Linebacker Davis central to defense

Tech’s two-time leading tackler looks to rebound from injury-filled season.

Georgia Tech senior linebacker P.J. Davis realizes this will be his last season playing college football.

“I’m just ready to go out there and do what’s got to be done,” he said.

Davis may be the best player on the Yellow Jackets’ defense.

He has led the team in tackles each of the past two seasons, though he seemed disappointed that after making 119 tackles as a sophomore, he had only 77 last season.

Part of that drop in production can be explained by the myriad injuries he played with last season.

“I just had to sacrifice for my team and just keep doing what I had to do for them guys,” he said.

Davis has sacrificed because, as

defensive coordinator Ted Roof said, football is important to him.

He has worked to improve at his craft, particularly in his pass-coverage skills, according to Roof.

Davis has also worked to become more of a leader, just like the player he looked up to, Quayshawn Nealy.

“He taught me everything I know,” Davis said. “I watched his every step.”

Davis will be on the field a lot for the Jackets this season because his responsibilities don’t change significantly whether the team is in a 4-3, which should be the base formation for next week’s season opener against a run-based Boston College, or the 4-2-5, which the Jackets used a lot last season to try to match up with teams that run spread offenses.

Davis said the Jackets will be better prepared this season for either formation.

For example, Chase Alford is cross-training at all three linebacker spots to add depth and versatility.

“We’ve got guys that can come in and do what the starters can do, so we won’t see any drop,” he said.

HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM Senior linebacker P.J. Davis (40) has led Georgia Tech in tackles each of the past two seasons. He had 77 as a junior and 119 as a sophomore.