Russell Davis II (99) celebrates a sack against UCLA. Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Husky Roster Review: Davis Needs Luck to Change

Originally posted on Washington Huskies on SI
By Dan Raley | Last updated Jul 29, 2025 11:05 AM ET

Russell Davis II is like the star of a movie trailer that got everyone excited to see the full-length feature film only to have the release date get pushed back several months.

With University of Washington fall camp opening on Wednesday, the 6-foot-3, 234-pound edge rusher won't be involved. He's likely out for the season with a knee injury suffered during summer workouts, this after he appeared fully recovered from a triceps injury that ended his 2024 season early.

And all of this happened after the one-time Arizona transfer missed the first half of last year's schedule with some sort of injury that put him on crutches during that fall camp.

Davis is a player who has been blessed with significant football skills but once in Seattle cursed with a spate of career-interrupting health setbacks.

This is the last in a series of articles -- going from 0 to 99 on the Husky roster -- examining what each scholarship player and leading walk-on did this past spring and what to expect from them going forward.

Local football followers have been eager to see what this Davis is all about because he's the son of a former Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle of the same name who played in town in 2006 near the end of his nine-year NFL career.

The younger Davis made three game appearances for the UW last season, but really had just one game in which he drew significant snaps.

And he was very good that day in coming off the corner to disrupt everything.

In a 31-19 victory over UCLA, Davis sacked former Husky quarterback Ethan Garbers three times. On one of them, he knocked the ball loose and recovered it.

For his heroics, he was selected Big Ten co-Defensive Player of the Week, a stunning rise in stature after sitting out everything but a handful of plays in two previous games.

Then like the Cinderella fairy tale, he disappeared into the night.

After two relatively healthy seasons in Arizona, Davis followed coach Jedd Fisch to Montlake only to become beat up and probably a little demoralized by it all.

RUSSELL DAVIS II FILE

What he's done: He's played in 26 college games for Washington and Arizona combined. He has 32 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, a forced fumble and a recovered fumble over those three seasons.

Starter or not: If Davis can become Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week, he most certainly can hold down a starting role for the Huskies. It just won't come before the 2026 season.

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This article first appeared on Washington Huskies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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