Jamin Davis: "That was for 22, that was for Schlarman"

Photo by UK Athletics

Kentucky linebacker Jamin Davis, whose abdominal muscles look exactly like mine don’t, played a heck of a game for the Wildcats, highlighted by his third interception of the season plus a game-high 13 tackles and half a sack for good measure. Davis was everywhere and his playmaking helped UK’s defense get the stops it needed when the offense couldn’t extend a comfortable lead.

After the game, Davis spoke of earning one final win for Chris Oats and Coach Schlarman, UK’s inspiration all season.

“It was extremely emotional,” said Davis. “Even walking into the locker room, we were saying, ‘That was for 22, that was for Schlarman.’ It’s definitely something to show to the younger guys, that we keep playing through all the adversity, whatever’s going around us, all the outside noise, block it out and keep playing. We know what we go through on a daily basis to put in the work and we’ve got to keep going, regardless.”

Come see about this @TaxSlayerBowl winning locker room celebration 😼🏈🏆 pic.twitter.com/c2xqlJskyn

— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) January 2, 2021

An All-SEC snub, Davis also made a statement to the voters with his outstanding performance, although he wouldn’t say the snub played a role in his TaxSlayer Gator Bowl dominance.

“Just all season I already was playing with a chip on my shoulder,” Davis replied to a question about the All-SEC teams. “I didn’t look at this one any different. I just wanted to come out and play for 22 and ball out and do what I could.”

Hear more from Davis below: