Senior football star, track runner and basketball player Darius Whiteside II joined Troy High School’s Varsity Football team during his sophomore year. He began playing football as early as kindergarten, “[starting] off with flag football, and [then] playing tackle football in 5th grade.” 

“I’ve just always played it,” said Whiteside. “Football is a great sport for me to play, that’s probably the best sport I play. I felt like it was a great fit.”  

Whiteside’s capabilities set the standards for Troy High School’s football team higher than ever.  “Individually, Darius did things that no other kid in Troy High could do,” said Chris Fraiser, the varsity football coach. “He can jump higher than most kids on the team. We’d just throw the ball up, and we knew that most times Darius would come down with it.” 

Named a 2022 Michigan High School Football Coaches’ Association first-team All-State defense player, Whiteside made history with his athletic abilities. He received college offers from Bowling Green State University, Central Michigan University, Northern Illinois University, Wayne State University, Saginaw Valley State University and Akron University. In addition, he was nominated as one of the Top Ten D-Zone performers during the Rising Stars Martin Luther King Camp and was voted into the All-State honors team by the Michigan High School Football Coaches’ Association.

However, Whiteside comments, “My greatest accomplishment is that last year and this year, we had a great record. Past two years, we’ve only lost four or three games.”

“His athletic abilities are what got him the college scholarship and what put his name on the map,” said Fraiser. “the best thing about Darius is that he never had a bad day. He never took plays off at practice, he was never questioning things [and] he’d try his hardest every day.”

Whiteside dominated the field throughout his high school career, whether it be through powerful steals, record-breaking times or strategic touchdowns. But, notably, his personality outshines his abilities.

“As a player, we’ll miss him because he was one of our best players, but more importantly, as a person, we’ll miss Darius next year because he brought just a positive energy to the high school,” said Fraiser. “He brought a positive energy to the class, he brought a positive energy to being a peer mediator. We’ll miss him as a person because I don’t think there’s many people around here that’ll say something bad about him.”

Whiteside committed to play football for Grand Valley State University, majoring in Criminal Law.