Florida Gators RB Malik Davis Putting Together Strong Fall Camp

Could 2020 be Florida Gators running back Malik Davis' bounce-back year?

After a year where the rust never seemed to truly shake off, 2020 looks to provide the bounce-back season for Florida Gators running back Malik Davis.

Davis' career got off to an electric start, when the Jesuit (Tampa, Fla.) product averaged 6.7 yards per rush on 79 attempts in seven games as a true freshman, before suffering a season-ending knee injury. He wouldn't make it through three games as a true sophomore before breaking his foot and missing the remainder of that campaign as well.

In 2019, Davis fell behind running backs Lamical Perine and Dameon Pierce and struggled to create much, tallying just 86 yards on 34 carries, scoring once. Perine is now in the NFL and out of the picture, while Florida returns Pierce and Davis, paired with Miami transfer Lorenzo Lingard, to split the workload at running back.

And through ten practices of fall camp, Davis appears to have finally shaken the rust off.

"I thought our backs ran the ball well," head coach Dan Mullen said on Saturday following the team's first scrimmage on Friday night. "I want to say, Malik Davis to me looked like the Malik Davis I saw when I got here before I became the head coach. I haven’t [seen] that in a couple years."

Saturday wasn't the first time Mullen had signed Davis out over the week, making note of his receiving skills on Tuesday, UF is tasked with replacing Perine's production in the passing game from a year ago, where he caught 40 passes for 262 yards and five touchdowns.

Davis is certainly a candidate to see some action on third downs and catch passes, running short routes and catching passes out of the backfield. With 16 receptions under his belt, Davis has averaged 8.3 yards per catch.

"We’re going to continue to utilize those guys in the pass game," Mullen made note of his running backs on Tuesday. "Malik Davis does a really good job of it as a route-runner and putting him in space."

When he took the field in 2019, Davis fell victim like the rest of UF's running backs to poor run blocking which resulted in Mullen leaning on the pass. The result: Florida owned the nation's No. 16 passing and No. 107 rushing offenses. On top of that, Davis struggled with ball security early on in the season, allowing Perine and Pierce to surge ahead on the depth chart.

But with Perine, the team's workhorse a year ago when all things are considered, now with the New York Jets, Davis is in a prime spot to bounce back and seize snaps. Perine was extremely balanced as a rusher and receiver, while Pierce is more of a power back, Davis an elusive back with receiving skills, and Lingard being a big-bodied speedster. Until one stands out in multiple phases of the game and emerges as a bell-cow, reps are for the taking and will be split, with Davis and Pierce gaining an early edge simply from experience in the system.

"This is year three for Malik in the offense," Mullen mentioned Saturday. "Year three for Pierce, year three, Iverson's [Clement] been kind of injured and not been out there yet, but year three for him, Nay'Quan [Wright] year two, and this is, he's [Lingard] at practice ten. So, mentally he's going to be a little bit behind those guys, but he runs the ball hard."

It was thought that 2019 could have been the season Davis re-emerged from his injury-plagued first two years on campus, but rather, it served as a year for Davis to get comfortable. Now approaching two years since his last injury and with a path towards meaningful snaps, Davis appears ready to shine.

"Boy," said Mullen, "he’s really back to where he wants to be."