Western Pennsylvania has produced an unbelievable number of athletes.

Joe Montana. Dan Marino. Tony Dorsett. Darrelle Revis. Aaron Donald. Curtis Martin. The list of athletes who went from Western Pennsylvania to national fame is ridiculous.

But what about the ones who never became household names?

The athletes who were so talented that people who actually watched them still talk about them 30 or 40 years later. The ones whose ability suggested that something much bigger was coming, only for academics, injuries, eligibility, circumstances or life itself to send the story in another direction.

Next up is Brian Davis of Washington High School.

 

Before Social Media, You Had to Be There

You have to understand the era to appreciate stories like Davis’.

There was no Hudl. No Instagram highlight reels. No YouTube. No viral clips getting millions of views overnight.

If you were a great high school athlete in Western Pennsylvania, people found out through the newspaper, television highlights, word of mouth—and most importantly, by actually showing up to watch you play.

That meant there were athletes who were almost mythical locally. You would hear somebody say, “You have to see this kid.” And then you’d go see him.

Brian Davis was one of those athletes.

Except Davis wasn’t simply a Pittsburgh-area legend. He became one of the most highly regarded high school football players in the entire country.

 

He Wasn’t Just a Football Player

Davis graduated from Washington High School in 1985 after putting together the type of athletic resume that sounds exaggerated when you read it today.

It isn’t.

As a senior, Davis was named the 1984 Parade Magazine National High School Football Player of the Year.

Think about that.

Not the best player in Washington County. Not the best player in the WPIAL. Not the best player in Pennsylvania. The national player of the year.

And football might not even tell the entire story of how gifted he was.

Davis was also an outstanding track athlete. He won a WPIAL championship in the 100-meter dash, captured multiple WPIAL long-jump championships and won a state championship in the long jump.

Then there was basketball.

At around 5-foot-10, Davis wasn’t built like anybody’s traditional center, but his athleticism was so exceptional that he played inside for Washington basketball teams that won championships.

Football. Basketball. Track.

Today we talk constantly about “three-sport athletes.” Brian Davis wasn’t participating in three sports.

He was dominating them.

 

Then Came Pitt

Davis stayed home and went to the University of Pittsburgh. For people around Western Pennsylvania, the possibilities had to seem endless.

One of the greatest athletes the WPIAL had produced was going to play major Division I football right in Pittsburgh. And Davis showed enough as a freshman to make people believe the hype could translate.

But his college career never became what so many expected.

Academic problems contributed to Davis leaving Pitt after his freshman season, and his college football career essentially ended before it ever had an opportunity to truly begin.

That’s where the “what if?” begins.

What if Davis had stayed eligible? What if he had played three or four years of major college football? What if the physical ability everyone saw in Washington had been given enough time to develop at Pitt? Or what if he hadn’t listened to his mom and had gone to LSU instead of Pitt? That’s what he told me during our conversation.

What happens after that?

Nobody can answer those questions. And that’s the point.

 

Don’t Confuse “What If?” With Failure

I want to make something clear with this series.

Calling somebody a “what if?” isn’t disrespect. It doesn’t mean that person failed. And it definitely doesn’t erase what they accomplished.

Brian Davis reached a level most athletes will never come close to reaching. Being named a national high school Player of the Year alone puts him in rare company.

This series is about something different.

It’s about recognizing athletes whose talent became bigger than the fame that eventually followed them.

Because history has a funny way of shrinking people’s accomplishments. A generation passes. Then another. The newspaper clippings get put into boxes. The people who packed the gyms and stadiums get older. Younger fans start believing greatness began with the athletes they watched. Eventually, somebody who was once the biggest name in Western Pennsylvania becomes a name that only certain generations recognize.

That’s exactly why these stories need to be told.

 

Imagine Brian Davis in 2026

This is the part I keep thinking about. Imagine Brian Davis coming through Washington High School today.

A national-caliber football player who could dominate on the track and then walk into a basketball gym and play above his size?

Every touchdown would be online. Every long jump would be recorded. Every basketball highlight would be clipped. Recruiting sites would track his every move. National accounts would post him. His highlights would circulate across TikTok, Instagram and X. People across the country would know his name before he graduated.

Davis didn’t have any of that.

His reputation was built the old-fashioned way. He performed, and people talked. Four decades later, they’re still talking.

That might be the greatest compliment an athlete can receive.

 

Pittsburgh Should Remember Its Legends

One reason I started DrewSchifino.com was to preserve Western Pennsylvania sports history. Not just the people who reached the NFL or NBA.

Everybody remembers the ending when the ending includes fame.

I’m interested in the stories before that.

The player everybody in the neighborhood swore was unstoppable. The athlete opposing coaches dreaded seeing. The kid whose name packed a gym. The football player people drove across Western Pennsylvania to watch. The athlete an older Pittsburgh sports fan mentions and immediately says: “Man, you had to see him.”

Brian Davis belongs in that conversation.

Maybe his football journey didn’t end where people imagined it would when he was named the best high school player in America.

But that shouldn’t erase the beginning.

Before recruiting stars became an industry, before Hudl, before social media and before every great performance could become viral content, Brian Davis became one of the greatest athletes Western Pennsylvania had ever seen.

And if you were fortunate enough to watch him? You probably don’t need this article to tell you.

You already know.

This is Part 2 of DrewSchifino.com’s series, “Pittsburgh’s Greatest ‘What If?’ Athletes,” remembering Western Pennsylvania athletes whose talent deserves to be talked about long after the final whistle.