Justin Malone was ready. Having appeared in all 12 games during 2012, his redshirt freshman season with Mississippi State, including four starts at left guard, Malone was ready to take things to the next level, to build on the structure he'd created that first year, to hone in on the fundamentals, the finer aspects of the position, and start turning his natural physical gifts into a consistently productive commodity for the on-the-rise Bulldogs.
But three quarters into his sophomore campaign, Malone's season was over. Without warning it was back to the drawing board, back to the beginning.
"At first I was kind of depressed," Malone told Headlines and Global News recently. "I was coming into my own. We were ready to build on that. Then just, my season ended in three quarters."
But Malone shook off the setback - a Lisfranc injury - and got to work on his rehab. Now, several years removed from that lost season, Malone is ready again, but this time, the goal isn't just to take another step in his personal development.
It's to prove to the NFL and, if by some stroke of luck, the Oakland Raiders, that he's worth a selection in the 2016 NFL Draft.
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While most NFL pundits consider guard to be Malone's future NFL home, with NFL Draft Scout slotting him as the 46th-best at the position out of 220 candidates, the long-levered Malone actually thinks he's a natural tackle.
But again - it's not his concern. Just like he can't predict where he'll land in the draft, Malone can't say for certain how the team that does pick him up will utilize him.
He loves run blocking, but thinks his greatest strength is pass blocking. He wants to "move people," but is just as willing to set and protect.
Malone wasn't invited to the combine and there are only limited reports of his pro day numbers - 5.48 40-yard dash, 24.5-inch vertical jump and a 97-inch broad jump - but either way, he believes the same mental and physical tools that allowed him to excel in the SEC against guys like former Alabama tackle Jesse Williams, will allow him to excel as an NFLer.
Really, when you spend your collegiate career blocking guys like Chris Jones - another top-rated Bulldogs prospect expected to go high in the 2016 NFL Draft despite the almost absurd abundance of talented defensive lineman available - Denico Autry, Josh Boyd and soon-to-be highly-paid Philadelphia Eagles star Fletcher Cox in practice, and keeping a possible future starting NFL signal-caller in Prescott clean during those knock down, drag em' out SEC games, you've got plenty of reason to believe you're a future NFL player.
"I have great experience against that caliber of player and I expect I can be that caliber of player," Malone said. "I'm going to keep working and they helped me get to where I am now, getting better, and all that stuff, so I know I'm ready to do it and that I can do it."
But the proof, as they say, is in the pudding. And like a gambler with nothing to lose, all Malone is asking for is a chip and a chair. Again, whether that chip, that draft selection, that training camp spot, comes from the Raiders or another team isn't his concern.
All Malone cares about is an opportunity to put on his pads and his cleats and show the NFL what he's made of.
The rest, he believes, will take care of itself.
"I want to win the game. I want to win the play. I want to win the battle between me and that guy in front of me," Malone said. "I'll do whatever it takes for me to win."
