In the first game of his sophomore season, HD Davis shattered a Wolfe City record with 43 carries for 451 yards and six touchdowns. The previous record holder? His father, Heath.

The Davises have lived in Wolfe City, 68 miles north of Dallas, for longer than Heath can trace back. He had an argument for being the best athlete in his family and school history - until that night. But father and son’s postgame embrace wasn’t some passing of the torch moment. Heath had recognized long ago that HD had a fire in his belly that burned hotter than he ever had.

“I’ve never really been with anyone like him, to be honest, being so dedicated about football,” Heath said. “He’s just crazy about it.”

He looks up to his son’s drive. Heath had never pushed HD to play, telling him that the sport was hot and hurt a lot when HD first asked about it.

But within his first peewee year, HD told his dad he’d play college football. Take it one step at a time, boy, Heath said. You’ve got a long way to go. Except now he blinked, and it’s here. HD rushed for 2,769 yards as a junior, which ranked second in Texas. He earned District 6-2A DI Offensive MVP and picked up college offers from Kansas State and UTEP along the way.

Wolfe City’s run scheme is almost exclusively in between the tackles, and HD blends 10.7 100-meter dash speed with the attitude that the ball carrier should dole out the punishment, not the defense. He broke his collarbone in his sophomore year and played on for seven more snaps before he realized it. After sitting out eight weeks, he returned to finish the season with over 1,000 yards in five games.

His coach, Brad Smithey, describes him as a mini celebrity in a town of 1,454 people. The kids in the Wolfe City peewee jerseys flock to him. As much as HD loves the sport, he’s uncomfortable with the attention it’s brought him. All the time he could bask in the glow, he’s instead grinding in the shadows. His “offseason” schedule is to arrive at 7 a.m. for 18 holes of golf, lift weights, go to afternoon baseball practice, and then run around the track until 6:30 p.m.

That work ethic has inspired Smithey to blast his HUDL tape all over social media. 

“When you see somebody put in the amount of time and work that he does, for me to go above and beyond (sharing film) is easy because there’s nobody else more deserving,” Smithey said. “He works for it. He wants it. It’s not just something he says he wants to do; it’s something he’s going to do.”

While college offers can incentivize some kids to tap the brakes, a planned revenge tour has HD mashing the gas. Wolfe City was upset 40-35 in the first round of the playoffs to a Coleman team that began the year 0-7. Wolfe City was forced to pass 43 times after falling behind quickly.

“It’s definitely a memory I have in my head during every offseason workout, just never letting that happen again,” HD said.

Wolfe City is historically a .500 program (465-463-31). The 2025 team is attempting to break their own record. The Wolves have never reached the fourth round of the playoffs. But they’ve never had HD Davis.

“He knows it ain’t over yet,” Smithey said. “He’s still got to go out and keep proving himself every day. All this has done has created a bigger target. He knows he has to work harder and perform better. The thing about him is he’s up for the challenge.”