| Profile | |
|---|---|
| Position | Safety |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1984-06-21)June 21, 1984 (age 41) Brunswick, Georgia, U.S. |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Weight | 214 lb (97 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Brunswick (GA)[1] |
| College | Texas Tech |
| NFL draft | 2006: undrafted |
| Career history | |
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
| Awards and highlights | |
| |
Dwayne Slay (born June 21, 1984) is an American former professionalfootball player who was asafety. He playedcollege football for theTexas Tech Red Raiders. Later he also played professionally for the Chicago Bears andAmarillo Dusters andWinnipeg Blue Bombers of theCFL.
While only playing for one season as a starter atTexas Tech, Slay set a newBig 12 record with eight forcedfumbles in a single season. This achievement, along with Slay being one of the top tacklers in the Big 12, contributed to him being named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year by theAssociated Press and First-team All-Big 12 Conference in November,2005.[2] Slay was also named a First-team All-American bySports Illustrated in December 2005, the first Red Raider thus selected sinceMontae Reagor in 1998.[3]
In one game—against theKansas State Wildcats on October 15, 2005—Slay had two big hits. The first was a tackle on Kansas Statewide receiverDavin Dennis that caused a fumble. Slay later caused another fumble when he hitquarterback Allan Everidge on an up-the-middle draw play that forced Everidge to the turf for several minutes. The Red Raiders won the game 59–20.
Towards the end of the season, ESPN'sMel Kiper, Jr. had Slay as one of his top 25 NFL draft prospects and many believed Slay would, at the very least, go late in the first day of the draft. However, after a poor pro-day workout at the NFL combine, Slay's status dropped significantly.
Pundits predicted that Dwayne Slay would be drafted by an NFL team in the seventh round of the2006 NFL draft; but, after going undrafted, Slay instead signed a free agent contract with theChicago Bears. Slay was released by the Bears due to injuring his hamstring. The Bears re-signed Slay and put him on the practice squad as a linebacker. He later left the team and was signed by theAmarillo Dusters.[4] Slay moved on to sign with theWinnipeg Blue Bombers,[5] but was later cut[6] and is currently out of football.
Following his retirement from football, he returned to Texas. In 2015, he returned to at Texas Tech and completed his bachelor's degree in human sciences.[7] He is the cousin of NFL cornerbackDarius Slay.[8]