2019 Football Roster
Roster
Maurice Smitherman
- Position:
- CB
- Height:
- 5-10
- Weight:
- 195
- Class:
- Senior
- Hometown:
- Adamsville, AL
- High School/Previous School:
- Minor HS
CAREER:ย Quick, talented defensive back that was a major contributor for four seasons โฆ Also saw action on special teams coverage โฆ Appeared in 42 games with eight starts โฆ Was a primary starter at cornerback as a senior (six games) before his season was cut short due to an injury prior to the seventh game โฆ Finished career with 48 tackles, two interceptions, three pass breakups and one forced fumble โฆ Graduated from MSU in December 2019 with a degree in human development and family sciences.
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2019 SENIOR SEASON: Started the first six games at cornerback before an injury in practice sidelined him for the rest of the year โฆ Recorded 14 tackles and one quarterback hurry โฆ Equaled a career high in tackles with five at Tennessee (10/12).
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2018 JUNIOR SEASON:ย Part of a cornerback unit that did not allow a touchdown during the regular season โฆ Appeared in all 13 games and earned two starts in place of an injured Jamal Peters โฆ Finished the season with a career-high 23 tackles โฆ Added one forced fumble, one interception and three passes defended โฆ Held a 49.1 passer rating allowed, according to Pro Football Focus โฆ Was targeted 24 times and gave up only 12 receptions โฆ Only missed one tackle this season โฆ Earned an overall defensive grade of 77.9 from PFF โฆ Recorded two solo stopsย at Kansas State (9/8)ย and broke up the first pass of his career โฆ Earned his first collegiate startย vs. Florida (9/29)ย โฆ Collected a career-high five tacklesย at No. 5 LSU (10/20)ย โฆ Grabbed two tackles and forced the first fumble of his careerย vs. Arkansas (11/17)ย โฆ Collected two tackles and made an incredible athletic interception in the end zone to steal a touchdownย at Ole Miss (11/22)ย โฆ The pick was the second of his career and his first since the 2016 season.
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2017 SOPHOMORE SEASON:ย Appeared in all 13 games in 2017, seeing most of his action on special teams โฆ Recorded a career-high two tacklesย vs. Kentucky (10/21)ย โฆ Also recorded tacklesย vs. Charleston Southern (9/2),ย at Auburn (9/30),ย vs. BYU (10/14)ย andย vs. Louisville (12/30).
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2016 REDSHIRT FRESHMAN SEASON:ย Played in 10 games at corner โฆ Tallied five total tackles as well as one interception โฆ Recorded first tackle of careerย at LSU (9/17)ย โฆ Also recorded a tackleย vs. Auburn (10/8),ย at Kentucky (10/22),ย vs. Samford (10/29)ย andย at Ole Miss (11/26)ย โฆ Intercepted first pass of career againstย Samford (10/29),ย returning it 29 yards before being brought down.
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2015 TRUE FRESHMAN SEASON:ย Redshirted during initial year with the program.
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HIGH SCHOOL:ย Rated a three-star recruit by ESPN.com, Rivals.com, Scout.com and 247Sports โฆ 247Sports had him as the No. 13 prospect in Alabama and ESPN.com and the No. 47 corner in his class โฆ Scout.com had him as the No. 23 recruit in the state โฆ Compiled 98 total tackles and 16.5 tackles for loss in 25 games over the past three seasons โฆ Grabbed five interceptions for 80 return yards and 16 pass deflections, along with one field goal block โฆ Also returned kickoffs and punts โฆ Amassed 291 kick return yards on 11 attempts with a long of 99 with a touchdown โฆ Returned eight punts for 180 yards โฆ Coached by George Bates โฆ Committed to Mississippi State in June 2014.
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PERSONAL:ย Born Maurice Smitherman on Dec. 5, 1996 โฆ Son of Latashio Wagner โฆ Twitter handle is @Smitherman_Era.ย
SMITHERMANโS CAREER HIGHS:
Tackles: 5, (twice), last at Tennessee (10-12-19)
Pass Breakups: 1, (3x), last at LSU (10-20-18)
Interceptions: 1, (twice), last at Ole Miss (11-22-18)
Fumbles Forced: 1, vs. Arkansas (11-17-18)
