draft, all of it virtual,\u201d says Davis. \u201cI was able to explain my football knowledge and the adversities I had been through. I talked to multiple head coaches, multiple assistant coaches, and I had a feeling I was headed in the right direction.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_172598\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-172598\" style=\"width: 200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-172598 img-responsive lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TylerDavis__-200x300.jpg\" alt=\"a football player\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TylerDavis__-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TylerDavis__-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TylerDavis__-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TylerDavis__-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TylerDavis__-1366x2048.jpg 1366w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TylerDavis__-280x420.jpg 280w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TylerDavis__-443x665.jpg 443w, https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/TylerDavis__.jpg 1443w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 200px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 200\/300;\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-172598\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><em>Tyler Davis was a sixth-round pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2020 NFL Draft. (Jacksonville Jaguars photo)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The 2020 NFL Draft was an all-virtual event and Davis was thinking he would be picked in the later rounds on the third day.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was home with just my family watching it on TV,\u201d says Davis. \u201cIt was in the prime of COVID, and New York was being hit really hard. My parents really didn\u2019t want anyone else around.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis\u2019 best friend from childhood, Chenzo Worgul, knew he had to be nearby for the special day and sat outside on the family lawn.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe pulled up the blinds and gave him updates,\u201d says Davis.<\/p>\n<p>Davis was selected in the sixth round by Jacksonville and soon after that, the front yard was filled with neighbors and friends to celebrate in COVID-safe style.<\/p>\n<p>Everything was different because of COVID, and the Jaguars even shipped weight and training equipment to Davis\u2019 house to stay in shape.<\/p>\n<p>When training camp finally began in the late summer, it was all done with safety in mind: team meetings by Zoom, constant testing, and sitting far apart at meals.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI love the brotherhood of a training camp,\u201d says Davis. \u201cIt\u2019s part of what makes football great. Spending 12 hours a day with each other, working hard, having meals, catching a movie. It was all different. When you are screaming at someone 12 feet away at dinner, you don\u2019t get the same personal experience.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Davis and his teammates went through COVID testing every day from July 21 until January, even on days when there weren\u2019t any other team activities.<\/p>\n<p>He ended his rookie year having seen action in eight games as both tight end and special teams. He is looking forward to his second year in the league based on the experience he picked up in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t play as well as I wanted to and I could come up with a million excuses, but that is how the NFL is,\u201d says Davis. \u201cYou are evaluated every day in the NFL and I like that. Competition brings out the best in everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tyler Davis \u201919 (CAHNR) went from Storrs to the Jacksonville Jaguars despite the challenges of the pandemic<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":123,"featured_media":172599,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[147,1712,2224,2235],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2113],"class_list":["post-172595","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni","category-athletics","category-cahnr","category-today-homepage"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-09 20:38:54","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172595","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/123"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=172595"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172595\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":172678,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/172595\/revisions\/172678"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/172599"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=172595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=172595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=172595"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=172595"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=172595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}