Grove: “Did you play sports growing up?”
Davis: “I played soccer from the age of five up until my sophomore year of college. My mom got me involved in sports at a young age. I also had hoop dreams from a childhood age. I actually grew up in the same neighborhood as Latrell Spreewell.”
Grove: “What drew you to soccer?"
Davis: “I loved the job as a goalie. I liked the attention and the control that came with it of being able to save the game. When I was little, I was a bit chunky and the kids could run right around me when I was a defender and score easily. So since I also played baseball, catching things was easy to me. They ended up putting me in goal and I really enjoyed it.”
Grove: “Did you play soccer in college?”
Davis: “I played soccer at the University of Cincinnati as a freshman and then transferred to Wisconsin as a sophomore, but got hurt very early my sophomore year. I still ended up graduating from Wisconsin in 2001.”
Grove: “How did you get into coaching?”
Davis: “I was a special education teacher in Milwaukee, and the principal came up to me and said they needed a head coach for girls soccer. I had never really considered coaching, but I fell in love with it and within two years I was an assistant coach at George Washington University.”
Grove: “How did you end up at WSU?”
Davis: “Greg Andrulis (WSU Head Coach from 1985-1996) recommended I apply for the job when it opened up and the more I looked into it, the more interest I had. I’m a big city guy and I remember when I got off the plane at the Dayton airport for my interview I was surrounded by cornfields and I thought ‘Where am I?’ But the more I saw, the more I realized what a special place Wright State is and I knew I had to have the job.”
Grove: “What are your favorite experiences at WSU?”
Davis: “Well, there are three areas. First the team, and that was making our first Horizon League championship game in program history last season. Second, the day-to-day operations, and that would be the amazing people in the athletic department along with President Hopkins and Dr. Abrahamowicz, who are awesome supporters of the soccer program. Third is the students. I’ve made some great connections with Greek life here at WSU, and the students in general are awesome. It’s been a blast building those relationships.”
Grove: “What do you enjoy the most about your job?”
Davis: “These guys. It’s their program and they make my job easy. I get to guide them and I really enjoy that.”
Grove: “What are your goals?”
Davis: “I have one focus and that’s to become a Horizon League champion. That’s it. I want to make WSU the soccer program. People assume that just because this is a mid-major job, that this is a pit stop before heading to a bigger name program. But this place has become my home and I want to make this place great. I want to reach out to the student organizations on campus and really leave a stamp on this campus.”
Grove: “What message do you have to students in general at WSU?”
Davis: “Get involved. In any way you can, whether that’s a sport or whatever you enjoy. This school is only about 45-years-old, so every kid at this school is a pioneer of tradition. The things we create will carry on long after we’re gone.”
