MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Before raw-and-talented Fontez Davis played his first snap at Butler (Kan.) Community College last season, coaches from West Virginia made their interest known.
When Davis produced a strong redshirt freshman season, the Mountaineers became frontrunners to signing him. Now, as a late-spring addition, he may factor into the 2017 competition at cornerback.
“Football-wise I don’t know how good this kid can be, and I’m not sure he understands how good he can be,” said his junior college coach Tim Schaffner.
Growing up in Edwardsville, Ill., on the outskirts of crime-riddled East St. Louis, Davis became a football and track standout. His stint at junior college saw him improve academically — Davis is on pace to enroll at WVU in May— and delve into the fundamentals of playing defensive back.
“He didn’t have a whole lot of structure in high school, so he played both ways, didn’t have a lot of technique, and he spent his redshirt freshman year with us just kind of learning how to play DB skill-wise,” Schaffner said.
“So his upside is phenomenal. The ceiling for him is I don’t know where.”
The Gold & Blue Lunch Report hears from Schaffner and evaluates the wide-open position battles at cornerback for West Virginia this spring.