Ernie Davis

Ernest "Ernie" Davis (December 14, 1939 – May 18, 1963) was an American football halfback and the first African-American athlete to win the Heisman Trophy. Wearing number 44, Davis played college football for Syracuse University before being drafted by the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL), then almost immediately traded to the Cleveland Browns in December 1961, when he was issued number 45. However, he never played a professional game, as he was diagnosed with leukemia in 1962 and died at the age of 23 years. Davis was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1979. He is the subject of the 2008 Universal Pictures film The Express, based on the non-fiction book Ernie Davis: The Elmira Express, by Robert C. Gallagher.

Early life

Davis was born on December 14, 1939 in New Salem, Pennsylvania. From 14 months of age, Ernie was cared for by his maternal grandparents, Willie and Elizabeth Davis, in Uniontown, Pennsylvania. His father was killed in an accident shortly after Ernie’s birth, and his mother, Avis Marie Davis Fleming, could not raise him alone. At the age of 12, he went to live with his mother and stepfather in Elmira, New York. In Elmira, Davis excelled in baseball, football and basketball in grade school. He attended Elmira Free Academy, where he earned two All-American honors. At the end of his senior season he was recruited by numerous colleges, and chose to attend Syracuse University after being persuaded by his childhood hero, Jim Brown, a Syracuse alumnus.

Everard Davis

Everard Inseal "Tiny" Davis (2 January 1912 – 25 October 2005) was an English sprint athlete who competed in the 1934 British Empire Games.

He was born in Worthing.

At the 1934 Empire Games he was a member of the English relay team which won the gold medal in the 4×110 yards event.

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