STARKVILLE — A day after accepting an invitation to the 2017 Reese’s Senior Bowl, Mississippi State senior wide receiver Fred Ross was named to the All-Southeastern Conference second team by the league’s coaches, the league announced Tuesday.
Ross is the 22nd player to earn All-SEC Coaches’ honors under MSU coach Dan Mullen.
The Tyler, Texas, native has broken six MSU records, including four career records: catches (195), consecutive games with a catch (34), 100-yard receiving games (10), and receiving yards (2,484). He finished the regular season with 68 catches for 873 yards and 12 touchdowns — the most in the SEC.
Texas A&M’s Christian Kirk and Alabama’s ArDarius Stewart were the two wide receivers selected to the first team. Coaches weren’t allowed to vote for their players.
Alabama led the way with 11 players selected to both teams, including seven on the first team.
Ole Miss tight end Evan Engram, who won the 2016 C Spire Conerly Trophy as the top player in the state of Mississippi, was named to the first team. Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly, who missed the final three games after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament and lateral meniscus in his knee, was named to the second team with Tennessee quarterback Joshua Dobbs.
Ole Miss kicker Gary Wunderlich also was named to the second team.
Engram is the first player in Ole Miss football history to be named All-SEC four times. He was a second-team selection in 2013 and 2015 and first-team in 2014 and 2016. He started all 11 games as a team captain before missing the Egg Bowl with a hamstring injury. This season, he had 65 catches for 926 yards and eight touchdowns.
Kelly started nine games before going down with a season-ending knee injury against Georgia Southern. The Buffalo, New York, native finished the season ranked first among SEC players with 343.3 total yards per game (seventh nationally) and 306.4 passing yards per outing (ninth in nation). A semifinalist for the Davey O’Brien Award and finalist for the Senior CLASS Award, he threw for 19 touchdowns (eight interceptions) and rushed for another five touchdowns in nine games.
Engram and Kelly have accepted invitations to the Reese’s Senior Bowl on Jan. 28, 2017, in Mobile, Alabama. Engram is expected to play, while Kelly will be unable to play as he recovers from knee surgery.
Wunderlich, from Memphis, Tennessee, receives all-conference honors for the first time in his college career. He leads the nation with a 95.7 field-goal percentage (22 of 23).
This is the ninth-consecutive season Alabama has garnered the most All-SEC picks.
Nagurski Trophy winner Jonathan Allen and Butkus Award winner Reuben Foster led a group of first-team picks that includes sophomore defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick. Outland Trophy finalist Cam Robinson was named to the first-team offense with freshman quarterback Jalen Hurts and junior wide receiver ArDarius Stewart. Junior JK Scott was selected as the first-team punter.
Senior tight end O.J. Howard and sophomore wide receiver Calvin Ridley were named to the second-team offense, while senior linebacker Tim Williams and senior defensive back Eddie Jackson were named to the second-team defense.
The SEC individual award winners will be released today. The SEC All-Freshman Team will be announced Thursday.
n Southern Mississippi’s Bradley named first-team Conference USA: At Irving, Texas, Southern Mississippi senior defensive lineman Dylan Bradley, a former standout at Noxubee County High School in Macon, was named first-team Conference USA in a vote by the league coaches.
Bradley is one of 12 Southern Miss players named to the team. After earning honorable mention accolades a season ago, Bradley posted the second-most tackles on the roster with 59 stops, which included team highs of 14 tackles for loss and seven sacks.
Bradley joins seniors Cameron Tom and D’Nerius Antoine on the first team. Junior Ito Smith and sophomore kicker Parker Shaunfield earned second-team nods. Offensive lineman Ty Pollard received the squad’s only selection to the All-Freshman team.
Senior quarterback Nick Mullens, junior tight end Julian Allen, junior wide receiver Allenzae Staggers, junior defensive lineman Xavier Thigpen, senior linebacker Elijah Parker, and senior punter Tyler Sarrazin were honorable mention selections.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Special Reports were included in this story.
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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