Catching up with Ben Davidson: UW years paved road to success

For a long time, Ben Davidson might have been the best-known of former Washington football players.

With his 6-foot-8, 275-pound frame, he was a menacing presence who personified the nastiness of the Oakland Raiders' "11 Angry Men'' defense of the late '60s and early '70s, as memorably captured in a photograph of him bashing Joe Namath's head into the ground.

And with a gregarious persona built around his trademark handlebar mustache, he later became an actor, starring in 27 commercials for Miller beer and making numerous appearances in movies and TV shows, which he said made him far richer than football ever did.

But Davidson, who played in 152 NFL games, won one NFL title and played in one Super Bowl, is quick to remind you that he started only two games at the UW.

"One because Jim Owens was mad at the first-teamer and another because the first-team guy was injured," said Davidson, now 62 and mostly retired and living in La Mesa, Calif.

Davidson, a Los Angeles native, didn't play football in high school, but concentrated on track and basketball instead. He was talked into playing football while attending East Los Angeles Junior College.

His success there led to a recruiting visit from Owens, who impressed Davidson — who didn't know much about how recruiting worked — by paying for the meal. He decided to come to Washington, cashing in the plane ticket the school sent him and riding the bus instead and pocketing the rest.

He played end for the Huskies in 1959 and 1960, when Owens turned the UW program around, winning the Rose Bowl both years.

Davidson remembers how few expected the UW to beat Wisconsin in the 1960 Rose Bowl.

"They wrote a lot of funny stories about how we were small, but don't worry, we're also slow," Davidson said. "Then we squeaked by 44-8. The next year (a 17-7 win over Minnesota) they didn't make fun of us."

UW went 20-2 in Davidson's two seasons. "We were just a bunch of young guys who survived a tough regimen and tough coaches and just kept winning games," Davidson said.

Owens' tough love was good preparation for the NFL as Davidson later played for Vince Lombardi — he was part of Green Bay's 1961 NFL title team — Al Davis, John Rauch and John Madden.

Davidson met his wife, Kathy, during an accounting class at UW and the two have been married 41 years. They have three grown daughters, one who lives in Bothell and recently gave birth to a son. They also travel the world — he recently took a trip to Burma.

He also still wears his trademark mustache and gives much credit to his time at the UW for shaping his career.

"I was young (just 19 when he enrolled at the UW) but I could run and play hard," he said. "I didn't know any other way."