Ricky Davidson
Class of 2007
Ricky Davidson arrived in Huntsville in 1963 from Kansas City and quickly became a two-sport headliner at Davis Hills and Lee High. As a sophomore, he contributed to Lee’s 1968 state basketball championship and later earned 1970 All-City honors on the hardwood. Coach Jerry Dugan called him “the best defensive player I have ever coached—and one of the greatest competitors.”
Baseball, though, became Davidson’s signature. A three-year starter under Max Burleson, he joined a 1969 Lee team that went undefeated and was packed with future Hall of Famers. In 1970 the Generals went 17-3, won the TVC title, and reached Alabama’s first state high-school baseball playoffs. Davidson made the All-City team and was MVP of the Alabama East/West All-Star Game.
He signed with Columbia State Community College and authored a rare feat: first-team JUCO All-American in consecutive years at different positions—center field (1971) and third base (1972). Drafted by the Montreal Expos in 1971 and the Philadelphia Phillies in 1972, he chose education, heading to Mississippi State. As a senior he led the Bulldogs with a .321 average and earned All-SEC honors as a catcher, displaying elite versatility behind the plate and at it.
After graduation, Davidson played one season in the Italian Professional Baseball League before returning to Huntsville, where he became a fixture with Jim Talley’s renowned Independents teams—playing in five National Baseball Congress World Series in Wichita.
Competitor, teammate, winner: Davidson thrived in every uniform he wore. He married Molly, raised a family, and stayed connected to the game that shaped him. Ask those who played with or against him and they’ll tell you the same thing Coach Dugan said decades ago: Ricky Davidson was relentless—at third, in center, at catcher—and in every clutch moment Huntsville fans remember best.
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