Nate Davis was sitting pretty high atop the world Sunday afternoon.

And rightfully so.

The 2006 Bellaire High graduate and most recently the three-year starting quarterback at Ball State University had just received a phone call from the San Francisco 49ers, which will change his life forever.

Davis had been drafted by the five-time Super Bowl Champions in the fifth round with the 171st pick overall, which accomplished a life-long dream for the rifle-armed quarterback.

No matter how excited Davis was, we’re not sure he was even the most excited person in attendance at his draft party held Sunday afternoon at The Sports Bar at Undo’s West in St. Clairsville.

A large gathering of friends and family were in celebration mode shortly after 4:30 p.m. when Davis officially got his phone call from 49ers head coach Mike Singletary, informing him he’d been picked.

“I was outside when he got the phone call, and when I heard him on the phone say, ‘yes, I would like to play for you,’ I took off sprinting (back inside),” said his father Charles “Tube” Davis. “I wanted to see it on television and sure enough there was his name. What a feeling it is to see your son get drafted. His dream had come true.”

Nate’s mother Linda could sense her son was getting a little nervous waiting to hear his name, but when she walked outside and saw him on his phone, words couldn’t describe the feeling.

“The expression on his face was unbelievable,” Linda said. “It was perfect timing for me to go outside and be out there with him to celebrate with him. He was happy and satisfied, and to me that was the most important thing.”

While admittedly excited and happy about the accomplishment, Linda was hoping her baby boy would be playing a little closer to home.

“I hate to see him go that far away,” Linda said. “But, I am very happy for him. He deserves this opportunity.”

Linda missed only two games of Nate’s collegiate career and both of those were work-related, but trips to the west coast might not be as easy every week as the nearly five-hour haul to Ball State’s campus in Muncie.

“I missed a game at Toledo and when they played in Indianapolis, but my boss let me take my vacation days to go watch him play,” Linda said. “I kept telling him I wanted him to be in Indianapolis because it’s a straight shot. I love flying, so I’ll be making as many trips as possible.”

The excitement and reality of it all actually set in for Nate’s dad, Tube, during Saturday’s draft. Despite not hearing his son’s name called by the commissioner, he kept seeing his name flashed on the screen talking about the top quarterbacks available in the Class of 2009.

“I had goosebumps,” Tube said. “I was like wow this is the NFL Draft I’ve been watching for years, and now my son’s name was up there.”

The pick allowed the nerves around the room to calm after people had sat there for several hours watching names like Stephen McGee of Texas A&M and Sam Houston State’s Rhett Bomar go off the board earlier in the day Sunday.

“I smoke cigarettes,” Tube admitted. “I probably went through an entire pack today.”

Davis’ dad thinks the fact that he dropped into the fifth round after many talked during this past season that he could go as high as second round will serve as additional motivation and could prove quite beneficial to the 49ers.

“I think he should have a log on his shoulder, not just a chip,” Tube said. “I don’t care what anyone says, he’s as good if not better than most of the guys taken in front of him.”

While some of that has some obvious bias – and rightfully so – when talking about your son, Davis’ career numbers were better than the likes of Matthew Stafford, Mark Sanchez and Josh Freeman, all of whom were picked during Saturday’s first round.

“He’s had to prove himself in high school and in college, so this isn’t going to be any different,” Tube said. “I think he’s got a really good chance to go out there and do something. He’s going to compete.”

Davis threw for 9,233 yards and 74 touchdowns. Stafford finished with 7,731 yards and 51 scores; Sanchez – who was only the starter for a shade over one season – had 3,965 yards and 41 scores at USC and Freeman finished at Kansas State with 8,078 yards and 44 scores.

“He’s been told all his life he wasn’t capable of doing something,” Jose said. “People didn’t think he could learn the college playbook; when he was in high school it was that he was too old or can’t be eligible to play. Every year it was something, and that’s no different now. But now one team believed in him, and he’s got to take the opportunity and run with it.”

However, NFL teams by no means draft on numbers alone. Stats are probably one of the least important things NFL teams look at. It’s all about intangibles and Davis’ 40 yard dash time wasn’t all that impressive at the combine and people were concerned about his learning disability and whether he could handle the sophisticated NFL playbook.

One of the atendees Sunday could definitely atest to numbers being one of the least important aspects of a college football player’s resume when it comes to the professional ranks.

Nate’s brother Jose was a record-setting quarterback at Kent State, but never heard his name called in the NFL Draft nor was he picked up as a free agent, but got a professional chance in the arena leagues.

“It was tough watching guys go off the board and him not being picked yet,” Jose said. “I know what the feeling was all about, so to in as a highly-touted kid and then have to wait, but again everything happens for a reason.”

There were some around the Big Reds’ program who argued that Jose was more polished and had more skill, but one of the intangible factors NFL teams look for is size and Nate’s physical stature was more imposing than his brothers at 6-ft-2, 215 pounds.

“If it wasn’t for Jose’s size, he’d probable reached this point too,” Tube said. “But everything Nate has is because of Jose. He’s followed him and always wanted to be better than his brother, and Jose made him focus and work hard.”

Jose – who was a finalist for Ohio Mr. Football – kept telling people during his prep days to watch out for his brother and some people didn’t buy it.

“I told people he was going to be better than me; I could just see it,” Jose admitted. “I knew that if he just listened to some of the advice that I gave him he could exceed what I did, and obviously he’s done that and I am proud of him.”

Taking the advice and owning some additional physical tools made all of the difference.

“At the end of the day, it all boils down to what you are on paper,” Jose said. “Look at the guys ahead of him, they are taller and probably ran a better 40 time. Nate might not be a 4.6 guy, but you can’t doubt that man can throw the football.”

Jose spent an unfathomable amount of time researching all sorts of things for this process whether it’s about agents, where to work out, hooking his brother up with the right people for advice and anything else one could imagine.

“When I was coming out, I really didn’t have anyone to turn to who could help me with this sort of information,” Jose relayed. “I just went with whoever contacted me. I wanted to make sure he had the advantage and the proper knowledge of all of this stuff.”

While it was his brother’s day, Jose played a huge role in getting to the point and that was one of the most exciting parts for their father.

After getting word and seeing his name flash on ESPN’s coverage, Tube was excited, but when he witnessed his two sons embrace is when the emotions started to spew.

“When those two hugged each other, they started crying and that made me start to cry,” Tube said. “But, I was so happy for my sons and excited that they got to share this moment.”

It’s been a big month for the entire Davis family. Earlier this month, Jose was formally approved by the Bellaire Board of Education and hired as the Big Reds’ football coach.

“I am so proud of my sons,” Tube said. “There are no amount of words that can explain how excited I am for my sons.”

With Jose coaching the Big Reds this fall, trips to see his brother play will be limited, but don’t think he won’t know everything that’s going on in Frisco.

“I have been a subscriber for the past six or seven years to the NFL package, so I will be watching,” Jose said. “I might not be able to be there much physically, but I will be right there with him.”

One other thing’s for sure, while many in the Ohio Valley might not be able to frequent San Francisco, they will be following along too and rooting hard. Because despite his new location on the West Coast, the Ohio Valley will always be Nate Davis’ home.

Staskey can be reached at sstaskey@timesleaderonline.com