Mississippi State junior cornerback Darius Slay has waited a long, long time to be in the spotlight.
Out of high school, many colleges primarily recruited the 6’1, 180-pound Slay as a wide receiver who possessed a great amount of speed. The Brunswick, Ga. native committed to State in January of 2009 over offers from Kentucky and Troy but failed to qualify academically. He then enrolled at Itawamba Community College, where he played his first two years of college football.
When his time at ICC was beginning to come to a close in 2010, Slay was again heavily recruited, this time as a cornerback. He accumulated offers from nine of the 12 SEC schools before pledging his allegiance to MSU once again, joining a handful of other commits who projected to be defensive backs in the Bulldog’s 2011 signing class.
When asked what attracted him to State, Slay quickly expressed how comfortable the town, campus and football program made him feel.
“(I really liked) the environment,” Slay said. “When I came down and took a visit and talked to all the coaches, (they) stuck by my side the whole time and kept me motivated, and I knew this was the right school to come to.”
Once on campus, Slay found himself buried on the depth chart behind proven veteran cornerbacks Johnthan Banks and Corey Broomfield.
He was never intimidated, though, and said when he committed to play for the Bulldogs, he knew it was going to take a lot of “hard work and grinding” in order to see the field.
Although he practiced and prepared hard, Slay saw limited action in the first four games of the season, compiling four tackles primarily on special teams.  
Going into last week’s game against Georgia, Slay, who was born and raised in the Peach State, said when he returned home, he wanted to give his family something to see.
That opportunity came early in Saturday’s game. With junior Corey Broomfield struggling with a broken thumb, Slay was inserted into the field-cornerback position where he quickly found success.
After making a couple of tackles in the first half, triumph was thrown Slay’s way in the form of a fourth-quarter Aaron Murray pass. Slay, undercutting his assigned receiver, intercepted the pass and took it 72 yards for a touchdown, the first and only time MSU found the endzone all game.
“We were in man coverage, so I was looking at the receivers,” Slay explained. “I already knew what routes they were going to run, so I just jumped it.”
He finished the game with three tackles, a forced fumble and the interception in which he returned for a score.
The junior cornerback’s success was one of the few positives the coaches were able to take away from the Georgia game, as State was defeated 24-10.
“I was really tickled about the way he played,” MSU cornerback coach Melvin Smith said. “I told him he was going to play good. He studied, he had splits, and the play that he made, he was prepared.”
Smith, who has been known              to only play two cornerbacks, said he has no choice but to continue giving the JUCO transfer an adequate amount of playing time after he earned his way onto the field.
When asked to what extent he believes Slay will be involved in the near-future, MSU defensive coordinator Chris Wilson said he is hoping for big things.
“I’m expecting a lot. Darius not only can help you on normal scrimmage downs but in the special teams,” Wilson explained. “With a guy that’s only got 18 or 19 months of college football left, we need to give him every opportunity to showcase his ability.”
Some believe Slay will become a staple as a kick and punt returner on special teams, positions he held in junior college.
“(The coaches) know that I have a lot of speed on me, and they have started to put me back on punt return,” Slay admitted. “So I’m going to be ready for that every time they throw me back there.”
With only a year and a half of college football remaining, the junior cornerback said he has an ultimate goal in mind.
“To be the best player that I can become,” Slay said. “Hopefully that will lead me either to the NFL or getting a great job. I’m just going to come in, work hard and get better every day.”