Five Bulldogs Earn Associated Press All-SEC Honors
Five Mississippi State football players were selected to the Associated Press all-Southeastern Conference teams, the national news media wire service announced Tuesday.
MSU senior punter Jared Cook (Columbus, Ga.) and senior nose tackle Ronald Fields (Bogalusa, La.) were named to the first-team all-conference squad by a media panel that regularly covers the SEC. Junior defensive end Willie Evans (Waynesboro, Miss.) was selected second-team all-league, while junior halfback Jerious Norwood (Brandon, Miss.) and senior offensive tackle David Stewart (Moulton, Ala.) were chosen honorable mention.
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Cook, a 5-10, 188-pounder, led the conference in punting for much of the 2004 season. He averaged 43.7 yards per punt on the season, the fourth-best single-season punting average in school history.
Fields, a 6-2, 306-pounder, started all 11 games and proved to be a team leader for the defense. He made 57 tackles on the year, including 7.5 tackles for loss (minus 12 yards), with three pass pressures. He was second among all SEC defensive linemen in total tackles per game (5.2).
Evans, a 6-2, 267-pounder, also started all 11 games and made 67 tackles for the Bulldogs. He led all SEC defensive linemen in total tackles (6.1 per game) and was fourth in the league in tackles for loss (1.32 per game). Evans had 14.5 tackles for loss (minus 53 yards), 5.5 of which were quarterback sacks (minus 25 yards). He also caused and recovered one fumble, and had one pass pressure.
Norwood, a 6-0, 192-pounder, finished third in the league in rushing with a 95.5-yard per game average. He became just the sixth running back in school history to surpass 1,000 yards rushing in a season. Norwood already ranks eighth all-time at State in career rushing yards.
Stewart, a 6-6, 317-pounder, started all 11 games and was the team¹s most dominant offensive lineman. He graded out at an 84.8 percent clip during the season with 69 knockdown blocks.
Mississippi State had two players ¬ Cook and Norwood ¬ named to the 2004 SEC Coaches All-Southeastern Conference, released Monday by the league office.