The Missouri Valley Football Conference has officially postponed its conference competition to the spring.
But Columbus native Brady Davis and the Illinois State Redbirds are continuing to practice anyway.
“I don’t know how long that will last with everything going on right now,” said Davis, Illinois State’s starting quarterback last season.
While the MVFC, a league that plays in the Football Championship Subdivision, won’t play conference games until the spring at the earliest, the league is allowing individual schools to pursue nonconference games, conceivably games against Power 5 competition that would net a substantial payout, should they choose.
“We’re still in training camp and whatnot, so it’s a really weird feeling in people’s minds,” Davis told The Dispatch. “People’s heads aren’t right, and they’re frustrated, as they should be. People are doing a lot of thinking … We’re still holding out hope for some college football.”
Thursday, Illinois State head coach Brock Spack called Davis and informed his signal caller the MVFC was examining three potential options, and none of them involved playing in the fall.
“Obviously when you hear that, your stomach sinks,” Davis said. “I really thought our conference might try and play conference games only this fall because I feel like if any FCS conference could, it was ours.”
On the field, Davis has always had a chip on his shoulder that developed after transferring from Memphis after spending three seasons with the Tigers.
“I was just looking for an opportunity to play,” he said. “Really, when I left Memphis, I was feeling really good. I thought I was doing really well, and I was looking for the highest level of competition. Some people were giving me advice to seek out Division II schools and just try and find a place to get on the field. I really wasn’t hearing it. I wanted to play at the best level I could, and transferring to FCS let me be eligible right away. I saw Illinois State as the best opportunity for me.”
Now a sixth-year senior, Davis said he still felt he had a lot to prove in his final collegiate season. In 11 games in 2019, Davis completed 52.3 percent of his passes, throwing for 1,570 yards and nine touchdown passes. The Redbirds were 8-3 with Davis at the helm, but in ISU’s home finale, the former Starkville High signal caller suffered a season-ending knee injury for the second time in his college career.
The Redbirds earned an FCS playoff berth, but Davis could only watch. ISU won two playoff games before falling 9-3 to eventual national champion North Dakota State in the FCS quarterfinals.
“That was definitely tough for me,” Davis said. “Not only did that happen to me, a lot of guys on the offensive side of the ball suffered a lot of injuries. It was really the last blow when you were like, ‘Wow, how bad can this get?'” We lost three receivers right away and lost a couple offensive linemen and our second-team running back. To have to watch and not lead the team like I was so used to doing was really tough. I really think we would have had a chance to get it back going through the air in the playoffs.”
Davis spent months rehabbing his knee, a process he called “a business-like approach.” For the first time in a year, he finally felt healthy and ready to put himself on tape in hopes of catching the attention of pro scouts. Then the news of the league moving to the spring hit.
“It’s crushing,” Davis said. “Especially for a guy like me that’s been around here for a long time. I’ve been a little ready to move on, really. It has my mind spinning and taking it day by day. I’m either going to have to hang around college even longer or try and find a different route to continue my pursuit of playing this game. It’s crazy to think of.”
Tuesday, the Big Ten and Pac-12 conferences canceled their fall seasons, postponing competition to the spring. College football pundits have doubted the viability of a spring season.
But should the FCS move forward with a spring schedule, Davis estimated he’d play for the Redbirds but would have to consult with his wife and family about the best move. A spring season with a short amount of recovery time for professional training camps is less than ideal to Davis, though.
“It’s gonna screw everybody up,” Davis said. “I know some FBS is hoping to play still. But it will be hard to try to go through the NFL and those camps and obviously remaining college players to turn around and play another season. It’s crazy, and it’s obviously never happened before. We’re just gonna have to see how it goes. But whatever it takes, I guess I am in for. It’ll be interesting to see the developments over the next few months.”
Hodge is the former sports editor for The Dispatch.
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