By: Nolan Alexander
People tend to the think things come easy for the quarterback. It's the marquee position, the big man on campus, the center of every play and the one who makes all the highlight videos, right?
While Daniel David may hold those attributes, the path wasn't smooth. In fact, he almost left the path completely. As an all-star prospect from Mill Creek High School, the Hoschton native chose Appalachian State from a litany of offers.
"I didn't really know what to expect when I first got to App State," David said. "Part of me was like, 'I can go in and play right away,' but when I got there, I got a reality check quick. That's about the time my confidence started going down. I am really hard on myself. When I was at App State, I wasn't having fun playing football and my love for the game was at the lowest point it's ever been before.
"Then I came to Kennesaw State and Coach (Brian) Bohannon, (Cody) Worley, and Coach (Grant) Chestnut got my spirits up. I had that passion back that I always use to play with."
It was a steady process for the 6-1, 212-pounder, who fits the prototype of Brian Bohannon's spread option offense. He learned the ropes from his coaches and All-America quarterback Chandler Burks. However, the disciplined David still wasn't at the level he desired. Â
"For a while, I was down and hard on myself," David said. "I hadn't been used to sitting behind and not playing. One week at practice, I don't know what got in my head, it may have been my parents talking to me, but I just got locked in and I was focused on being ready to play if my number got called to go in to play. That week of practice, I got locked in and watched more film, and kept getting up early to give myself the best chance to get in to play."
It paid off. On Oct. 6, 2018, he ran four times with a touchdown, and delivered a 43-yard strike in a 56-0 rout of Presbyterian. It inspired confidence that paid off later in a heroic comeback attempt to South Dakota State in the FCS quarterfinals. He led a pair of fourth quarter touchdown drives, rushed for 65 yards with a touchdown, and passed for 94 yards and a score.
Nearly a year later, his confidence is high, and his production is even better. After three trips to the end zone and 111 rushing yards against North Alabama last Saturday, he's accumulated 405 yards on the season and a whopping 14 touchdowns, the most by any quarterback in the country.
"It's crazy to see how far I've come since then, fundamentally and my confidence level, my passion for the game is back and I've enjoyed playing," David said. "For a while I was really questioning my abilities. I am naturally very hard on myself. Even if I have a so-called good game, I am still very hard on myself and get mad at myself for not accomplishing things in a game.
"I would always text my parents and say, 'I'm not good enough' and 'my confidence is really down.' And they just comforted me like the good parents they are. They raised me right. They told me that I just need to keep working hard, my time will come, and my opportunity will come and present itself, and it has in the past."
As a leader of the team, he's spotted underclassmen in similar situations and offered his experiences as wisdom.
"A couple weeks ago at practice, the coaches pulled me aside and said, 'we need more leadership and energy out of the guys,'" David said. "I've tried to bring that every day and bring everyone's energy up. There have been some occasions that I've had to pull guys aside and say, 'listen, I've been in your shoes before, I know how you feel. You can be upset, but your opportunity is going to come.' I've said that multiple times and some of the guys have listened because I've seen it translate to the field."
It's a lesson learned for not just the underclassmen on the roster, but for anyone.
"Always be ready for your opportunity," David said. "For a while, I never thought I was going to play, and I thought about quitting. The main thing is just not giving up on what you set your mind to."
