The Sensational Express: Ernie Davis

There are some people that the world only has for a short precious time, but it is what they do with that time that makes a difference in the world, and they are remembered many years after the jounrey has ended. Ernie Davis from Syracuse is one of the people from this category.

Ernie Davis was a true trailblazer for future gridiron players. The late 1950’s and early 1960’s were not the easiest of times for a young African-American man to accomplish much of anything easily no matter how much talent they possessed, and Davis’ talent was unparalleled save for his childhood idol, Jim Brown.

In the Pigskin Dispatch Football History Headlines for December 14 we find the birthday bio headline for one Ernest Davis.

December 14, 1939 - New Salem Pennsylvania - Ernie Davis the standout Syracuse halfback was born. Ernie, led the University of Syracuse to a national championship in 1959.  There is an awesome movie from 2008 about the trials and tribulations that Mr. Davis had to go through in his collegiate life, The Express: The Ernie Davis Story. The film stars Rob Brown, Dennis Quaid, Clancy Brown, Darrin Dewitt Henson and even a brief appearance by the late Chadwick Boseman. It is an emotional piece that has a lot of historical truth and I think it is fairly accurate to who this young man was.

Sports-Reference.com shares Ernie’s statistics earlier in his college career. In 1959 as a sophomore, Davis held 7.0 rushing yards per attempt as he reached 686 yards on the ground and caught 11 passes to tack on another 94 yards for a grand total of 780 all yards from scrimmage. As a Junior he raised his yards from scrimmage to 1018 yards while carrying at 7.8 yards per clip and scoring a total of 10 touchdowns. Ernie Davis was the top player in the nation in 1961 as he rushed for 823 yards as a senior and scored 15 touchdowns while leading Syracuse in pass receiving with 16 catches for 157 yards. Ernie Davis became the first African-American player to win the Heisman but he was also the first black player to be drafted with the top pick in the NFL Draft!

Unfortunately shortly after signing a life changing contract with the Browns, Ernie came down with Leukemia and was not able to live out his professional dream. We lost the great Ernie Davis at the young age of just 23. 

It is a tragedy when we lose anyone to such a deadly circumstance but especially a young person with so much to live for. Ernie’s story is a reminder of just how precious life is. We all have just a few blips on the timeline of life, so like Ernie Davis we need to make the count for something. Davis made his count by performing with gridiron talents even in the most hostile of racial circumstances because they opened up doors to those who came after him. Things are not perfect in this era by any means, but as we continue to have strong role models like Ernie Davis who bravely face the challenges of society we can hopefully continue to get to a better place in the realm of football and in the world itself. That is why we choose Ernie Davis as one of our Inspiration Sensations!

As a tribute to the great athletic accomplishments of the player, the National Football Foundation selected Ernie Davis to become a member posthumously of the College Football Hall of Fame in 1979.