Up until this spring, 2020 Roswell (GA) safety Doneiko Slaughter had a quiet recruitment as a mostly unknown prospect with zero Power 5 offers and no national ranking. However, everything changed when Mississippi State offered Slaughter his first P5 scholarship in February, and since then, Slaughter has blown up: he now has 21 Division-I offers, with 9 coming within the past month.
"It motivates me a lot," Slaughter said. "Knowing that I was slept on motivated me to work even harder."
One of those new bids came from running back coach Eric Hickson and the Miami Hurricanes earlier this month.
“Coach Hickson called me and offered me on the phone, it was exciting,” Slaughter said. “He was telling me how Miami has had 4 safeties drafted recently and all about coach (Manny) Diaz.”
With his stock rising, many schools like Mississippi State, Arizona State, Maryland, and Minnesota have already gotten in on the 5-11 180 pound prospect and there are sure to be more offers to come in the near future. Position-wise, even though Hickson gave him the offer, the Canes see Slaughter’s future on defense.
“They like me at safety right now,” Slaughter said of Miami.
Growing up, Slaughter followed the Canes and knows the tradition of defensive backs that have come through Coral Gables.
“What has me interested is Miami’s tradition and how many greats come out of there,” he said.
Slaughter took his first official visit of the cycle to Tempe, Arizona last weekend to see Arizona State and is in the process of setting up other visits as well.
“I plan on visiting Miami soon.”
When it does come time to announce his commitment, though, Slaughter will be looking for a school that can help him get to the next level.
“I plan on deciding sometime in the summer,” Slaughter said. “What I am looking for in a school is good coaching and seeing if the school environment fits me.”
At the Opening Regional in Atlanta this March, Slaughter recorded a 4.65 40, a 4.4 shuttle time, and a 32.90 inch vertical. As a junior, he put up 64 tackles, 11 TFL, 8 sacks, and 2 INT’s in 2018.
