Auburn sent two players on the defensive side of the ball to the Reese’s Senior Bowl on Saturday, with Deshaun Davis and Dontavius Russell representing the South team.
The Senior Bowl is set up to showcase college football seniors in a final game before they prepare for the upcoming NFL Draft. The game is held annually in the final weekend of January at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama.
The South team entered riding a three-game win streak in the bowl, and Davis and Russell hoped to extend that streak.
Davis entered the game on the second defensive series for team South, and played well for the team He ended the game tied for the lead with eight tackles, three of them solo tackles. His play helped contribute to limiting team North to only three points in the first half.
The game was held near Davis’s hometown of Prichard, Alabama. Davis was awarded with a key to the city of his hometown earlier this week. Many of Davis’s friends and family sat in the stands during the game.
"It was special for me being able to turn around to see all those guys in one big section, and I was just trying to enjoy the moment," Davis said after the game. "My last time being able to play football in the state of Alabama.”
Russell finished the game with four tackles, and two of them solo. He put on a display of his pursuit and hustle, forcing a fumble with under a minute left in the first half for team South, stopping a driving North team. The turnover allowed South to kick a field goal at the end of the first half. Russell had the only forced turnover for South.
As Davis and Russell prepare for the NFL draft, the pair hopes their draft stock among NFL teams will rise. Both players are projected to be late-round draft picks.
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