Terrell Davis

About Terrell Davis

Terrell Lamar Davis (born October 28, 1972 in San Diego, California) is a former American football running back who played for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League from 1995 to 2001. Davis was drafted by the Broncos in the sixth round (196th pick overall) of the 1995 NFL Draft. Davis is the Denver Broncos all-time leading rusher, with 7,607 rushing yards. When he played, he was often referred to as T.D., by players, fans and the media. The phrase, "T.D. for T.D.," was frequently used, as well (Davis' initials, T.D., are also an abbreviation for "touchdown").

Son of Joe and Kateree Davis, Terrell was the youngest of six children, (all boys) and grew up in San Diego, California. He picked up the game of football at the age of seven when he played for the local Pop Warner league. While there, he was a dominant force at running back, earning him the nickname "Boss Hogg". To earn money, Terrell was a paperboy and delivered the San Diego Union-Tribune from the age of five to his sophomore year of high school. Terrell didn't play football again until his junior year of high school after he transferred from Morse High School to Lincoln Prep (the same high school fellow Super Bowl MVP, Marcus Allen attended). As a junior, he was listed as a fourth string running back, and decided to play nose tackle to get playing time. In his senior year, the coaches gave him a chance at fullback, in a three back formation. He was also given playing time in other positions, including kicker, and helped lead his team to a 12-2 record. Terrell also set the Lincoln Prep record in the discus throw as a member of the track team. After graduation, Terrell went on to play football at Long Beach State University. His brother Reggie Webb was a tailback there before him, and he persuaded the school to grant Terrell a scholarship.

At Long Beach State, Davis joined the football team that was coached by former Washington Redskins coach George Allen. The coaches didn't think he was ready to play, so he was redshirted his freshman year in order to give him an extra year of eligibility. Davis never got to play a real game for coach Allen, because Allen died after the end of 1990 season. Davis played the following season and rushed for 262 yards on 55 carries. Long Beach State eliminated its football program due to budget concerns at the end of the 1991 season, ending in a dismal 2-9 record. Davis wanted to continue playing, so he needed to find another school to transfer to. The University of Georgia and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) encouraged Davis to join their teams. Davis' first choice was UCLA, but since they didn't offer him a scholarship, he chose Georgia. During his first season at Georgia, Davis played backup to Garrison Hearst, one of the leading rushers in college football and a candidate for the Heisman Trophy. After Hearst graduated, Davis became the top running back during the 1993 season, and rushed for 824 yards on 167 carries. Davis' senior season at Georgia got off to a rocky start when he aggravated a tear in his hamstring muscle against Tennessee early in the season, which took him out of the lineup for three games. Davis claims coach Ray Goff never liked him and forced him to practice while injured, which led to his torn hamstring. Davis ran for only 445 yards on 67 carries that year, but in his last two games, he rushed for 113 and 121 yards respectively. Those totals got him invited to the Blue-Gray Football Classic game, after another senior running back couldn't play. Davis' reputation for being injury-prone hurt his standing in the NFL draft, along with the fact that Coach Goff denied scouts game film of Davis.