Bailey, N.C., native Darius Edmundson called it a "long journey," but the destination has landed him at where he always wanted to be: NC State.

Edmundson graduated in the 2019 class from Southern Nash High alongside NC State sophomore running back Zonovan Knight. Colleges like the Wolfpack were intrigued by Edmundson, but he needed to first go to a junior college to shore up his transcripts.

He arrived at Louisburg (N.C.) College but missed his freshman season with an injury. Then COVID struck down all but two games in 2021. Yet the limited film he had was enough to at least get him on NC State's board.

“This past fall semester, they showed the coaches my film and they really liked it," Edmundson noted. "They called the coach at Louisburg and told them they really liked my film, they just don’t have any spots for me."

Word of Edmundson's athletic measurables at South Carolina's summer camp would reach NC State: a 4.48-second 40-yard dash time, a 10-foot-1 broad jump and a 37-inch vertical leap.