California State Football Spotlight: McClymonds RB Dominic Davis does, says it all

Quiet on the field, the versatile 1,750-yard rusher gives insights on his teammates, coaches, Oakland and the late John Beam

Dominic Davis breaks free for a 70-yard touchdown run in the 2025 Silver Bowl win over Oakland Tech at Castlemont High School / Photo by Eric Taylor

At 5-foot-9 and 170 pounds, it’s hard for McClymonds senior running back Dominc Davis to get much recruiting interest at this point. 

“If he were 6-foot tall and filled out a little, everyone in the country would be after the kid,” McClymonds coach Michael Peters said. “People are missing the boat if they don’t look at Dominic Davis.” 

If he’s undersized at running back, imagine how much weight he has to put on if he played the line? 

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Turns out Davis, who has piled up 1,750 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns in 13 games, most of which were blowouts, does about everything for the Oakland City powerhouse.  

“Plays safety, corner, nickel, returns kicks, he never leaves the field,” said Peters. “Hell he’d play noseguard if we asked him. 

“The kid just gets it done. Never talks back. Just does his work on the practice field, in the weight room, the class room. He’s a jewel man.”

Dominic Davis breaks tackles for McClymonds during a 35-0 win over Oakland Tech for the 2025 Silver Bowl/Oakland Section title. / Photo by Eric Taylor

He hopes to secure some more shiny hardware for McClymonds (11-2), which goes after its fifth state title at 7 p.m. Saturday when it faces Kennedy-Delano (12-3) at Fullerton Union High School District Stadium. 

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The quiet and hard-working on the field, he has plenty to say off it, all positive about his teammates, the city of Oakland and life in general. 

In fact, he is perhaps the best McClymonds’ player to break down other McClymonds players. For instance:

Quarterback Berell Staples, a Cal Poly commit and dual threat: “He’s a great leader. He helps me and everyone a lot at practice. He’s a great student of the game and when we need him most he comes through. Love the guy.” 

Washington bound cornerback Rahsjon Duncan (6-1, 190), who doubles as wide receiver: “Oh man, we go at it in practice. He’s so versatile. We all trust him on the defensive side. With his speed and strength, we can just leave one side of the field for him. He’s a great individual also. Really funny. Always has a smile on his face.” 

Rahsjon Duncan breaks free from an Oakland Tech defender during McClymonds' 35-0 win in the 2025 Oakland Section/Silver Bowl championship at Castlemont High School / Photo by Eric Taylor

Junior 6-3, 180-pound cornerback/safety/wide receiver Prince Staten, with nine college offers:  “He’s a great safety and wide receiver both. Very tall and long. He’s impossible to guard one-on-one.” 

San Diego State bound offensive and defensive lineman Koi Taiese (6-3, 295): “He’s a monster on the field and definitely keys both lines. When he pulls and gets out and blocks I know I’ll have lots of room to run. On defense, he disrupts everything. His size, speed and quickness is amazing. He’s the funniest dude ever also. He’s one of my closest friends. He always gets us laughing.” 

It was all tears in Oakland three weeks ago when former Skyline High School and Laney College coach John Beam was shot and killed in a senseless murder that rocked the city, state and nation. 

Beam was a huge factor after starring on Last Chance U, a Netflix series highlighting junior college programs all over the country. 

Davis said he had plenty of talks with Beam over the years — as most promising football players in Oakland did. “Coach Beam always gave good advice,” Davis said. “He was a really outstanding person in our community. Really positive. He definitely represented our community well. The way he treated people. He played a huge role and impacted so many young Oakland athletes, especially those who played football.” 

Closer to Davis has been the same impact of Peters and the McClymonds small-knit family for a school with just 265 students in West Oakland. Despite the small school size, McClymonds has carried a huge punch on the football field, which translates to other positive measures, Davis said. 

Berell Staples has thrown for more than 2,000 yards and 25 touchdowns during the team's Northern California Division 3-A championship season. / Photo by Eric Taylor

“When we go out of the area and play it’s even a bigger deal,” Davis said. “There’s a deeper sense of representation. We’re representing the Mac family and Oakland also. We have to play a little harder and longer because there are less of us. 

“People see us as a small team, but we definitely come up big in big situations because we work hard, train hard. ” 

Davis came up big in a 42-34 NorCal title home win over Roseville, rushing 22 times for 232 yards. He might have trouble getting that many carries against a Kennedy team that controls the ball largely with a Wing-T attack. 

“We’re definitely going to have to shut them down and hopefully break off some long plays ourselves,” Davis said. 

He draws from his own family with three brothers, including older brothers LJ and Brandon and younger eighth-grader Matthew, who will play at Mack next year. 

He loves watching the highlights of Shaquon Barkley and Jahmyr Gibbs — “I like both how patient they are reading blocks before taking off,” he said — and hearing from current UCLA running back Javian “The Jet” Thomas, who rushed for more than 4,000 yards over two high school seasons at McClymonds. 

“I was a freshman when he was a senior at McClymonds,” Davis said. “We talk or text all the time and he says to keep it up and this week to go win state.” 

That’s the plan, Davis said. 

“That’s always our expectation,” Davis said about winning a fifth state title. “We just have to keep consistent to keep this thing going.”

The McClymonds Orange and Black hope to pose for one more team picture in 2025 after a victory in the state title on Saturday. / Photo by Eric Taylor