By Robert Wilson
Brandon High alumnus and Mississippi State quarterback Will Rogers – who holds 30 school passing records – was anxiously waiting to hear some good news after not playing since a shoulder injury against Western Michigan Oct. 7.
Said Rogers: “It was tough. I had played in every game and made every practice since the 10th grade. It was different for me. A little frustrating.”
And with games against in state rivals Southern Miss and Ole Miss, Rogers didn’t know if he would be playing again this season.
After missing his fourth consecutive game against Texas A&M game, a 51-10 loss, and his head coach, Zach Arnett, getting fired two days later, Rogers went to get a scan of his injury, a dislocated joint between the sternum and the collarbone, to see it had healed and see if he would be given a release to play against in state rival Southern Miss, the team his brother, Luke, is a freshman offensive lineman, is on.
Dr. Buddy Savoie – known internationally as a shoulder specialist, a professor at Tulane University School of Medicine and a longtime friend of the Rogers family, who was handling Will’s recovery from his injury – saw the scan and gave Will the go ahead to play.
Rogers’ dad, Wyatt, called Will that Tuesday afternoon and gave him the good news.
“You could hear the happiness in his voice,” Wyatt Rogers said. “It’s been a tough year, but that was a highlight of this season to hear my son be so excited and happy.”
Rogers – who had been working out with the scout team – started back working with the starters and started and played against Southern Miss. He completed 12 of 27 passes for 144 yards and two touchdowns without an interception – not up to the standards of the record-setting quarterback, but at least he was playing again.
“Will was extremely excited to be out there and play with his guys again,” Wyatt Rogers said. “There was some rust, but that’s to be expected. He hadn’t played in several weeks and had a lack of reps, but he will get better.”
“Will was good, he wasn’t great, but he’s getting better and will get back to form,” MSU interim head coach Greg Knox said. “He let his team know in the locker room (after the Southern Miss game) that he’s going back to work.”
“It was like starting the season over essentially,” Will Rogers said. “It was like the first game, wanting to see live bullets, get that first hit, get in the flow, and get the rhythm back. I wish we could have sustained more drives and finished with touchdowns instead of field goals. I was happy to be back out on the field instead of on the sidelines, knowing I couldn’t get out there and play when the offense was struggling. I tried to help the team win by talking to the receivers during the week and working with the scout team.”
This week, Rogers – who holds the SEC completions record with 1,276, way ahead of second place Aaron Murray of Georgia (921 from 2010-2013) – has been focusing on Ole Miss and the Egg Bowl (Thursday at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN in Starkville). Ole Miss, 9-2, is the heavy favorite over MSU, 5-6, trying to win to continue its 13-year streak of bowl games.
Rogers would like to repeat last year’s Egg Bowl performance when he completed 27 of 39 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns in MSU’s 24-22 victory in Oxford in MSU coach Mike Leach’s last game before he passed away several weeks later. This game is special to Rogers, whose family grew up Ole Miss fans. His dad, Wyatt, and sister, Anna Grace, both graduated from Ole Miss and his grandfather, Bill Rogers, played baseball at Ole Miss with Archie Manning.
“I’ve lived in Mississippi all my life,” Rogers said. “I grew up watching the game. I’ve heard about the rivalry for years. I’ve talked to former players about it. It’s intense. I’ve been blessed to start at quarterback in three Egg Bowls. It’s cool to play in the game. You can’t get caught up in all the emotion. There will some extra juice in this one. Coach Knox said play with emotion, but don’t be emotional. You know Ole Miss will be ready. They’ve had a great season and want to win that 10th game. We need to be ready. The team that executes and makes the least number of mistakes will probably win. The future is uncertain right now. It was tragic what happened to Coach Leach and unfortunate what happened to Coach Arnett. We want to play for each other.”
“Will brings so much to the table,” Knox said. “His attitude, his effort, work ethic, motivation, and enthusiasm. He is energy in the team. Will shows up every day and is there for every meeting and he sits up front. That young man is special. I love Will’s leadership and everything he does.”
