Clemson football: 5 most underrated players in Clemson Tigers history

James Davis was a star running back under Tommy Bowden.

The mid-to-late 2000s were an interesting time for Clemson football. The football program became a bit also-ran under head coach Tommy Bowden. While the Tigers never had a losing season, they never won an ACC Championship during his time as the head coach. One of the last great Clemson players to play for him was running back James Davis.

Davis was an immediate impact player for the Tigers. As a freshman in 2005, he rushed for 879 yards on nine touchdowns in 11 games. He was named ACC Rookie of the Year. Davis backed that fantastic freshman campaign up with a pair of First-Team All-ACC seasons as a sophomore and junior in 2006 and 2007.

Davis rushed for 1,187 yards on 203 carries for 17 touchdowns as a sophomore. During his junior season in 2007, Davis had 1,064 rushing yards on 214 carries for 10 touchdowns. He opted to come back for his senior season but dealt with injuries in the spring that kept him under 1,000 rushing yards in 2008. Still, Davis became the first Tiger to lead his team in rushing all four years.

He would be sixth-round pick by the Cleveland Browns in the 2009 NFL Draft. Davis played on four teams in three years in the NFL. At Clemson, he rushed for 3,881 yards on 753 carries for 47 touchdowns. He ranks in the top-three all-time in Clemson football history in all three major rushing statistical categories.