DAVIS, Calif. – A pair of former UC Davis football standouts have now appeared in at least one National Football League game this season. Keelan Doss is a wide receiver for the Los Angeles Chargers and Daniel Whelan is punting for the Green Bay Packers.
Doss, a wide receiver for the Los Angeles Chargers, made his season debut on Monday Night Football after being elevated from the practice squad that morning.
Doss has appeared in 10 NFL games and made two starts with the Raiders and Chargers, totaling 11 receptions for 133 yards (12.1 avg.). He also spent time with the Jaguars, Falcons, Jets and Giants before signing to the Chargers' practice squad last season.
The most decorated receiver in program history set numerous records throughout his final season at UC Davis, a list of all-time marks that includes receptions (321), receiving yards (4,069) and 100-yard games (19). Doss ended his college career with another three Big Sky-era program records: receiving touchdowns (28), total touchdowns (29) and all-purpose yards (4,218).
Named one of the team's captains for the 2018 season, Doss earned first team All-Big Sky honors for the second year in a row, and finished with a career-high 118 receptions for 1,334 yards and nine touchdowns. He led all conference players with a 9.1 receptions per game average, which ranked him No. 3 in the nation in this category.
The year prior, he was a consensus All-American, and Big Sky Offensive Player of the Year. He decided to come back for his senior season to help lead the Aggies to their first Big Sky Championship and first FCS Playoff berth, which included their first playoff victory.
Daniel Whelan has punted in every game for the Green Bay Packers, punting 22 times for 1,044 yards, averaging 47.4 yards per kick. Whelan has placed four inside the 20-yard line and has a net of 38.1 yards per punt.
When Whelan played in Week 1 against Chicago, he became the first Irish-born player to play in the NFL since Neil O'Donoghue's final season with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1985.
Born in Dublin, Ireland, Whelan moved to the United States at age 13. The 6-foot-5, 214-pound punter made the All-XFL team with the DC Defenders this spring before signing with the Packers. Whelan averaged 45.7 yards (37.7 net) on six preseason punts, while dropping three inside the 20-yard line.
Whelan is the second Aggie punter to suit up for an NFL squad in the last five seasons as Colby Wadman played 28 career games for the Denver Broncos, including all 16 in 2019.
During his time at UC Davis, Whelan was named a HERO Sports FCS All-American and a Stats Perform FCS All-American in 2021. He finished his collegiate career as arguably the greatest punter in Aggie history, averaging a school record 44.01 yards per punt and a single-season record 46.25 yards per kick in 2021.
Whelan had at least one punt of 60 yards or more in seven games that season and had 21 of 50 or more. The 6-6 punter also handled kickoff duties, with 37 of his 68 going for touchbacks. He earned All-Big Sky honors three times and garnered All-American accolades in two straight seasons.
At the conclusion of the 2021 spring season, Whelan earned first-team All-America honors from four organizations from Stats Perform, AFCA, HERO Sports and Phil Steele and was a finalist for FCS Punter of the Year after punting 17 times for 815 yards for a 47.9 average, tops among the Big Sky en route to earning All-Big Sky first-team honors.
In 2019, Whelan was named to the All-Big Sky third team and nabbed honorable mention accolades in 2018.
The Packers are coming off a bye and will play the Denver Broncos on Sunday, while Doss and the Bolts will head to Arrowhead to face the Kansas City Chiefs.
