Breaking down Mississippi State's five Pro Football Focus All-SEC selections
Dec. 1—STARKVILLE — Mississippi State had five players selected across the three All-SEC teams as picked by Pro Football Focus on Monday.
Sophomore left tackle and likely future first round pick Charles Cross was named to the first team. Kick returner Lideatrick Griffin was named to the second team
Sophomore quarterback Will Rogers, junior linebacker Jett Johnson and junior cornerback Martin Emerson were all tabbed as third-team selections.
Through their PFF grades and statistics, here's how those Bulldogs stood out this season:
Charles Cross
Cross is likely on his way toward numerous All-SEC if not All-American selections.
In 919 total snaps and 719 passing snaps played, Cross allowed just two sacks this season — one in the season-opener against Louisiana Tech and another against Arkansas.
He allowed 14 hurries and 16 pressures this season.
Cross' offensive grade (86.7) ranked No. 13 and his pass blocking grade (84.9) ranked No. 21 among FBS tackles.
NFL projections for the 6-foot-5-inch, 310-pound tackle range but the consensus appears to be he'll fall somewhere in the first round.
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Lideatrick Griffin
Griffin's kick return grade (73.9) finished second in the SEC behind Alabama's Jameson Williams (81.6).
Griffin returned 13 kicks in nine games played this season, including a three-game stretch against LSU, Texas A&M and Alabama where Griffin had no returns.
Across those 13 returns, Griffin averaged nearly 34 yards per attempt.
The highlights of his return game came early in the season. His 70-yard return put MSU in good field position late in Week 1 against Louisiana Tech to spark a 20-point comeback win.
Griffin's 100-yard return on the opening kickoff the following week against N.C. State sparked a big win.
Will Rogers
The talk about Rogers becoming a Heisman contender next season is already building. Beyond breaking MSU's passing yards (4,451) and passing touchdowns (35) records, Rogers led the nation in completion percentage (75.1).
Rogers ranked 23rd nationally and third in the SEC in offensive grade (89.9) among quarterbacks.
Rogers' passing grade (90.4) was two points behind Alabama's Bryce Young for top in the conference. Young was named as the first team selection.
Ole Miss' Matt Corral had an offensive grade nearly three points lower and a passing grade six points lower than Rogers but was the second team selection.
Rogers sitting at the bottom of the conference with a 41.4 running grade could have held him back from a higher first or second team selection.
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Jett Johnson
Johnson might've been the most surprising rising player for MSU this season.
The Tupelo native played seven games in two seasons prior to playing in all 12 this year. Johnson led MSU with 85 tackles this season — six of which were for loss.
He recovered two fumbles, forced one and picked up his first career interception off Corral late in the Egg Bowl.
Johnson ranked fifth among SEC linebackers with a 75.1 defensive grade. His run defense grade (74.5) and coverage grade (72.1) were also fifth in the conference.
Martin Emerson
There are still some projections that have Emerson as a potential first round pick, though a second round selection might be more likely.
Regardless, the big reason MSU corner Emmanuel Forbes garnered so much attention for his success was due in large part to teams having to settle and throw his way because Emerson was on the other side.
Emerson was No. 12 among SEC corners in defensive grade (78.4) and coverage grade (78.8).
Emerson allowed 29 receptions on 50 targets this season, including one catch on six targets in MSU's final two games against Tennessee State and Ole Miss.