Davin Meggett (born March 22, 1990) is an American former

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

. He has also been a member of the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

and

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

Early life

Meggett was born in

Clinton, Maryland Clinton is an unincorporated census-designated place (CDP) in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. Clinton was formerly known as Surrattsville until after the time of the Civil War. The population of Clinton was 38,760 at the 2020 cens ...

, on March 22, 1990, to

Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...

champion and two-time

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

selection

Dave Meggett David Lee Meggett (born April 30, 1966) is a former American football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons. He played college football at Towson and was selected by the New York Giants in the fifth round o ...

and mother Victoria Davis. He grew up in

Upper Marlboro, Maryland Upper Marlboro, officially the Town of Upper Marlboro, is the seat of Prince George's County, Maryland. Aso of the 2020 census, the population was 652. although Greater Upper Marlboro is many times larger. Etymology Upper Marlboro was establ ...

, with his mother and stepfather John Davis. At the age of 9, Meggett switched from his preferred sport of

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

to football because his childhood friend played the game. Meggett, however, was doubtful that he was of large enough stature to play intercollegiate football for a major college program.Jeff Barker
Meggett not running from legacy
''The Baltimore Sun'', November 21, 2008. At

Surrattsville High School Surrattsville High School or SHS is a public high school located in Clinton, Maryland, United States and is a part of the Prince George's County Public School System in Prince George's County, Maryland. Surrattsville was the town of Clinton's o ...

, Meggett was a three-year starting running back. As a junior in 2006, he ran for 1,150 yards on 156 attempts, rushed for ten touchdowns, and garnered second-team all-county and honorable mention all-state honors. Meggett experienced a breakout year as a senior in 2007, during which he led the Surratsville Hornets to its first playoff berth since the establishment of the team in 1960. He was an accomplished track runner placing well at the regional tournament and setting several high school weight-lifting records under Coach Richard S. Hensel. Josh Barr
Surrattsville Rises With Its Star; Hornets' First Run to Playoffs Coincides With Running Back's Improvement
''The Washington Post'', November 15, 2007. He finished the regular season as the second-leading rusher in the

Washington, D.C. metropolitan area The Washington metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the National Capital Region, is the metropolitan area centered on Washington, D.C. The metropolitan area includes all of Washington, D.C. and parts of the states of Maryland, Virgin ...

. On the season, Meggett rushed 169 times for 1,784 yards and scored 26 rushing touchdowns and six receiving touchdowns.

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...

named him the 16th-ranked player in the state of Maryland. He was honored as a first-team All-

Prince George's County ) , demonym = Prince Georgian , ZIP codes = 20607–20774 , area codes = 240, 301 , founded date = April 23 , founded year = 1696 , named for = Prince George of Denmark , leader_title = Executive , leader_name = Angela D. Alsobrook ...

, All-Met, and all-league player. Surrattsville High finished with a 10–2 record and a state playoffs berth. Meggett also ran

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

in high school and earned a letter all four years. He was honored as all-county and the team's field athlete of the year as a junior. Meggett was recruited by Notre Dame,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, and

Rutgers Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...

, but

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

was the only

Division I FBS The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). A ...

school to offer him a

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...

. He also received scholarship offers from

Division I FCS The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic ...

programs ,

Old Dominion Old Dominion most commonly refers to: *The Old Dominion, a nickname for the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia ** Colony of Virginia *Old Dominion University, a public university in Norfolk, Virginia **Old Dominion Monarchs, the athletic teams represe ...

, and

James Madison James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for hi ...

.Meet Davin Meggett
''The Baltimore Sun'', January 2008. Meggett, who grew up a Maryland fan, accepted the school's offer and later said, "This is a dream. Is this really happening? ... I'm going to go ahead, commit and live out a fantasy."

College career

While at the

, Meggett studied government and politics. As a true freshman in

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, he saw action in each game of the season. Short-statured and muscular, his smashmouth rushing style is characterized by achieving yards after contact. In 2008, Meggett recorded 422 rushing yards on 79 attempts with a long of 38 against California, and four

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

s.Player Bio: Davin Meggett
, University of Maryland Terrapins Football official website, accessed December 5, 2008. After starting tailback

Da'Rel Scott Da'Rel Scott (born May 26, 1988) is a former American football running back. He was selected in the seventh round of the 2011 NFL Draft by the New York Giants. He played college football for the University of Maryland, where he was a startin ...

suffered a lingering shoulder injury against

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

game, Meggett gained increased playing time. Offensive coordinator, James Franklin, called the run-intensive, rain-soaked

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

match "a Meggett type of game ... Downhill, not a whole lot of dancing." In that game, Meggett made a one-yard rushing touchdown and the 31-yard reception which helped put the Terps within range for the game-winning field goal. Maryland coach

Ralph Friedgen Ralph Harry Friedgen (born April 4, 1947) is a former American football coach. He was most recently the special assistant coach for Rutgers in 2015 after serving as their offensive coordinator in the 2014 season. He was the head coach at the Uni ...

said, "He's a freshman, but he doesn't play like a freshman." Against

NC State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The university ...

, Meggett had eight carries for 34 yards and a one-yard

run. He replaced Scott after an injury late in the game, and then caught a

screen pass A screen pass is a play in gridiron football consisting of a short pass to a receiver who is protected by a screen of blockers. During a screen pass, a number of things happen concurrently in order to fool the defense into thinking a long pass is b ...

for 31 yards to set up the game-winning

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. The entire ba ...

by kicker Obi Egekeze. Maryland secured

bowl eligibility Bowl eligibility in college football at the NCAA Division I FBS level is the standard through which teams become available for selection to participate in postseason bowl games. When a team achieves this state, it is described as "bowl-eligible". ...

with the 27 24 victory. In the

2008 Humanitarian Bowl The 2008 Humanitarian Bowl was a postseason college football bowl game between the Maryland Terrapins and the Nevada Wolf Pack on December 30, 2008. It was the two teams' first meeting. The game featured two conference tie-ins: the University of ...

against

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

, he caught a pass for a

two-point conversion In gridiron football, a two-point conversion or two-point convert is a play a team attempts instead of kicking a one-point conversion immediately after it scores a touchdown. In a two-point conversion attempt, the team that just scored must run ...

, and rushed ten times for 35 yards. Alongside leading rusher Scott, Meggett helped Maryland to come the closest it ever has to having both a 1,000- and 500-yard rusher in the same season. Meggett fell just 43 yards shy of the 500-yard mark. He led all

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

freshman with 5.13 yards per

carry Carry or carrying may refer to: People *Carry (name) Finance * Carried interest (or carry), the share of profits in an investment fund paid to the fund manager * Carry (investment), a financial term: the carry of an asset is the gain or cost of h ...

. In

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

, Meggett entered preseason camp behind Scott and

Morgan Green Morgan Green (born March 7, 1987) is an American former college and high school football player. He played as a running back for the Maryland Terrapins at the University of Maryland. He played interscholastic football for Henry E. Lackey High Sch ...

, but his camp performance was impressive enough to garner a share of the number-one position alongside Scott. He saw action in all 12 games including four starts, and recorded 338 yards on 99 carries and six touchdowns.Davin Meggett Stats
ESPN, retrieved October 2, 2011. Meggett and Scott again split time as the number-one back during the 2010 season. Head coach Friedgen said, "At this point in time, I would say Scott and Meggett are 1A and 1B."Terps' multiple-choice answer; Improved Meggett, healthy Scott saw near-equal time in productive outings vs. Navy
, ''The Diamondback'', September 9, 2010. He saw action in all 13 games and recorded 720 yards on 126 carries and four touchdowns. In the season opener against

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

, Meggett rushed eight times for a career-high 105 yards, including a career-long 67-yard run, and one touchdown. Meggett extended his career-long against Florida International with a 76-yard touchdown run to ensure a Maryland victory. Against

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

, Meggett had 18 carries for 57 yards, including a three-yard touchdown run. Against Wake Forest, Meggett rushed for 94 yards and a touchdown. Prior to the 2011 season, Meggett was named to the

Doak Walker Award Since 1990 the Doak Walker Award honors the top running back in college football in the United States. It is named in honor of Doak Walker, a former running back who played for the SMU Mustangs from 1945 to 1949 and in the National Football League ...

watch list. He assumed the starting position after the graduation of Da'Rel Scott and was named a team captain. In the opener against

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

, he had 21 carries for 92 yards.

Statistics

Professional career

Houston Texans

Meggett was signed by the

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

to an undisclosed three-year contract on April 29, 2012. He was released on August 26, 2012. On September 27, the Texans signed Meggett to the practice squad. He was released on November 27.

Indianapolis Colts

On December 11, 2012, Meggett was signed to the practice squad of the

. On August 25, 2013, he was waived by the Colts.

Dallas Cowboys

On October 15, 2013, Meggett was signed to the practice squad of the

. He was released on October 29.

Washington Redskins

The

signed Meggett to their practice squad on November 12. He signed a reserve/future contract with the team on December 31, 2013. He was released on March 4, 2014.

Second Stint with Colts

Meggett re-signed with the

on July 27, 2014. He was waived on August 17, 2014.

Post-football

After his football career ended, Meggett became an 8th grade language arts teacher at Sugar Grove Academy in Houston, Texas. Now he’s the head track coach at Fulshear high school, and football coach, and wrestling coach. Why Former Maryland Player Davin Meggett Became A Teacher
Stadium. Retrieved 4 March 2020.

References

External links

Indianapolis Colts bio

Maryland Terrapins bio

ESPN Stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meggett, Davin 1990 births Living people American football running backs Maryland Terrapins football players People from Clinton, Maryland People from Upper Marlboro, Maryland Players of American football from Prince George's County, Maryland