Rogers Selected As C Spire Conerly Trophy Finalist
November 15, 2021 | Football
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State quarterback Will Rogers has been selected as a finalist for the C Spire Conerly Trophy.
Rogers joins nine others in the running for the award, which is presented annually to the top college football player in the state of Mississippi. Other finalists include Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral, Southern Miss defensive back Malik Shorts, Mississippi Valley State running back Caleb Johnson, Mississippi College linebacker Jonathan Jones, Alcorn State defensive back Juwan Taylor, Millsaps College wide receiver Moïse Tezzo, Belhaven University running back Brad Foley, Jackson State quarterback Shedeur Sanders and Delta State linebacker Marvin Terry.
Rogers is putting together one of the best seasons in Mississippi State history. The Brandon, Miss., native leads the Southeastern Conference and all of Power Five football in passing yardage with his 3,722 yards this year. Rogers is also tops in the nation with his 75.7 percent completion percentage.
Rogers is quickly climbing up the MSU record book in multiple categories. In only his second year as a Bulldog signal caller, Rogers already holds State's single-season and career records for 300-yard passing games. He has nine this year and 11 in his career. He has 5,698 total passing yards in his career, good for fourth in MSU history.
Rogers has already set the school record for single-season completions with 407 this season, and he's tied the single-season mark with 29 touchdown passes. He's only 72 passing yards away from setting a new Mississippi State single-season mark in that category as well.
Most recently, Rogers led the Bulldogs to their largest comeback in school history this past Saturday at Auburn. Mississippi State scored 40 unanswered points behind the arm of Rogers, erasing a 25-point deficit. Rogers set a new school record with a career-high six touchdown passes and threw for 415 yards – his fourth 400-plus yard game of the season, which is also a Mississippi State record.
Rogers is set to continue his standout season on Saturday when MSU hosts Tennessee State at 11 a.m. CT at Davis Wade Stadium. It'll be a chance for Rogers to boost his Conerly Trophy resume.
MSU has won the Conerly Trophy nine times since the award debuted in 1996. Past winners have included J.J. Johnson (1998), Jerious Norwood (2005), Anthony Dixon (2009), Chris White (2010), Gabe Jackson (2013), Dak Prescott (2014 and 2015), Jeffery Simmons (2018) and Kylin Hill (2019).
The C Spire Conerly Trophy presentation is set for Tuesday, Nov. 30, at the Country Club of Jackson. A 5:30 p.m. reception will be followed by a 6:30 p.m. dinner program and trophy presentation.
For more information on the Bulldog football program, visit HailState.com or search for "HailStateFB" on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
