Teegan Davis and Bennett Williams teamed up for much success on the football field for the Princeton Tigers, and each have had their share of adversity.

The former Princeton standouts took in the Tigers’ summer scrimmage Thursday to check in on their former teammates while mapping their way back to the gridiron this fall.

It’s been two long years for Davis recovering from a devastating knee injury suffered while competing at the state indoor track meet his senior year in March 2023. He redshirted his first year in Iowa City and received a medical redshirt his second.

He still has four years of eligibility and is ready to get back in action.

“I’m kind of healthy, [want to] stay healthy and see if I can make my way out there,” he said. ”I just want to find my way onto the field, whether it’s special teams, defense, to help the team."

He’ll get that chance with the start of fall practice this week in Iowa City.

“We got camp here in a week, move into a hotel on the 29th. Four full weeks of straight football. Four full weeks, every day,” he said.

Davis feels it will be a good season for the Hawkeyes.

“We’ve got a lot of newcomers this year, lot of freshmen came in, a lot of transfers and key pieces that came in. We’ve got a lot of older guys who know what they’re doing and played a lot of snaps. I think we should have a really good team this year.”

Davis was an Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Class 3A All-State first-team selection at Princeton. As a senior quarterback, he accounted for 37 touchdowns and more than 2,400 yards of offense with his arm (1,638 yards, 20 TDs) and legs (766, 17).

He received a full-ride scholarship from Iowa in December 2022 as a defensive back two days after decommitting from Eastern Illinois University. Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz came to Prouty Gym in January 2023 to watch Davis play for the then No. 1-ranked Class 2A Tigers basketball team.

Williams also was hampered by injury. He suffered a season-ending knee injury in a Week 5 win over Sterling during his senior year in 2023. He already had received a scholarship offer from the Air Force Academy and signed with the Falcons a few months later after the new year in 2024.

He practiced with the Air Force varsity and JV squads last fall but did not play. He is hopeful to take the field this fall and said he should be dressing this year.

It has not been an easy task at the academy, but Williams knew it was not going to be.

“The academy has been tough, but it’s also going to be a job. Football’s been going good,” he said.

Williams said the biggest thing he’s learned about college football is the speed of the game.

“It’s definitely a lot different than high school. Being able to see that is a blast. I’ve been enjoying that a lot,” he said. “Some of the drills we do has helped me out a lot within the D-line position. Being able to learn some of that is going to help me with my craft.”

There are no redshirts awarded at the academy, Williams said.

“It’s just four years,” he said.

Williams will find a familiar face at the academy this year with incoming freshman cadet and former teammate Ian Morris on base, although Morris is not necessarily recognizable, having lost his trademark beard and long locks.

“Yeah, no hair, no beard. Caught him out of crowd, but I also know what squad he was in,” Williams said. “I’ll help him out. I know he’ll be a little more restricted freshman year, but I’ll help him with certain stuff if he needs something off base.”

Princeton will have a third former player, Payne Miller, in the Division I ranks this fall. Payne Miller is a redshirt freshman defensive lineman for Western Illinois. He played in two games last year for the Leathernecks, making one solo tackle.