ANTWUAN DAVIS: MR. GET PAID

DEFENSIVE BACK – 5’11” – 192 LBS – BASTROP

MR. GET PAID’S friends spend the final minutes of first period shooting the breeze in the parking lot, under the metal bleachers of Bastrop High School’s football stadium.
With the backseat door of his black Nissan Maxima open, showing off a pile of workout
clothes and sneakers on the backbench, Paul Whitmill coolly runs a fine comb through his short hair.

When the conversation …

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turns to Mr. Get Paid — known to the rest of the world as Antwuan Davis, the first-team All-District 17-4A defensive back — Whitmill flicks the comb from his ear to the crown of his head, which doesn’t do much of anything, and stretches a smile of mock irreverence. “Yeah, Antwuan is cool,” Whitmill, the TCUbound
linebacker said. “But he’s going to Texas.”

THE FINAL MOMENTS of Davis’ life as an uncommitted football recruit panned out, as such, in Mack Brown’s office: Davis: “I’m going to hold off on committing.” Brown: “Okay, but we might offer other players.” Davis: “That’s fine.” Brown: “If you want to be here, why don’t you go ahead and make it happen?” Davis: “Yeah, that’s true.” And on May 4, 2012, the No. 1 defensive back in the state by most accounts, pledged to the Longhorns — thanks to Brown’s mastery of subtle persuasion.

“It was a big relief,” Davis said on a gray January morning at Bastrop High School, just weeks before National Signing Day. “I didn’t have to deal with reporters; I wasn’t going to get unknown phone calls.” And the hype on Davis is starting to bubble in Austin. “We love the kid … and the smile,” Brown said during a press conference. “He could’ve gone anywhere, and he never questioned coming here.”
Referring to Texas as “DBU” is far from a hyperbole. All the Longhorns seem to do — under the tenure of secondary coach Duane Akina — is pump out NFL-ready defensive backs. Hold your breath and list them: Quentin Jammer, Rod Babers, Nathan Vasher,
Michael Huff, Tarell Brown, Aaron Ross, Michael Griffin, Earl Thomas, Chykie Brown, Curtis Brown and Aaron Williams.

Rising senior Carrington Byndom will likely hear his name called next spring and junior-to-be Quandre Diggs — Jammer’s younger brother — has a future in the league as well. Who better to carry the torch than the one who goes by Mr. Get Paid?

Davis isn’t shy about his alter-ego. He actively tweets under the handle @Mr_getPAID. Then there’s the dance, demonstrated by one of his friends under the bleachers, which is nearly impossible to describe, but involves one gyrating leg and some snapping. And we can’t forget to mention Davis’ jewelry. He wears a chain with a black suede money bag that bears a white dollar sign, along with a ring he fashioned himself on his right hand, made solely out of a one dollar bill.

“[The ring] took me 30 minutes … although it should take about five,” Davis commented. “I
kept messing up, but I finally got it down. Now I can say, ‘Oh look, now I’ve got a dollar on me.’” When suggested that the NCAA wouldn’t be thrilled about a player representing himself under the Mr. Get Paid moniker, Davis just flashed a big smile and let out a falsetto giggle. “I can see how they might take it the wrong way,” he said. Davis is living a charmed life. He’s taking four classes this semester — English, government, economics and anatomy — and starring for the track team (he’ll compete in the Texas Relays).

In his downtime, he tweets and plays Fun Run, a multiplayer racing app on the iPhone — a psychedelic, quicker version of Mario Bros. He doesn’t report to Austin until mid-June, so the game, along with track, helps quench his competitive thirst. “We have big Fun Run tournaments,” he said. “It gets intense.” His competitive nature pushes him to always
find a way beat his opponent — especially on the field.

One of his go-to moves on the field occurs before the ball is even snapped. While the quarterback barks out a cadence, Davis, lined up noseto- nose on a receiver, will flinch suddenly. At that
moment, the poor receiver has two options. He can stay still, assume the center hasn’t hiked the ball, and fall into Davis’ shackles. Or he can make a move — block or begin his route — and try to get past Davis. If the receiver chooses the latter, it’s an automatic 5-yard penalty. “An easy false start,” Davis said with a laugh.

FOR THE FIRST time since 2005, the Longhorns’ recruiting class failed to land in Rival.com’s top 15 rankings. Around the 40 Acres, that’s grounds for panic. This year was highlighted by decommitment. Both five-star defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson and five-star wideout Ricky Seals-Jones made the decision to waive their offers from Texas. We should remember, however, that the 2005 class was full of future stars: Colt McCoy,
Jamaal Charles, Henry Melton, Roy Miller, Jermichael Finley and Rod Muckelroy.
Davis understands the fans’ disappointment with Texas’ 2013 crop.

But like the 2005 class that played in two BCS games, including the national championship, he believes his class is capable of big things early on. “Our class is full of impact players,” Davis said. “We have a chance to come in and make a difference early on. We talk about that … coming in, helping or starting. That’s what they recruited us to do.”

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