Navy slot back Darryl Bonner and the rest of his senior class will be honored on Saturday during the final home conference game of the season against SMU. For Bonner, the team's co-captain, these last couple games in 2017 will be the culmination of a career defined by patience and execution when opportunity has arrived. 

Bonner is part of a trio of seniors from Terry Sanford High School in Fayetteville, North Carolina, an Army town forever linked closely Fort Bragg. The 5-foot-7, 178-pound back received little Division I interest coming out of high school, and although being ignored and overlooked was frustrating, he jumped a life-changing call from the Naval Academy shortly before National Signing Day during his senior year. 

It took a while for Bonner's breakout with no varsity action as a plebe and only two games of action as a sophomore in 2015. But by the end of the 2016 season, coach Ken Niumatalolo and the rest of Bonner's Navy teammates were calling him "Big Play Bonner." 

"I practiced every week like I was going to play a lot," Bonner explained, via NavySports.com. "I've had a knack for making people miss since I was little. But we have a lot of good A-backs every year. If you're a slot back [at Navy], you know you better make the most of your opportunities."

That first opportunity came last season in Navy's memorable top-10 upset of Houston -- the Mids' first victory over a top-10 opponent since 1984 -- with Bonner called into action because of injury and executing with 62 total yards of offense and a touchdown catch. Bonner emerged from that game surging with confidence, and he finished the season as the team's primary home-run threat averaging 27.8 yards per catch on 10 receptions and 14.0 yards per touch (rushing, receiving, kickoff returns) with five total touchdowns. 

"Big Play Bonner" was elected co-captain by his teammates coming into the 2017 season, and when it was time to battle with rival Air Force, the senior slot back again emerged as a star in a big spot with a wild hurdle at the end of a touchdown run in Navy's 48-45 win.

But as his college career winds down, Bonner is looking ahead to his transition into service. The Showtime series "A Season with Navy Football" featured Bonner and his two former high school teammates from Fayetteville (linebacker Myles Davenport and slot back Jahmaal Daniel) finalizing their official preferences for service assignment. Together, the three former high school teammates survived the plebe years and now lean on each other in preparing for this life-changing commitment. 

"It's a surreal moment because you're choosing your actual job now," Bonner said. "This is what you're going to do when you graduate and hit the fleet. You definitely don't want to wake up one day and be like 'alright, I want to do this one.'" 

Based on his position and role in Navy's offense, Bonner doesn't get a heavy workload with a lot of guaranteed touches. But Bonner's entire college career has been about making the most of his opportunities, so if there is a chance to have an impact as his senior seasons comes to a close, it's almost certain that "Big Play Bonner" has a couple of highlights left to add to the reel.