Football

From Homelessness to Vanderbilt Graduate to Kentucky, Running Back Re’Mahn Davis is a Fighter

Published

2 years ago

December 21, 2022

UK Athletics

Mark Stoops has instilled toughness and grit in all of his football teams at Kentucky, but running back commit, Re’Mahn (Ray) Davis, has had that instilled in him from an early age.

Growing up in the Hayes Valley neighborhood of San Francisco, Davis quickly realized at a young age that life would not be easy. With a father and mother in and out of incarceration, he and his siblings bounced from home to home of family and family friends.

By the time he was 8, he was part of California’s foster care system. At one point, Davis was separated from his sibling and was forced into a homeless shelter. With the help of a high school teacher and his wife, they offered Davis a place to stay until he was able to move back in with a grandmother.

Then at a youth basketball tournament, Davis met Lora Banks the mother of one of his youth basketball teammates. Davis first asked for a ride, but little did he know the Banks family would change his life.

“He didn’t live anywhere and he didn’t have a quarter in his pocket and he got his meals at school,” Banks told Vanderbilt reporter Chad Bishop.

Banks and her husband Greg Ley soon found themselves inviting Davis over dinner when he “just happened to be in the neighborhood”. This soon led to applying for temporary guardianship of Davis, and even his educational rights holder.

Given an important stake in Davis’s future, Banks wanted what was best for him. Davis did not have a shortage of athletic gifts, which led to a family friend suggesting to look at Trinity-Pawling, a boarding school in Pawling, New York.

Shortly after, Banks and Davis made the trip to New York for an on-site interview with the Dean of Trinity-Pawling, where Davis was accepted on the spot. After rushing for 462 yards and five touchdowns for Trinity-Pauley in 2017, Davis began to be recruited by the likes of Syracuse and Boston College.

After a post-graduate year to improve his academic standing, Davis committed to Temple University. After a solid start to his college career, Davis began searching for a better fit athletically and academically, ending up at Vanderbilt.

From a homeless child in San Francisco to one of the most prestigious academic institutions in the country, Davis preserved through adversity and is thankful for it.

“I don’t think I’d be the man I am today without those experiences. It just made me look at the bigger picture of life,” Davis said. “There’s always a lot of people going through way worse things than me.”

Now, Davis is set to be RB1 for the Kentucky Wildcats with the goal of making it to the NFL. His ‘why’?

“I don’t really do it for me. I do it for all the other kids who are in the system… That’s the biggest thing for me. If I do make it, I hope to be a success story, not for me or my family, but for those kids and the less fortunate.”

Related Topics:Re'Mahn Davis Temple Vanderbilt

Football

Two More Wildcats Eye NFL Futures

Two more Wildcats are receiving opportunities to accomplish their NFL dreams.

Published

4 weeks ago

May 10, 2025

Israel Schill

UK Athletics

Linebacker D’Eryk Jackson and kicker Alex Raynor are the latest Kentucky Wildcats aiming to make their mark in the NFL.

Go be great at the @Seahawks, @Derykjackson4. pic.twitter.com/ZHvVsVonNr— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) May 9, 2025

Jackson, a 6-foot-1, 244-pound linebacker, signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Seattle Seahawks after impressing during the team’s rookie minicamp.

In his five seasons playing college football, Jackson amassed 216 total tackles including 17 tackles for loss, 9 sacks and five interceptions.

The former Kentucky standout and the teams leading tackler from 2022 and 2023 will now compete for a spot on the Seahawks final 53-man roster.

Raynor, meanwhile, received an invitation to attend the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ rookie camp, which runs May 9–11.

Go be great at the @Buccaneers, @acraynor1. pic.twitter.com/M8UOxK9rOm— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) May 8, 2025

The Kennesaw, Georgia, native made 25 of 27 field-goal attempts in two seasons with Kentucky, including a school-record 55-yarder.

His performance earned him SEC Special Teams Player of the Year honors in 2024 and a shot to prove himself at the next level.

With the addition of Jackson and Raynor to NFL rosters, the total number of Kentucky Wildcats now vying for a spot in the league has reached 10.

Football

Saskatchewan Roughriders Sign Octavious Oxendine to CFL Deal

Published

4 weeks ago

May 8, 2025

Isaiah Pinto

UK Athletics

On Wednesday, it was officially announced that former Wildcats defensive lineman Octavious Oxendine agreed to play with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League.

Oxendine becomes only the fifth player from Kentucky to take their talents up north. Those before him included fellow Roughrider Micah Johnson, Josh Ali of the Calgary Stampeders, Lynn Bowden of the BC Lions and Quandre Mosely Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

The Radcliff, Kentucky, native played five seasons in Lexington. Making 19 starts in 47 games played, Oxendine recorded 78 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and a blocked kick.

In 2024, Oxendine appeared in all 12 games for the Wildcats and made one start against Murray State, finishing his final season with a team-second best four sacks.

A key performance by Oxendine helped Kentucky defeat the No. 6 Ole Miss Rebels in Oxford, Mississippi, as the defensive lineman recorded three tackles and a career-high two sacks for a combined 10 yards lost. His first sack came on a third down play, forcing the Rebels to punt, and the second led to Ole Miss letting the clock run out to end the first half.

The standout performance led to Oxendine being named SEC Defensive Player of the Week.

In December 2024, Oxendine graduated from the University of Kentucky with a degree in social work. Additionally, the recent graduate was named the 2025 CATSPY Male Supporting Role Award.

Now in green, Oxendine will take the field with the Saskatchewan Roughriders as they are set to kickoff the preseason on Saturday, May 24, against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

Football

Tre’vonn Rybka Signs With Dolphins As Undrafted Free Agent

Published

1 month ago

April 29, 2025

Israel Schill

John Clay | UK Athletics

Another Cat is heading to the NFL after defensive lineman Tre’vonn Rybka was signed by the Miami Dolphins in undrafted free agency on April 28, shortly after the conclusion of the 2025 NFL Draft.

Go be great at the @MiamiDolphins, @trevonnrybka. pic.twitter.com/OkBHiubzyG— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) April 28, 2025

Rybka, who appeared in 48 games over five seasons with Kentucky, amassed 95 tackles including 5 sacks. As a senior, he started all 12 games, finishing with 34 tackles, five tackles for loss and three sacks.

He now joins a Dolphins defense that used their No. 13 pick in this year’s draft on Michigan defensive tackle Kenneth Grant, meaning Rybka will have to compete for a roster spot in a deep defensive front rotation.

Off the field, Rybka, who was adopted by his grandparents as a child due to his mother’s battle with addiction, is an active member of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bluegrass. He was awarded the “Big Ambassador of the Year” award in 2024 for his commitment to mentoring and supporting the youth.

His commitment to give back to the community and its youth reflects dedication to make a positive impact both on and off the football field.

Rybka will report to the Dolphins rookie camp on May 9-12, before he officially fights for a spot on the 53-man roster in June.