Russell Davis

Russell Davis, III (born September 15, 1956) is a former American football player.

Davis was born in Millen, Georgia, in 1956.

He began high school at Hayfield High School in Fairfax County, Virginia, but transferred prior to his junior year to Woodbridge High School in Woodbridge, Virginia.

At the start of his junior year, Davis had never played football.

Woodbridge's football coach spotted the 6 feet 2, 215 pound track athlete and suggested he try out for the football team.

He was an immediate success as a football player.

In two years at Woodbridge, he played running back and rushed for 3,399 yards, averaging 9.1 yards per carry.

Davis was one of the most heavily recruited high school football players in Northern Virginia history, with more than 270 scholarship offers, including offers from USC, Alabama, Tennessee, Maryland, North Carolina and Georgia Tech, among others.

Davis played college football, principally as a fullback, at the University of Michigan from 1975 to 1978.

In February 1975, he committed to the University of Michigan.

Davis enrolled at the University of Michigan in the fall of 1975 and played college football for head coach Bo Schembechler's Michigan Wolverines football teams from 1975 to 1978.

As a true freshman, Davis was a backup tailback behind Gordon Bell on the 1975 Michigan Wolverines football team.

Davis carried the ball 40 times for 178 rushing yards and two touchdowns and caught two passes for 21 yards in 1975.

As a sophomore, Davis was moved to the fullback position.

He started three games at fullback (Rob Lytle started the other nine) for the 1976 Michigan team that compiled a 10-2 record, outscored opponents 432-95, and finished the season ranked #3 in the final AP Poll.

On 105 carries, Davis rushed for 596 yards, five touchdowns, and a career-high 5.7 yards per carry.

On September 18, 1976, in a 51-0 victory over Stanford, Davis was one of three Michigan backs who each gained over 100 rushing yards, as Harlan Huckleby gained 157 yards, Davis gained 116 and Rob Lytle added 100 yards.

After rushing for 1,092 yards as a junior, he was selected as the Most Valuable Player on the 1977 Michigan Wolverines football team that won the Big Ten Conference championship.

Davis had his best season as a junior in 1977.

He started all 12 games at fullback and totaled 1,092 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 225 carries.

He also caught 15 passes for 174 yards and a touchdown.

Davis was selected as the Most Valuable Player on the 1977 Michigan team that compiled a 10-2 record, tied for the Big Ten championship, and finished the season ranked #9 in the final AP Poll.

As a senior, he was a co-captain of the 1978 Michigan team and a first-team All-Big Ten running back.

In four years at Michigan, he carried the ball 523 times for 2,560 yards and 18 touchdowns.

In the 1978 Rose Bowl loss to Washington Huskies football, Davis had 79 rushing yards, 26 receiving yards and a touchdown.

As a senior, Davis was selected co-captain of the 1978 Michigan team that again compiled a 10-2 record, repeated as Big Ten co-champions, and finished the season ranked #5 in the final AP Poll.

Davis started all 12 games at fullback and rushed for 683 yards on 153 carries.

At the end of the 1978 season, he was selected by the conference coaches as a first-team running back on the 1978 All-Big Ten team.

He had five games in which he rushed for at least 100 yards, including a career-high 134 yards against Purdue in 1978.

He played in the 1979 East–West Shrine Game and set Shrine Game records with six touchdowns and 199 rushing yards.

Davis played professional football as a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1979 to 1983.

He appeared in 42 games for the Steelers, only two as a starter, and totaled 472 rushing yards, 168 yards on kickoff returns, and 45 receiving yards.

In January 1979, Davis played in the East–West Shrine Game in Palo Alto, California, and rushed for 199 yards scored six touchdowns, including five touchdowns in the second half, as the East team defeated the West team by a 56-17 score.

Davis set Shrine Game records both with his six touchdowns and his 199 rushing yards.

After the game, Davis said, "I'm going home and rest . . . I'll sit back and watch the rest of them (games) on TV."

In four years at Michigan, Davis played in three Rose Bowl games, carried the ball 523 times and totaled of 2,550 rushing yards (4.9 yards per carry) and 18 rushing touchdowns.

Davis was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fourth round (86th overall pick) of the 1979 NFL Draft.

Due to a broken arm, he missed the entire 1979 Pittsburgh Steelers season in which the team won Super Bowl XIV.

In 1980, Davis appeared in 14 games for the Steelers, including two games as the team's starting running back.

He carried the ball 33 times for 132 yards and a touchdown in 1980.