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Another NFL Draft is done and for Mississippi State it was another good draft year. Not in terms of raw numbers since just a pair of Bulldogs were called. But with Charles Cross taken in the first round, the top-ten in fact; and Emmanuel Forbes a third-rounder the average draft score was excellent.
This was certainly an uptick from 2021 with a pair of Dogs taken and in the seventh and last round. No worries though as it extended State’s run to 13 Drafts with at least one pick and a total 40 draftees in this stretch. Clever p.r. folk with good calculators have come up with comparisons showing where State’s program ranks in draft picks since name-that-year.
And it’s all correct.
Now with the Draft in the rearview and the big first wave of free agent signings done, a thought occurs. What Mississippi State recruiting class ended up producing the most drafted Dogs? And, has any recruiting classes produced no draftees?
The answers follow, at least for our 1999-2021 timeframe which is how far back 24/7s class lists and rankings go. It makes for a long enough story as it is, but someday I’ll grind through old media guides (remember real paper?) for classes like 1978 and 1997-98 and others.
One qualifier here: in a handful of cases an eventual pro signed one year before going to junior college or prep school and re-signing with State. They are listed with the first signing. And, I’m absolutely sure I have missed some free agent Dogs who wore NFL uniforms. Additions are welcomed.
1999 CB Fred Smoot JC/2nd round; DT Willie Blade 3rd round; TE Donald Lee 5th round
RB Dontae Walker ate and attituded himself out of draft and even free agent position. And we can always wonder, had Kevin Fant not taken over at QB when the program was slipping into a downturn, would he have blossomed into a NFL prospect? At least the guy who caught most of his passes, WR Justin Jenkins, caught on for a five-season career.
2000 OT David Stewart 4th round; DT Ronald Fields 5th round
Big Country Stewart and Fields were this classes whole pro production. None of the other 22 signees made a NFL roster even as free agents. So while yes, the crash was coming and the next class is usually blamed, ’00 recruiting wasn’t good. It still was better than what came next.
2001 none drafted
OK, that’s technically true because Fields re-signed as part of this class after percolating a year in prep school (remember those recruiting days?). I’m still baffled why no club used a draft pick on DT Tommy Kelly as he went on to a 11-season career. Otherwise, nothing. This puts the struggles of coming years in real perspective. And, made Arizona Western College a curse word in MSU circles.
2002 RB Jerious Norwood 5 stars/3rd round
Ahhh, this was to be the class to lead all classes, with two 5-stars and four more 4-stars. It was ranked #15 in the nation, too. But the timing proved terrible as they only got to play, or redshirt for, their signing coach a couple of seasons before a transition which…well, y’all know how that worked out. The funny thing is while Norwood was the only draftee, at the other end of the SEC-stars scale two pros emerged. 2-star DT Willie Evans got a deal and played three seasons, while 2-star DB Kevin Dockery landed in the league and played five years. Go figure.
2003 none drafted
And that’s a really hard notion to accept from a class rated #13. I suppose we should remember that ‘crootin rankings were still short on actual observation and more about reputation. Anyway the top two in the class made it the hard way to the NFL. DT Deljuan Robinson was a 5-star prospect who had a nice college career and was snagged on the open market for three years with Houston. S Quinton Culberson played for a couple of clubs in his three years.
2004 none drafted
Ouch. To be fair Sylvester Croom didn’t inherit the foundation of a recruiting class after the mid-season resignation of Jackie Sherrill. So he had to start from scratch. But all that got scratched up for a future pro career was free agent LB Titus Brown for three seasons at Cleveland. These back-to-back classes weren’t a change of direction as much as a fast crash.
2005 LB Jamar Chaney 3 stars/7th round; DT Antonio Johnson 3 starsJC/5th round
This was improvement as Georgia transfer Chaney became an excellent player for State’s Bulldogs and earned a last-round draft call that led to three seasons with two clubs. Johnson was another three-star with a three-season NFL future. Oh, and while his football career didn’t last and he wasn’t given much chance to play his other game in college, WR Adron Chambers went on to catch fly balls in MLB. But the bright star of the class and one of the best defenders/returners of the generation, 5-star Derek Pegues, could not catch on with any pro team.
2006 RB Anthony Dixon 6th round
Somehow in both the archives here and the printed magazine of the time, stars were not listed. No problem, here’s no way Boobie wasn’t worth at least four of ‘em. He became a star in his own imitable way at State and was among the last pure power backs in pro ball. Dixon almost is this class with only one other future pro signing on. That’s DT Kyle Love, a perfect example of how a guy who is really, really good in one situational sort of role can find a place on a pro roster. For years and years.
2007 OT Derek Sherrod 4 stars/1st round; LB K.J. Wright 3 stars/4th round
Sherrod stepped right into the lineups at State and then Green Bay so he merited those stars. How Wright only got three, though, and he’s still on roster for this year. OG Quinton Saulsberry worked his way to a free agent deal for two seasons, and juco LB Dominc Douglas caught with St. Louis for one roster year. There’s quite a what-if in this class. We’ll never know what RB Robert Elliot, the big name on signing day, could have done if his knee and future weren’t taken away in a slow-whistle pile at LSU.
2008: S Charles Mitchell 4 stars/6th round
How did Croom build on his best season at State? He didn’t. Signings in February were not even average with the exception of Mitchell and 4-star OG Templeton Hardy. Only Mitchell made it to the League out of the entire class and that for only one season. Inexcusable and the on-field results the following fall meant Croom was excused. Yet somehow he had set the stage for a really good class.
2009 DT Fletcher Cox 4 stars/1st round; DT Josh Boyd 4 stars/5th round; LB Chris White 3 starsJC/6th round; CB Jonthan Banks 3 stars/2nd round; OG Gabe Jackson 3 stars/3rd round; CB Darius Slay 3 starsJC/2nd round
As explained, Dan Mullen didn’t do all the legwork into setting up this class. He did convince those wavering after the changeover to stick…and yes one can only wonder what Mullen would have achieved at State had he recruited this intensely the entire tenure. It helped having a lot of in-state talent friendly to MSU already, and a really good year for juco plug-and-play help. And if the draft group was strong, look at the free agents out of this class. DE Pernell McPhee has been in the league over a decade. LB Deonte Skinner had tours with three teams in four seasons. WR Chad Bumphis wrote records only recently broken and earned a shot at Denver for one season, while LB Cam Lawrence had two seasons with Dallas. RB LaDarius Perkins had three years.
2010 LB Matt Wells 4 stars/6th round; TE Malcolm Johnson 3 stars/6th round; RB Vick Ballard 3 starsJC/5th round
It wasn’t as good a class as the first one but did add enough fresh talent to top-off a really good 2010 roster. Besides the drafted Dogs, DT Kaleb Eulls had four seasons for three franchises as did OC Dillon Day and that those career were so modest reminds just how tough staying in the NFL can be. OT Blaine Clausell got signed and played four years for four clubs. OL James Carmon a fall with Buffalo; DB Jay Hughes one with St. Louis.
2011 QB Dak Prescott 3 stars/4th round; RB Josh Robinson 3 stars/6th round; LB Benardrick McKinney 3 stars/2nd round; DE Preston Smith 3 stars/2nd round
If we included re-sign the all-pro Slay as he’d spent two years in juco the group would be even more impressive. It already is for producing a starting NFL quarterback, quite the rarity for State; a ruthless linebacker, and a 2-star defensive end who has thrived as a professional. But there aren’t any free agents on record. Some of the highest-rated recruits like S Dee Arrington left the team. I’ll always think had his lower legs been healthy DT P.J. Jones would have gotten a shot.
2012 CB Will Redmond 4 stars/2nd round; OT Justin Senior 3 stars/6th round
Redmond ultimately lived up to projections by playing better in pro ball than college (re: 2014 Egg Bowl TACKLE THE GUY). A year after he left Senior joined him as the only Dog drafted in 2017. As for the free agents, WR Fred Brown was the first State receiver since Jenkins to get a NFL slot. LB Richie Brown earned himself two seasons, and DE Denico Autry has had a nice little career with two clubs. But, what would have been had DT Quay Evans even tried to be serious about college football and life? And it’s still hard to grasp how LB Benito Brown didn’t get a shot.
2013 DT Chris Jones 5 stars/2nd round
Nothing needs saying about Jones other than his recruiting battle with the rival was the best since Robert Elliott. Jones delivered and became the next early-exit NFL Dog, under-drafted in the second round. There were a bunch of good college guys in the class but just one other pro, 4-star WR Fred Ross with two seasons. If only WR De’Runnya Wilson’s circumstances hadn’t led him to try leaving early. Another season would’ve at least earned a FA deal.
2014 LB Gerri Green 4 stars/6th round; OC Elgton Jenkins 3 stars/2nd round
It’s hard to know how 2-star OG Deion Calhoun went undrafted but Miami brought him into the league and he’s still around. So is 3-star P Logan Cooke who set club records with Jacksonville. LB JT Gray was undersized but did score a deal with New Orleans as a special teams regular. The reduced role of running backs in pro ball is one way to explain Aeris Williams only getting a late FA contract.
2015 OT Martinas Rankin 4 starsJC/3rd round
Here’s a hard lesson about recruiting rankings equaling college production much less a professional future. State had seven 4-stars in this class and while most played well in college just went drafted. But also remember Mullen dared redshirt a touted juco tackle when any line help was needed, which let Rankin mature. S Mark McLaurin got a one-year deal, with the Giants. But guys like S Jamal Peters, LB Leo Lewis, and DE Fletcher Adams never caught with any club.
2016 DT Jeffery Simmons 5 stars/1st round; DE Marquiss Spencer 4 stars/7th round; TE Jordan Thomas 3 stars/6th round; CB Cam Dantzler 3 stars/3rd round
This class had more potential that never really got tapped at State, but Simmons would have made it a winning class on his own steam. And the way offense is going these days Thomas might be the last Dog tight end to go pro. Still I can’t find a single free agent from the admittedly small 19-signee class. Well unless 3-star OG Stewart Reese makes the League out of Florida.
2017 S Jonthan Abrams 3 starsJC/1st round; DE Montez Sweat 3 stars/1st round; LB Willie Gay 4 stars/2nd round; RB Kylin Hill 4 stars/7th round; S Brian Cole 3 starsJC/7th round.
Yep, this is it: the only Mississippi State recruiting class (so far) to produce two first-round drafts even if both were second-school transfers; and the second-biggest draft list at five. It ought have more. Hard to believe these weren’t drafted at all, but fortunately DL Chauncey Rivers and OT Tyre Phillips both caught with Baltimore, as did OT Tommy Champion with Seattle. And who knows, maybe after changing schools Keytaon Thompson makes a roster out of Virginia as an all-purpose receiver/runner?
2018 none drafted
Now we’re getting into the years where signees are still in college, if not all still at State. So any judgement must await the final draft/free agent role. But if no draftees (so far) from this class is annoying, it’s more so that there is just one free agent. WR Stephen Guidry didn’t entirely play up to recruit billing, but he caught on with Dallas. S Marcus Murphy is still hoping for a shot. A trio who left State for other schools, DT Fabien Lovett, LB Aaron Brule, and WR Malik Heath, ought have an offer. Oh, and having gone to his best sport, the way TE Brad Cumbest is slugging the ball will get him a MLB Draft call.
2019 OT Charles Cross 5 stars/1st round; CB Martin Emerson Jr 3 stars/3rd round ; QB Tommy Stevens 3 stars/7th round
Remember those soph-season struggles learning air raid blocking? Scouts saw the potential even then and saw proof this past fall to give Mississippi State another first-rounder. Emerson’s skills were so obvious that after the freshman year he didn’t get chances at interceptions, folk wouldn’t throw his way. And Stevens joined the short roster of former Dogs who took live NFL snaps at quarterback, albeit the Saints wanted him more for all-purpose duties. Free agents? Yes, but only after WR Javonta Payton transferred to Tennessee
2020-21 no one drafted so far
For the obvious reason that these classes are still developing. There are a few we can project as Draft-bound like CB Emmanuel Forbes and LB Tyrus Wheat. And maybe K Brandon Ruiz (2020) ends up a winner by leaving early; undrafted and not contracted as of this writing he was invited to a NFL minicamp so there’s a chance. And there is already a free agent from the class as 2021 transfer WR Makai Polk gambled on early entry. It’s OK though, his record stats would likely have gone down another year and not helped him earn a draft call.
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