For Aaron Davis, the wait — the long wait — is over.

Some players contribute as true freshmen, while others have to wait a year before cracking the lineup as they sit out a redshirt season. Davis has waited two years to get into a game.

Aaron Davis said he transferred to SMU in part for the chance to defensive coordinator Tom Mason (photo by SWSMG).

Davis took a circuitous route to the Hilltop. He signed with Fresno State in 2007, and sat out the fall semester as a grayshirt. When FSU linebackers coach Tom Mason left the following spring to become Jones' defensive coordinator at SMU, Davis followed him, only to sit out again as a redshirt.

"Coach Mason recruited me out of high school, and I've always wanted to play for him," Davis said. "He gave me a chance out of high school, and when he left for SMU, I called him and said I wanted to come with him."

So Davis headed to Dallas, and spent the 2008 season as a linebacker on the Mustangs' scout team — only to face more changes. The Mustang coaches decided to shift their base defense from the 4-3 to a 3-4 alignment, and told Davis his future would be as a defensive end.

"It's going to be a challenge for him," Mason said of Davis. "It's hard to go from linebacker, where you're standing up, to putting your hand down in a three-point stance. At linebacker, you usually get a running start, but at defensive end, you're going to get hit on every play."

But Mason said he saw traits in Davis that made him think Davis could make the switch to the line.

"He's a tough kid, a smart kid," Mason said of Davis, who carries 245 pounds on his 6-foot-2-inch frame. "He was Southern Section Player of the Year in high school. I coached with his uncle, so I knew the family. I've known about him for a while, and I've always liked him."

The faith that Mason showed in Davis — twice — was mirrored by Davis's desire to follow Mason to Dallas.

"I could have stayed at Fresno State and played there, but I looked at SMU and saw it was a great opportunity," Davis said. "I wanted to play for Coach Mason, and you get a great education here. It was a tough choice, but it was the right choice."

Davis, known as "Spike" to his teammates ("after the crazy kid in Little Giants," he said), said the adjustment to defensive end will take some time, but it's one he's confident he can make.

"Defensive end is a tough position," Davis said. "I'm learning how to use my hands to free myself from blockers, but that will come. With a hand down, the offense obviously looks different, but I've gotten a little more used to that in spring ball. It's an adjustment, but I'm getting there."

Where he falls in the defensive ends rotation will be sorted out in August, during preseason workouts, but Davis echoes Mason's assessment that the position change is one he is capable of handling.

"It's getting better every day," Davis said of the transition. "I can play a lot of special teams, and at defensive end, I'm getting more comfortable every day."