Darius Slayton recorded the best game of his Auburn career against Purdue late last month, snaring three passes for three touchdowns and 160 yards. The bowl victory will now mark the final game of his Auburn career, as well.
The fourth-year junior will skip his final season on The Plains and enter the NFL Draft, he announced on his Instagram on Thursday morning.
"The past four years at Auburn have been the best of my life," Slayton wrote. "I am proud to be an Auburn Tiger and forever thankful for my time at Auburn. With that said, after speaking with my family and giving this decision a lot of thought and consideration, I have decided to forego my senior year of football to declare for the NFL Draft."
After a slow start to the season, Slayton finished 2018 leading Auburn in receiving yards with 670. He tied freshman Seth Williams for the most receiving touchdowns on the team with five.
Slayton averaged 657 yards a year over the past two seasons after less than 300 in his first year.
"I feel like this is the best decision for me," Slayton wrote. I would like to take a moment to thank the Auburn Family for supporting me and my teammates over the last four years. It has been a great experience, and I will forever be grateful to Auburn, Coach Malzahn and all of the coaches here for giving me the chance to play football at this outstanding University. I will carry the relationships and bonds that I have built with my teammates on with me for the rest of my life."
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Nathan King, senior in journalism with a minor in business, is The Plainsman's sports editor.
