Opinion: Here's Why NFL Teams Should Draft UCF DT Kalia Davis

NFL teams that pass on UCF defensive tackle Kalia Davis will wish they had not done so.

Brian Smith | Apr 19, 2022

Opinion: Here's Why NFL Teams Should Draft UCF DT Kalia Davis /

In this story:

UCF Knights

ORLANDO - Seeing is believing. When first launching Inside The Knights on June 1, 2021, I had already begun learning about the UCF Football roster. From those that had knowledge about the team that I spoke with, the player’s name that just kept coming up would be none other than Kalia Davis. There were some question marks, however.

Phrases like, “He’s been banged up” or “He sat out last year while COVID-19 was going on” were commonplace. Still, there was something else that was said over and over.

“The dude can play” or “He’s really talented” were also mentioned right along with the first couple of phrases. That’s where seeing is believing, and that's what I did. It just happened in an unusual way the first time I was really able to engage with him.

UCF’s 2021 media day was held at the Nicholson indoor practice facility. There was Davis, just chillin’ at his table, all smiles, ready to rock. He was even antsy, if one will. I noticed it before even heading over to interview him. Davis was chomping at the bit to just discuss football, let alone play it.

Once I went over to interview and shoot the breeze with him, it was refreshing. No rehearsed BS answers. Just straight up truth. He was a guy who told me about his details for working his craft of being a defensive lineman, what he liked about football, and how he just loved being around the guys on the team. Refreshing, and it was even more than that. There may not be a word in the English dictionary as to how awesome that was because reporters sift through garbage comments all the time during press conferences. Davis was just the opposite.

Kalia Davis, Defensive Tackle, UCF — Always ready to talk football, this is the happy-go-lucky Kalia Davis during UCF"s 2021 media day / Brian Smith, Inside The Knights

That type of honesty about himself and passion cannot be taught; that’s innate. Then, there’s watching Davis with pads on. Of course that’s the driving force behind why NFL teams actually select one player over another. Keep in mind, Davis plays one of the most impactful positions in football by way of defensive tackle, and he possesses one of the rarest skills for any position.

Pass rushing. It’s one thing to be an edge defender. Those guys are dudes, too, but interior pass rushers are the rarest of the rare. I get that and so do NFL scouts. It’s just a basic knowledge of math with interior pass rushers, as there’s not as much space to make plays. That’s where Davis will make his coin in the National Football League, and do so in a way most interior defensive lineman cannot.

UCF Defensive Tackle Kalia Davis knows how to get to the quarterback and create sacks and turnovers / Reinhold Matay, USA Today Sports

According to NFL.com, the following was listed as a “Strength” inside the Kalia Davis draft profile:

*Gets off the snap with menacing quickness.

*Explodes into blocker for early pocket push.

*Bendy and athletic for an interior defender.

All three of the above are exactly what NFL.com wrote, and quite frankly, each is correct. Allow me to expand on each comment a little bit.

First up, the comment about menacing quickness. There were plays during the 2021 season where it looked like Davis was the guy intended for the handoff or he was hanging out with the quarterback right after the shotgun snap. It was literally comical. He times the snap and gets rolling downhill “right now” and makes negative plays in the backfield for himself and his teammates.

Kalia Davis's quickness allowed him to penetrate and create havoc for the Knights / UCF Athletics

As for pocket push, Davis would sometimes shock an interior offensive lineman with get off and power. Considering he’s almost always going to win the leverage battle at 6’1”, it’s an advantage combined with placing both of Davis’s hands into the chest of an opposing player. In short, he would walk offensive lineman backwards. Even at the college level, that’s not normal. His quickness is the key, but he’s also very powerful at the point of initial contact. Davis was savvy enough to know to mix up his speed and power moves and it paid dividends when seeking out the quarterback.

Discussing his ability to bend and being an overall athlete is just fun. Davis is a big guy. Duly noted. He’s also one that has an unusual bend in his lower half which allows him to momentarily be blocked, yet shift away from the blocker by using his hips, legs, and overall quickness, and then still get after the signal caller after initially looking like he had no shot. Few edge defenders create quarterback pressures after losing the initial battle, and even fewer defensive tackles fit into that category. Davis is, without a doubt, one of those rare defensive tackles that can chase down a quarterback (or even a running back during outside zone).

Those points alone create a reason for NFL teams to draft the big man out of Pensacola (Fla.) West Florida Tech and UCF. When combining everything in the repertoire of Davis, it makes it even easier.

Fun and engaging, honest and intelligent, and a dude that gets after the signal caller. That’s an NFL defensive tackle.

Kalia Davis, somebody draft this dude.

Inside The Knights: YouTube - Facebook - Twitter - Spotify - Apple - Instagram

College Football Recruiting Coverage: YouTube - Facebook - Twitter