Arizona wide receiver David Douglas was hoping to make a name for himself last season as a freshman.
He worked hard every day in practice and kept his chin up when he wasn’t getting much playing time. His hard work paid off, at least to some extent, during his first season in cardinal and navy.
“”David played some decent minutes last year for a true freshman and he continues to develop,”” said UA head coach Mike Stoops. “”… David’s a very good receiver and a very reliable guy.””
He caught one pass for 20 yards in mop-up duty in a 70-0 season-opening win against Idaho and had one catch each against Oregon State and Oregon, for seven and 14 yards, respectively. While those numbers might not be much to look at, it was his consistent play in practice last season and throughout summer and fall camp that caught the UA coaching staff’s eye.
“”He knows that you have to do all the things off the field to be good and he knows what you have to do on the field to be good. We saw (against NAU) all those things come together,”” said inside receiver coach Garret Chachere. “”… That was a big day for him and for him to see the hard work coming through and things working out for him, it was special for me and special for him.””
Douglas had two grabs for 22 yards in Arizona’s 19-6 win against Central Michigan. His five catches for 43 yards in the 34-17 UA win against NAU could be a taste of things to come if he keeps working to improve.
Last season, then-quarterback Willie Tuitama said Douglas was making a name for himself because he had some of the best hands on the team. But a slip of the tongue revealed just how much attention Douglas was getting.
“”We call him Doo-Doo,”” Tuitama said with a chuckle.
But why would somebody allow themselves to be called Doo-Doo? Because of what it implies, of course.
“”It kind of started with me and Dave Roberts playing the same position,”” Douglas said. “”His name is Dave and my name is Dave and one our coaches — he’s not here anymore, coach (Michael) Smith — he started calling me Doo-Doo just because … well you could just say that it was because I was doo-dooing on people.””
And by that, his coaches and teammates meant he was as “”regular”” of a performer as you could ask for — that and he was making people look “”like doo-doo”” when they tried to defend him.
“”It’s a lot more fun. For him, he likes to be called Doo-Doo rather than Dave now, but after he graduates and gets in the working world I think he’ll want to be called Dave,”” Chachere said. “”… I do call him Doo-Doo every now and then, but not very often. … His momma calls him Dave, so I call him Dave.””
Aside from an interesting nickname, Douglas also has an interesting skill set and surprising athleticism. The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder played basketball and football, and ran for the track team at North High School in McKinney, Texas.
“”Most people underestimate my athletic ability, but I can get up and dunk it,”” Douglas said.
His physical attributes allow him to do more than just be a rotation player in the Wildcats’ receiving group. He’s listed at No. 2 on the depth chart as the team’s punt returner, and the more chances Doo-Doo has had to make plays, the more his coaches and teammates notice how good he can be.
And if Douglas keeps up the regularity and consistency of his performance on the field, he could be doo-dooing on the competition for years to come.
“”You have to come out here and work your hardest, regardless of what you’re doing. But it feels good to get into the action,”” Douglas said. “”It feels good after working hard in the off-season and all that stuff. … The more game action you get, the more of a feel you get for the speed, and the more confident you get.””
