Jeff Davis with Beetle Bailey, Past President Rotary Club of Lake Murray-Irmo
Representative Chip Huggins and I are pleased to announce that Clemson Ring of Honor/All-American/Hall-of-Famer Jeff Davis will be the keynote speaker at the 3rd Annual Irmo Community Prayer Breakfast on Thursday, September 25 beginning at 7:30 a.m. at Gateway Baptist Church.
We expect another full-house (200+) so please be sure to contact Elizabeth Donehue at 803-404-7992 or elizabeth@donehueagency.com to reserve your ticket ($8) or help sponsor the event (reserved table of 8 for $250).
Jeff Davis is in his fifth year as an Assistant Athletic Dirrector for Major Gifts. He currently is significantly involved in fundraising efforts for Clemson’s WestZone Club seating area at Death Valley in addition to involvement in other athletic department and university fundraising efforts. He also serves as the primary spokesman for Clemson’s Call Me Mister Program . Davis was an All-America linebacker from 1978-81 who captained the Tigers during their 1981 National Championship run and became a permanent fixture in Clemson football lore.
“The Judge” registered a then-Clemson record 175 tackles on the 1981 defense. That same season, he became just the third defensive player in ACC history to be named MVP of the league. And in the most important game in school history, Davis made 14 tackles as Clemson defeated Nebraska 22-15 in the 1982 Orange Bowl to claim its first national championship. He was named the Defensive Player-of-the-Game.
His collegiate accomplishments earned him numerous accolades. Davis was named to Clemson’s Centennial Team in 1996 and was named one of the top-five Tigers of the 20th century. In 1995, Davis received one of the school’s highest distinctions when he became the fourth member of the Clemson Ring of Honor. In 2002, he was named to the ACC’s 50-Year Anniversary team. In 2008, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.
Davis has made a name for himself outside of the Clemson community. A fifth-round draft choice by Tampa Bay in 1982, he played six productive seasons in the NFL. During his time as a professional, Davis also completed his remaining coursework and graduated from Clemson in 1984.
In 1999, he returned to the University as field director of the Call Me Mister program within the Department of Education, Health, and Human Development. Call Me Mister seeks to recruit, train, certify, and secure employment for African American males as elementary teachers in South Carolina’s public schools. In 2001, Davis received a $100,000 award for the program from Oprah Winfrey’s “Angel Network.”
Davis is also president of Goal Line Stand, an organization that supports young people and adults as they seek to remain committed to values that shape and govern their lives. An ordained pastor, Davis lives in Clemson with his wife Joni and their six children.