All through his senior season, Chris Stamps seemed destined to be denied in his pursuit of excellence.

Warren Central’s standout cornerback needed five interceptions to pass his older brother Otis for the school record. He got three.

He was a leader on the WC defense that was the best in Class 6A two years in a row, and a first-team all-state selection, but never won a playoff game.

As he prepares to represent Warren Central one last time, however, there’s little doubt that Stamps belongs among the best players in Mississippi. He’s verbally committed to Mississippi State and on Saturday will take the field as an all-star in the 28th annual Mississippi-Alabama All-Star Game.

“It’s a real big honor. It’s the best of the best going against each other. Being selected shows that people think I’m one of the best,” Stamps said. “They choose you and expect you to make big plays to bring home a victory.”

Stamps, who spent three years as a varsity starter, did that plenty of times for Warren Central.

He finished his high school career with 13 interceptions. That was two short of his brother’s record, but Stamps said it was apparent early in the season that he wouldn’t get it. His skills and his reputation led teams to avoid his side of the field and limited his opportunities for takeaways.

As the season unfolded, Stamps said both he and his brother made peace with it.

“It wasn’t disappointing not to get it, because it meant teams weren’t throwing at me,” Stamps said. “Not to get it is a sign of other teams showing me respect.”

While Stamps didn’t catch a lot of passes on the defensive side of the ball, he snagged plenty on offense to help Warren Central become an even more dangerous team. He followed up a 26-catch season in 2013 by finishing with a team-high 32 receptions for 404 yards and four touchdowns.

Stamps’ 65 career receptions are the second-most in school history behind teammate Marcus Ragan, who finished with 68.

Stamps finished his high school career with 902 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.

As he improved on both sides of the ball, Stamps helped the Vikings turn their fortunes around. The team won one game his freshman season, then went 23-13 the next three years. Stamps was good enough as an individual player to earn a scholarship offer from Mississippi State last spring, but coach Josh Morgan said his selflessness and team-first attitude were even more impressive.

“He’s the ultimate team guy. He got offered early, and he could’ve been selfish and wanting to work on his craft. He could’ve put it on cruise control. We saw a lot of guys on other teams this season that did that. But he didn’t do that,” Morgan said. “He was driven to bring a championship to this school and the guys he grew up with.”

Morgan added that Stamps’ skill as a cornerback freed up the rest of the defense.

“Chris was one of those guys you could trust, and that allowed us to use players in other places,” Morgan said. “He’s another football mind, like all of those (seniors). He’s smart and talented. He hardly left the field.”

If there’s one thing Stamps does regret about his high school career, it’s that when he did finally leave the field it wasn’t as a winner. Although he helped engineer the turnaround that put Warren Central back on the football map in Mississippi, he never got to enjoy the feeling of walking off victorious in the playoffs.

The Vikings won a piece of the Region 2-6A championship in 2013 but lost to Tupelo in the first round of the playoffs. They spent most of this season ranked in the Top 5 of the Associated Press Class 6A poll, then bowed out again in their playoff opener against Southaven.

Stamps said that, on the whole, he was proud of what he and his fellow seniors accomplished over the long haul.

“I had a real good career. I couldn’t ask for much more,” he said. “The only thing I wanted more was a playoff victory.”

Mississippi-Alabama All-Star Game

Time: Saturday, Noon

Location: Montgomery, Ala.

TV: WLBT

Local players: Chris Stamps (DB/WR, Warren Central) and Drake Dorbeck (OL/DL, St. Aloysius)