(Photo by Victor Tan / New Day Review)
ATLANTA, Ga. – Auburn Tigers head coach Gus Malzahn delivered surprising news at his final media appearance before the 2018 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on New Year’s Day. His No. 7 Tigers will play without All-American cornerback Carlton Davis because of illness.
“Carlton Davis will not play in our bowl,” Malzahn said at the joint head-coach presser Sunday morning. “He had an illness earlier in the week. Has not gotten better; went home yesterday. Just felt like he would be better off there with the illness he has.”
Like the media, that was the first No. 12 UCF Knights head coach Scott Frost heard the news.
“Well that’s the first I heard of it. I was taking notes under the table,” Frost jokingly said at the joint head-coach presser Sunday morning. “They’ve got good players everywhere. They have a bunch of good players in the secondary, and, you know, we’re missing a player or two as well… Inevitably, in these bowl games, there’s one or two situations like that.”
Davis is in his third year with Auburn. Through those three seasons, Davis has been a mainstay on Malzahn’s defense, totaling 136 total tackles, four interceptions and three forced fumbles. He has also helped the Tigers to the 15th-best pass defense in the country, as Auburn has allowed only 177.8 passing yards per game in 2017.
Without Davis, Malzahn is confident in his team’s depth. The Tigers could look to Javaris Davis, a 5-foot-10, 186-pound sophomore out of Jacksonville, Fla. He’s played in 10 games this season, recording 26 total tackles and two interceptions, including a pick-six; Javaris has four interceptions for his career.
“We do have some depth. Javaris is one guy that has experience. He’s healthy,” Malzahn said. “Matter of fact, all of our other guys will be ready to go… This rest has been very good to heal some of those guys up that were banged up in the last game.”
With Carlton out, though, that could provide UCF with an advantage in an already-uphill battle. Quarterback McKenzie Milton has thrown for the 13th-most passing yards (3,795) and sixth-most touchdowns (35) this season.
UCF and the Tigers will meet in the Peach Bowl in Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Monday at 12:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.
For more on the Knights, as they prepare for the Peach Bowl, follow Victor Tan on Twitter at @NDR_VictorTan.
