Notre Dame Captain Avery Davis Returning in 2022

Captain Avery Davis has announced he’ll forgo entering the NFL Draft and will return to Notre Dame for his sixth year. 

In November, the Texas native tore his ACL and he had been weighing his future. Davis made his decision public on Sunday night that he would return in 2022. 

Davis was having the best season of his career in 2021 before the injury as he tallied 27 catches for 386 yards and four touchdowns working from the slot. The 5-foot-11, 202-pounder now has totaled 66 catches for 862 yards and eight scores during his career at Notre Dame. 

In 2020, Davis settled into the receiver position as he recorded 24 catches for 322 yards and two scores, but he came up with two plays Notre Dame won’t soon forget against No. 1 Clemson. Davis reeled in a 53-yard pass from Ian Book and scored with 22 seconds remaining to send the game into overtime. 

The decision is significant for Notre Dame as the offense needed Davis to come back as the receiver room desperately needs experience, but also bodies as the Irish signed just one receiver in the 2022 recruiting class.

With his decision to return, Davis will now have a chance to write the final chapter of a rare story of a kid sticking with the process and betting on himself after playing quarterback, running back, cornerback and receiver during his time at Notre Dame. 

"I came in my freshman year and I wasn't ready to play,” Davis said in the fall. “From there, it's really been trying to work hard, work on my craft and really focusing on the finer details on the position. Stuff that's maybe not physical development as much as it is your hands and feet in the run game or coming in and out of your breaks in the pass game.

“It's been a long process and I'm happy with where I'm at now and I'm going to keep working to get better."