By Robert Wilson
Brandon High alumnus and Mississippi State sophomore quarterback Will Rogers was named the FBS Offensive Player of the Week by the Walter Camp Football Foundation Sunday after his record-setting performance at Auburn.
Rogers passed for a school-record six touchdown passes to lead MSU to a 43-34 upset over then No. 17 Auburn and brought the Bulldogs back from a 28-3 deficit in the second quarter, the largest comeback in school history.
Rogers completed 44 of 55 passes without an interception for 415 yards. It was the fourth time Rogers has thrown for over 400 yards this season and 300 yards in eight consecutive contests. He needs just 72 more yards to break Dak Prescott’s single-season passing record set in 2015. Rogers’ 29 touchdown passes this year puts him in a tie with Prescott for the most in a single season in MSU history.
Rogers ranks first in the country with 40.7 completions per game and 75.7 percent completion percentage, second with 3,722 passing yards, third with 372.2 passing yards per game and fourth with 364.8 yards of total offense per game. Rogers’ completion percentage within reach of the NCAA record, set by Alabama’s Mac Jones of 77.4 last season.
Rogers has thrown 95 consecutive passes without an interception since throwing one in the first quarter against
Arkansas. Rogers had the most consecutive passes without an interception in the SEC last season (176 in 13 quarters). Dak Prescott holds the school record with 238 in 2015. Rogers did tie Prescott’s school record of most passes without an interception a game (52 against Georgia).
Rogers – the Priority One Bank/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Football Player of the Year in 2019 at Brandon High — was the first freshman to start at quarterback for Mike Leach in his 22-year head coaching career last season.
