Just how good is Corey Davis?

Today, I was going through some record books. The MAC’s, WMU’s, even the NCAA records that sports-reference.com has on their site. I started to realize something: Corey Davis is beyond belief.

I’ve watched him since he was a freshman catching the wild passes of a freshman quarterback. He was a star in the making. However, I didn’t see the potential in what he would do to the rest of the MAC. Not then at least.

Three years later, and you don’t have to look far down career lists to find his name, no matter the stat. All-time yards? He’s the WMU and MAC record holder there, and is closing in on the NCAA record. Touchdowns? WMU’s record holder, and 2nd all-time in the MAC. Catches? He’s getting there.

So let’s look at the stats. NOTE: the games left assume no MAC Championship but a bowl game, as one is nearly guaranteed and the other comes down to the next six games’ results.

ADDITIONAL NOTE: Updated through 11/8

Receiving Yards

Western Michigan: Current leader (4,814)
MAC: Current leader (4,814)
NCAA (FBS): 2nd; Trevor Insley (5,005)

I mean, the guy is already a MAC legend here. The question is if he can eclipse the 5,000 yard plateau. Only Insley has done so, with Ryan Broyles finishing a distant 2nd after putting up 4,586 yards in his historic career (more on that later). So to get 2nd, Davis needs just 212 more yards, which is a great game for him, or two decent games. Therefore, the 5k mark is what to watch for down the stretch.

To break the record: Needs to average 64 yds/game

Receiving Touchdowns

WMU: Current leader (47)
MAC: t-1st; Darius Watts (47)
NCAA (FBS): t-3rd; Jarett Dillard (60)

So, uhh, the NCAA touchdowns record is probably well out of reach. 60 is just an insane number, and probably won’t be touched for years. However, Watts sits 3rd all-time, and 2nd place is 50 TDs (Troy Edwards). Those are both attainable.

A touchdown-a-game gets him the MAC record. A couple extra gets him 50, which, again, has only been touched twice. It’s a consolation prize, but it’ll do

To break the records: Needs to score 1 TD (MAC); Needs to score ~4 TDs/game + 1 more (NCAA)

Receptions

WMU: 2nd; Jordan White (306)
MAC: 9th; Jordan White, Eric Page, Josh Davis (306)
NCAA (FBS): 16th; Justin Hardy (387)

Another un-reachable mark in the NCAA. In fact, at his current pace this season, Davis will barely break the MAC record. He has 271 297 catches so far, and has 36 62 on the year through 10 games. Do the math, and you have a bowl game as extra cushion for future MAC receivers to have to catch.

In terms of the NCAA record, he would have to catch 116 90 passes the rest of the way. Even assuming he gets a max of 8 games (technically, the max is 9, but there’s no chance WMU makes the CFP), that’s 14.5 catches/game! That’s insanity. Even shooting to pass Broyles’ mark of 349, he’d need 10 catches/game over those same 8 games. If WMU doesn’t make the MAC Championship, that number shoots up to 11+.

350 catches in a career is nice, but 300 is still good. If he gets the MAC record, that’s good enough for 7th all-time itself, which will bring us to our next point.

To break the records: Needs 3 catches/game (WMU/MAC); needs 30 catches/game (NCAA)

300/5,000/50 Line

WMU: No one
MAC: No one
NCAA (FBS): No one

Now, you want historic? How about a career of 300 catches, 5,000 yards, and 50 touchdowns? That’s historic.

You’ve seen the records above, but I mentioned Ryan Broyles because he’s regarded as the most statistically great wide-out in FBS history (partly because he played at Oklahoma and not a “Group of Five” school). Broyles finished with a 349/4,586/45 line, and that’s about as close as anyone has gotten to the 300/5000/50.

The other record holders:

Insley: 298/5,005/35
Dillard: 292/4,138/60
Hardy: 387/4,541/35
Troy Edwards (2nd in TDs): 280/4,352/50

So as you can see, it’s pretty difficult to do. As of right now, Corey Davis is sporting a 271/4,374/41 297/4,814/47 line. To get to the 300/5,000/50 mark, here’s what he has to do in the remaining 7* 3 games:

Catches: 1 catch/game
Yards: 62 yds/game
Touchdowns: 1 TD/game

We may never witness another receiver as amazing as Corey Davis is. He is unlike anyone who has played the game before, and could put up a career number that few could ever match. He may not win a Heisman, but at least put him in New York that weekend, especially if he has that slash mark in hand.