Highlights & Evaluation: Louisville DE Commit Maurice Davis

Louisville Report breaks down 2024 Louisville football defensive end commit Maurice Davis.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville football program is continuing to bolster their defensive line for next season, as Maurice Davis has committed to the Cardinals.

Here is Louisville Report's full evaluation:

Prospect: Maurice Davis
Position: Defensive End
Measurables: 6-foot-5, 210 pounds
School: Albany (Ga.) Dougherty
Top Offers: Colorado, Georgia Tech, Houston, Purdue, Ole Miss, Texas A&M
247Sports Composite Rating (Nat'l Rank): 0.8683 (918th)

Maurice Davis' Senior Year Highlights: HERE (Hudl)

Frame: Davis has a very good base frame, and one that has a good amount of length for an edge rusher. While he does have solid muscle tone in his upper body, his overall frame is actually relatively lanky, and he has plenty of room to potentially as up to 15-20 pounds of weight/muscle.

Athleticism: Even with a somewhat lanky frame, Davis knows how to use it to his advantage. He's got good open field speed, and good to great burst off of the line of scrimmage. North-south movement is pretty good, but his lateral agility could use a little bit of work.

Instincts: As you can imagine, Davis is your prototypical speed rusher. He's got an above average first step off the line that makes it difficult to counter for, and he's got good closing speed on the ballcarrier. On top of that, Davis plays relentlessly, as he is adept at using his hands and arms to create leverage and shed off of blockers fairly quickly, even on double teams. An underrated trait of his is that he is good at reading the play as it unfolds. He can diagnose read options and screens to make the right decision as to who to attack, and is also a factor in batting down passes while in passing lanes. 

Polish: A majority of the time, Davis lines up in a three point stance with his hand in the dirt, but he has also been know to be a standing pass rusher on the line of scrimmage, or even one to drop back as a true linebacker. He primarily uses speed to get around offensive tackles, but does need to work a bit on dipping low underneath the tackle on rushes and his overall bend. Davis sometimes overshoots his target, but is typically sure-handed when wrapping up from behind. Davis is also a near sure-fire tackler in open space.

Bottom Line: Overall, this is a good pickup for Louisville. He will certainly need to bulk up some and could benefit from some coaching to perfect his craft, but he gives the Cardinals some very real potential as an edge rusher. He will likely start being a regular contributor by his sophomore season.

(Photo of Maurice Davis via Instagram)

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