First off, what have you been up to since the NFL?
After that last season in Pittsburgh ended in 1990, I went to Canada and played for a year with Winnipeg. I had an injury since college that affected me throughout my time playing. I was only 25 and had a lot left in the tank but my hamstring injury just wouldn’t go away. As a running back and speed guy, that’s your bread and butter. It was frustrating having to stop.
It was disturbing to me – it challenged me spiritually and mentally. I signed with the London Monarchs of the WFL – that was a great opportunity for players needing another chance. But my injury never healed – each pull got worse.
How did you handle that?
It was hard to put it all in the back mirror – it was like a relationship that you have to move on from. I had just gotten married, and a close buddy and teammate of mine, Darryl Usher, was murdered then too. His girlfriend had an old boyfriend who couldn’t let go and barged into their home when they were having dinner and shot him six times, then killed her and himself. It was a tragic story.
So after all of that, the transition was just very difficult. I played Pop Warner since I was a kid, so for the first time in 20 years I had to do something I hadn’t done before – not play football.
I was struggling in my marriage, with finances, and emotionally. At some point it felt like life was not worth living. I decided I had no value. Then one night in my sleep I had a visitor – it was a spiritual moment.
How did that impact you?
I wanted to live again. But I had to collect all the pieces that were broken. I was broken as a person. My faith and self-esteem – they were all lost. I had to rebuild.
I began that walk of faith – that journey. It was a rebirth, if you will. I opened up businesses and started working in the community with young kids and single mothers – helping them. I started the Elgin Davis Foundation. That became my new passion My new outlet. All those things I learned in football – leadership and accountability – those helped me. It all took off. I decided then to write about my life story and wrote a book – an autobiography – I also recently finished a documentary on my life – it’s like a 30 for 30.
Now, I’m working on a film called A Freind of Mine. It’s like Brian’s Song or the Blind Side – the casting and script are done- it’s the story of me and my friendship with Darryl.
Were there guys who helped you when you were a young player?
I played at Central Florida – that was in the 80s when it was a small Division 1AA school. Me and Teddy Wilson were the first players from there to get drafted. There was a lot of clamor from UCF – but I didn’t even know where New England was – I had no idea where Foxboro was.
They had a very talented team – they were in the Super Bowl the year before they drafted me. It was a totally different experience than Pittsburgh. Raymond Berry was the coach and his style was different – he was very laid back. It was a veteran team and he let the veterans run the locker room.
In Pittsburgh – there were a lot of rookies on that team. They were all hungry to make it. There weren’t many stars on that team then. But I loved it. Unlike New England, we played in a city. Foxboro was a little town and there was nothing around it – you had to drive an hour to do something in Boston.
The Pittsburgh fanbase – it was a different vibe – I loved it. In New England mini-camp was three days. The vets didn’t want to practice hard. Pittsburgh – we were there a month. We stayed at Duquesne and a bus would drive guys to Three Rivers.
The legends would come to watch us practice. L.C. Greenwood and Joe Greene. Joe Greene was one of the first guys I met – and he knew my name. He said “Welcome to the Steelers Elgin!” That was special -it made me feel welcomed.
Did you guys all hang out?
After practice we went out to some night spots. We’d go to the “O” – that’s when I got introduced to something called I.C. Light! David Arnold was my roommate and he had a car so we would drive to Three Rivers – we didn’t have to catch the bus!
David was a big defensive back – he was 6’3″ and over 200 pounds. He was like a skinny defensive end! He was from Warren, Ohio and he knew Ron Harper from the Cleveland Cavaliers. We’d drive out to his home there and his mother would make us dinner and his brother Steve would have all of these celebrities over. But David – you could tell when he was getting upset….he’d say “Shiiiiiit…” That was his favorite word when he was angry. So I’d say it right after he did – we laugh about that now!
They had a lot of good running backs then – Worley, Hoge, Williams, Carter…right?
Pittsburgh wanted me because of my speed. I was different from the other backs – I was a 4.3 scatback. But I kept pushing it – my hamstring just gave out. I just wanted to make the team but pushed too hard and missed the rest of camp and couldn’t compete. I was counting the guys at the position and knew I had to beat guys out. But because I was hurt Eric Wilkerson ended up making the team.
What else did all of you guys do?
We were all close – we’d go to the park and watch the girls and nice cars. That’s when the Churchill area wasn’t so great – but we’d go there to get soul food and to get our haircut by the Black barbers there.
One day 10 of us decided to drive out there – Tim Worley in his custom red Mercedes – me, DJ Johnson, Derek Hill, David Arnold and a handful of others – we were a caravan heading into town. Then all of the sudden we were at a red light when cars came from everywhere and blocked us in. They were undercover cops and they all came at us with their weapons out – pistols to our face. Someone told them we were all part of a big drug deal. We were young, driving nice cars, and Black. Once they recognized us they apologized and made an official apology to the organization.
Any fun stories of your time there?
Terry Long – that dude didn’t say a lot. We knew he was different. He wasn’t a typical lineman at 5’11” and he gave you a look that scared you. I used to call him “Sir” and ” Mister” because I was so afraid of him! He looked like he’d slap you down at any time.
Rod Woodson – I had a lot of respect for him. He was probably the most celebrated guy on the team at the time, but he was really quiet. When I saw him pull up in his Nissan when everyone else was pulling up in these expensive cars – he just didn’t care about those material things. Carnell Lake too – he didn’t say much either. They just went about their business.
Greg Lloyd was fighting a hamstring injury too but we all knew what he could do. I used to see him at the park – he just had a son and I’d see him walking him in his stroller. He was a gentle guy off the field but a monster on it. Delton Hall too.
Dwight Stone – he came from a smaller school like I did – he and I got along.
We would all run in our position groups through the city and when we had to stop at a red light, fans would honk their horns at us and throw water at us. I never ran hills like that before – I remember once I had my hands on my knees when a car drove by and they yelled at me “You got it brother! Keep going!”
The fanbase was just so great – I never saw a fanbase like that. It was an honor playing there and for a coach like Dick Hoak. And that was Chuck Noll’s last year – I’d keep telling myself I was really playing for Chuck Noll!
The culture there was about being accountable. After practices we’d have to run gasses – nothing like what they did in New England. But guys were happy to be there.
How hard was it not making the team?
I even bought a place there. I knew they wanted me as their third down back – that’s why they picked me up from New England. It was disheartening not to have that follow-through.
The Steelers knew all about the hamstring issue. They stripped me down to my underwear and had me get on a treadmill and attached monitors to me. I had to run at full speed for 30 minutes while they tested my body until I got fatigued enough for them to see what was going on. It turns out I had too much cholesterol in my system – I had bad eating habits.
One day before camp I decided to run the bleachers – I ran up and down and did the entire circumference of Three Rivers. The next day my hamstring blew up. Job Kolb was working with me and when I told him what happened he got really pissed. It was his job to supervise me – he knew how to manage hamstring issues. He was really upset that I did that.
It was upsetting too because we played New England later on that season – that was a game I really wanted to play in. It was a tough pill to swallow.