Knile Davis 2011 Heisman Candidate? He's played like one.
When the season began Razorback fans were excited about the Heisman chatter and potential of Ryan Mallett. While Mallett has had a good season, you could argue that its been Knile Davis that has made the Hogs six game winning streak possible. The run game was under performing the first six games of the season and the Razorbacks had yet to have a 100yd rusher in any game up to that point.
Then October 23rd against Ole Miss, Knile Davis decided to take over and become a one-man running game for the Hogs. In the last six games, Davis has had five 100yd games, scored a td in all six games and scored multiple touchdowns in four of those games. He’s been a machine to say the least. Davis has brought stability to the Arkansas backfield and has given Arkansas a well rounded offense. Because of his exceptional play, the Razorbacks are in the driver’s seat for what appears to be a Sugar Bowl bid.
After the LSU game I started thinking about how well Knile has played recently and was curious how he stacks up against Heisman contender LaMichael James. I reviewed their stats for the last six games and was pleasantly surprised.
| Since Early/Mid Oct | -GP | - Att | - Rush Yds | - Rush Avg | - TD - |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knile Davis | 6 | 134 | 889 | 6.6 | 12 |
| LaMichael James | 6 | 164 | 836 | 5.1 | 12 |
Not only does Knile Davis hold his own against the top rated running back in the nation, he actually has better numbers. If Davis can continue performing at this high level during the Hogs bowl game, he could possibly be a Heisman contender next year.
- Jacob -
Posted by Illegal Shift on December 1, 2010 at 10:30 am
I expect that the 2011 Pre-season Heisman Top 10 list will look something like this, quite possibly in a slightly different order:
1. Denard Robinson (assuming RIch Rod is retained)
2. Terrelle Pryor
3. LaMichael James
4. Trent Richardson
5. Landry Jones
6. Justin Blackmon
7. Marcus Lattimore
8. Taylor Martinez
9. Knile Davis
10. Matt Barkley
^cw
Posted by chance cundiff on August 3, 2011 at 6:48 pm
Knile is better than all of thes guys
Posted by richi on August 8, 2011 at 7:07 am
Sorry man but K
niles cant stack up to Lattimore.
Posted by illegalshift on August 11, 2011 at 1:28 pm
Their stats stack up pretty well to each other.
Davis
2010 : 204 (carries) 1322 (yards) 6.5 (avg) 71 (long) 13(touchdowns)
Lattimore
2010 : 249 (carries) 1197 (yards)4.8 (avg) 58 (long)17 (touchdowns)
Posted by Spencer_Mcnelly on December 1, 2010 at 2:15 pm
If Ryan doesn't leave ( which i expect he will ) he will be at the top of this list as well.
Posted by Brenden on December 1, 2010 at 3:33 pm
I'm not sure Pryor will be that high on any pre-season Heisman lists. It seems that voters have kind of passed on giving him an actual shot at the trophy this season, and for good reason. I think it's become too clear that his stats are bloated by a weak schedule and that while he may be very good at what he does, he is not "great." So unless he significantly ups his game next season, I don't think he has much of a shot. I think "more of the same" won't do much for the voters who already don't believe.
Honestly, I would see it panning out like this (in no particular order):
Denard Robinson
LaMichael James
Landry Jones
Knile Davis
Justin Blackmon
and then Richardson, Lattimore, Martinez, and Barkley as the "Dark Horses." Obviously, who knows how the season will turn out, but preseason that would make sense.
(If you're wondering why I would put Knile over Lattimore and Richardson in the SEC, it's not just talent; perception-wise, I think Knile has turned the corner as far as getting national respect. Chris Low just named him the SEC's surprise player of the year, which contained 3 other players on the list. Two of them were from SC, and neither were Lattimore. Richardson also didn't make the cut. I think Arkansas will be predicted to do better than SC next season, helping his chances, and Alabama will be again decimated by players leaving, so they're a huge question mark, especially given how little (all things considered) Richardson has actually been able to produce this year with Ingram still playing.)
Just my opinion. Great article though, I love seeing Knile's stats compared to other backs. I also love that he had a better year than Ingram, with fewer games to do it.
Posted by Brenden on December 1, 2010 at 3:34 pm
^I did mean to include Pryor on my list, I just don't believe he'll be too much of a front runner.
Posted by Warzecha on December 2, 2010 at 7:27 am
I agree that he won't win it for lack of being as great as he could/should be, but I would just about guarantee he'll be getting more preseason love than Knile. Right or wrong, he'll be a Senior QB on a Top 5 team. That's the way baseball go…
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