Game Program Feature: Davon Grayson
September 30, 2014 | Football
Originally printed Sept. 20, 2014 in the First and Goal football game program
By Tyler Wallace,
ECU Media Relations Student Assistant
Imagine you are an 18-year-old college freshman playing in one of the most prolific offenses in the country. You start the first six games of your career and haul in four touchdowns, and then suddenly it all comes crashing down.
For sophomore outside receiver Davon Grayson, he knows that scenario all to well. Last season the Pirates were in New Orleans taking on conference foe Tulane when Grayson was lost for the season with a left knee injury. He had 18 catches with 176 yards in addition to four touchdowns before going down.
"I feel like God took me to a high point and a low point," Grayson said. "My high point was, of course, the first game. Then the second game was the day I turned 18 and I scored in that game too. Then going into UNC and going out there and doing everything that we did. Then it all went away in one play."
Despite the injury, Grayson was never the one to feel bad for himself. The Kings Fork High School product went through a similar situation his senior year and was lost for the season with an elbow injury.
"I refused to just sit here and think here we go again because I know how hard I worked to get to this point," Grayson said. "God has showed me how much I can accomplish. I have had flashes of greatness and flashes of defeat. I just have learned how to bounce back."
ECU Offensive Coordinator Lincoln Riley saw Grayson fall for the 2013 season but knew the minute it occurred that he would be back and better the 2014 season.
"Adversity does not affect him a whole lot," Riley said. "He has had adversity his whole life like a lot of these guys have, but he was able to push through it. It was a tough injury last year because he was playing well and he was a big part of what we were doing," said Riley.
"He's worked really hard to bounce back and is dedicated to it. He has done a great job through the rehab process. You see guys that are a little hesitant after that but we haven't seen that at all."
Grayson knows that this is a new year and his rehab is behind him but he was a guy who was able to work ahead of schedule and continue to improve going into spring practice. He was marked as one of the top performers in the strength and conditioning program during the spring and his expectations following the superb spring showing is farthest from selfish.
"My expectations are honestly just do whatever it takes to help my team succeed," Grayson stated. "I know that I am going to go out there and work as hard as I can. If the ball is thrown my way I am going to do everything I can to come down with that ball regardless of the circumstances."
With a team mindset, Grayson has not shied away from the challenge of being a leader and continues to embrace it as part of his expectations for the season.
"I want to mature as someone who can lead this team and not just someone that can make big plays, but of course I am going to do that when I get those chances too but I believe that to be a good player you have to do the same things on the field that you do off the field."
Faith is also a large aspect of the young receiver's life and the experience that Grayson has had will stay with him for anything thrown his way in life.
"God just showed me that regardless of how high you get you can never get too high with the highs and never too low with the lows," said Grayson. "I have matured and I am prepared for whatever God throws my way."
