The Wisconsin Badgers have been chasing down 4-star in-state forward Donovan Davis for a long time. Davis is not only one of the top players in the state (No. 2) but also one of the best in the country. 24/7 Sports has him as a top-50 recruit in the 2027. Davis has now narrowed his offer list, which was closing in on 10 offers, down to five.
Davis has announced that he will only consider Iowa, Iowa State, Marquette, Nebraska, and Wisconsin going forward. The teams that many experts seem to think are in the lead are Wisconsin, Iowa State, and Nebraska. However, 24/7 Sports recruiting insider Alec Busse put in a strong prediction for him to commit to the Cyclones over the other five.
NEWS: Donovan Davis, Rivals’ No. 32 overall recruit in the 2027 class, is down to five schools and will announce his college commitment on May 6th, he told @Rivals. ⁰⁰The 6-7 forward will decide between Iowa, Nebraska, Iowa State, Marquette, and Wisconsin.… pic.twitter.com/Vv0hExUcKx
— Joe Tipton (@JoeTipton) May 1, 2026
Iowa State is the team to beat for forward Donovan Davis
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It's not just 24/7 Sports that has Iowa State as the favorite for Davis. On3.com is also giving a prediction rating for the Cyclones at 32.7%. The Badgers are next in line at 22.4%. However, it appears that Greg Gard may need to bypass Iowa State for Davis.
Gard hasn't done a great job with in-state recruits, especially some of the top ones. In fact, the pipeline from Wisconsin high schools to Iowa State is a pretty consistent thing. Yet, that's not the only landing spot. The No. 1-ranked in-state player, Dooney Johnson, has already pledged his commitment to the Gonzaga Bulldogs.
Gard was able to land 2026's No. 2-ranked player LaTrevion Fenderson, though the No. 1 player, Yusef Gray Jr., is headed to... You guessed it...Iowa State. In 2025, Gard landed Zach Kinziger, who was listed as the No. 3 player in the state of Wisconsin. The No. 1 player once again went to the Cyclones (Jamarion Batemon).
Iowa State is trying to swoop another player from Gard in Davis. However, there's still some hope, even if it mostly vanished as soon as Davis narrowed his list. The recruitment is not done, and Gard can still pull the rabbit out of his hat for Davis.
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