Ernest Davis

Ernie Davis, the first African American to win the Heisman trophy, and to be first NFL draft pick. Based on the findings of Ernest Davis it can be argued that Ernest is a dedicated man who cares about his athletics and his teammates. "Given to the care of his maternal grandparents when he was 14 months old, money was tight in their Uniontown, Pennsylvania, household, and Davis went to live with his mother and stepfather in Elmira, New York, when he was 12, and soon proved an athletic prodigy."(Ernie Davis Biography) Dedicated it means to be fully committed to something. Optimistic means to take a favorable view of events or conditions and to expect the most favorable outcome. Yet even when Ernest Davis was under heavy discrimination he still showed those traits. Ernie Davis is a man who possessed traits of optimism and commitment and those two words are the reason why he is a hero.

Davis was so committed to football that he showed 100% effort when he was the only African American on the team. "A man of firsts, Davis was the first African-American man to win the Heisman Trophy and in 1962, the first African-American player to be picked first overall in the NFL draft". (Ernie Davis Biography) Ernest Davis was a relentless player on the football field so he could receive respect from his college team mates and it showed how even African Americans can be as good as or even better than white athletes. Even though he was African American, Davis was able to overcome all of the racial profiling and become the first black to receive the Heisman trophy. Davis didn't only play football, he played multiple sports throughout high school and lettered in all and was heavily recruited in each sport that he played but he chose football because it was his first love. "He played baseball, basketball and football at Elmira Free Academy, earning high school All-American honors in the latter two sports."(Ernie Davis Biography) Davis in high school career proved that he was an athletic prodigy by leading his high school to victory in every sport he played. When Ernest Davis led his high school on a 52 win streak in basketball he felt that it was his main sport but he stuck with football because it was he favored it more. Davis was committed to his sports and because of this huge commitment to sports he went to college and won the Heisman trophy.

Ernest Davis's optimism took him from having practically nothing to having everything the day he set foot on the football field. Ernest grew up without a mother or father in his life but that didn't hold him back from becoming a national sports hero. "Davis never knew his father, who died shortly after he was born, and was given to the care of his maternal grandparents when he was 14 months old and Davis suffered from a bad stuttering problem."(Ernie Davis Biography) Stuttering was probably one of his hardest obstacles going through life but his optimism got him through it along with all of the racism he suffered. An issue that could have held him back but didn't was not having a dad. A dad's purpose is to help his son become a man but not having a dad there to help him grow up to become a man was an experience he had to teach himself. Ernest Davis's optimism and personality rubbed off onto his white teammates and it inspired them to rebel against racial profiling. "Davis was told by organizers that he would be allowed to accept his award at the post-game banquet, and would immediately have to leave the segregated facility. Davis refused to receive the award, and his entire team agreed to boycott the banquet."(Ernie Davis Biography) Seeing how Davis was black he was excluded from most of his award ceremonies, so his team who has been with him since day one on the football team stuck up for him and would want the ceremony to be held elsewhere. Davis's optimism led the team to believe that he was a man worth sticking up for and think that maybe all African Americans are like him. Ernest Davis was a man of optimism and it led to others following his steps.

Davis has proved that he anyone can overcome difficulties by achieving the Heisman trophy when he started from having nothing. I believe that Ernest Davis is an inspiration to others because he started out with nothing and pushed through all the racism, yet he still was optimistic and committed so it led him to the top. Davis is an inspiration to others because he was the first African American to win the Heisman trophy and was the first African American to be first NFL draft pick. Through the hardships that Ernest Davis faced he was still dedicated and optimistic about his every move through the battle of life.

Works cited

"Davis Won Heisman, Respect." ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures, 1961. Web. 08 May 2014. http://espn.go.com/classic/biography/s/davis_ernie.html.

"Ernest R. Davis." 2014. The Biography.com website. May 05 2014 http://www.biography.com/people/ernie-davis-9267805.   

"Ernie Davis' Legacy Lives on Long after His Death." NFL.com. Steve Wyche, 3 Aug. 2012. Web. 08 May 2014. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d80b75df1/article/ernie-    davis-legacy-   lives-on-long-after-his-death.

"How 'The Express' Fumbled Real Ernie Davis Story." The Post-Standard. Brian Cubbison, 17 Oct. 2008. Web. 08 May 2014. http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2008/10/how_the_express_fumbled_the_re.html.

The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ernie Davis (American Football Player)."Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, 2014. Web. 08 May 2014. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1474004/Ernie-Davis.

The My Hero Project - Ernest Davis." Myhero.com. Andrew from Eden Prarie, 2010. Web. 09 May 2014.