Injury Forces Patriots To Release Dave Davis

Big Dave Davis, who was an all-Ivy defensive tackle at Harvard while playing with a fractured vertebra, lost his final battle with injuries last week.

After suffering a new back pull two weeks ago, he could not return to practice soon enough and has now been dropped by the Boston Patriots.

Davis said that he enjoyed the Patriots practice more than college football, but that he would now call it quits for good. "I see that injuries have made it useless for me to complete," he remarked. He will attend the Fletcher School of International Law and Diplomacy at M.I.T. in the fall.

Quick, Agile

Before his latest injury, Davis had been developing well in the Patriots preseason practice at Andover. "He was quick and agile," said Boston defensive line coach Jesse Richardson about the six-foot-six 235-pound bruiser. "It's too bad that his injury set him back so that I never had a chance to see him under game conditions. He seemed to have much potential."

While at Harvard, Davis led the defensive pass rush for two years from his tackle position. The Patriots, however, switched him to end where his speed and size would be more effective.

Harvard's remaining other professional prospect, halfback Bobby Leo, is currently serving six-months Reserve duty in the U.S. Army and will report to the Patriots next year.