Lincoln High’s top wide receiver is driven by the memory of his late friend

Before every football game, Lincoln High School senior Roling Davis finds ways to remember his late teammate, Syeer “Sasa” Smith.

Davis, a 5-foot-4, 140-pounder and the Railsplitters’ leading receiver, typically posts photos on social media of Smith, who died in February after being diagnosed with cancer in 2022.

Like many players at Lincoln, the No. 1 seed in District 12 Class 6A play, Davis also writes Ball4Sa on either a piece of tape or a towel that he wears during games.

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The truth is, Smith is never far from Davis’ mind. Smith might also be the reason the undersized Davis, 18, has been playing so well.

“He meant the world to me,” Davis said after a recent practice. “He was someone I could actually call a brother.”

Melissa Hammond-Davis has noticed a different spring in her son’s step this season.

“I don’t know what it is,” she said in a phone interview, “but it looks like he has a fire lit inside him because he is on point this year. I don’t know where it came from, but I know I’m loving it!”

It didn’t take long for the proud mom to interject when she eventually realized the answer.

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“He also lost one of his friends,” she said. “They were really close. I think that’s his driving force. He just says, ‘I just want to make him proud.’ ”

Davis met Smith when both played youth football for the Germantown Bears. The two became fast friends.

Just as he is today, Davis was a speedster. At his height, he has to be. But when he got to high school it was being short on confidence that got in his way.

His father, Roling Sr., was first to boost his spirits when Davis contemplated quitting before his sophomore season began.

He also needed a heart-to-heart with Smith after his junior season ended with bitter disappointment in the Public League championship game.

“That was a time again I was about to quit,” Davis said. “I had a talk with [Smith] and he said, ‘You gotta finish it through, bro. You just got to.’ ”

Spurred on by his friend, Davis pushed forward. Then in February, Smith died.

“He took it hard,” Hammond-Davis said. “I saw the decline in him as far as school and football. He really took it very hard. Even his coaches were concerned.”

Hakeem Cooper, now in his fifth season coaching Lincoln, said Davis wasn’t engaging with classmates, teammates, or coaches. Davis just went to school and then went home every day. And that, Cooper said, was if Davis went to school at all.

“It looked like exactly what it was,” Cooper said via phone. “He looked like he just lost his best friend.”

At some point, Cooper told Davis, “’What would Syeer want?’ We go out here every week and we always say ‘Ball4Sa’ at the beginning and end of every practice.

“My message to him was, ‘We can’t just say it just to say it. We have to mean it,’ ” Cooper added.

Cooper said Lincoln’s entire team, coaching staff, and administration attended Smith’s funeral. When Cooper spoke at the service, Davis asked if he could stand by his side.

“He was kind of like my best friend,” Davis said. “He was a goofy kid. He was just a happy kid. It’s just sad how that ended.”

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With time and support from friends, family, and his coaches, Davis eventually turned his pain into passion.

“I think about [Smith] all the time,” Davis said, “and what he would do if he was in my shoes.”

Davis’s father says his son now has, “a zeal, a passion that pushes him forward.”

Cooper said everything the team does is dedicated to Smith. His No. 3 jersey is always prominently displayed on the sideline and his locker still houses his jerseys.

No matter where Davis plays next season, Smith’s memory is sure to follow.

Cooper says college coaches, mainly Division II and III, have inquired about Davis’ exploits. His size, Cooper says, shouldn’t be a concern.

“You can’t give nobody heart,” he said. “You can’t teach that. He has heart. Playing with that chip on his shoulder, I’ve just been seeing the best in him.”

Davis leads the team with 34 catches, 600 yards, and 10 touchdowns in five games. Lincoln (3-4, 3-0) plays Palumbo next week in the first round of the Public League playoffs.

If there are college coaches concerned about his size, Davis doesn’t seem too worried.

“I don’t blame them,” he said. “But if I keep working there’s nothing that can hold me back. There’s nothing that can stop me.”