Riley reunites with Burks

Last fall Mississippi Gulf Coast C.C. had one of the most prolific offenses in the country, due in part to one of the best wide receiver tandems in the country. Tony Burks is now on the field at Mississippi State and his former teammate – preseason All-American selection Co-Eric Riley, a MSU commitment – was in Starkville over the weekend on an official visit. He talks about his visit and his plans for the future.

"It went real good," he commented on the visit. "I would give it a ten. Everybody around there showed me love like I was on the team; the fans, the players, the coaches, everybody. They showed me a lot of love."

Having played with Tony Burks last year and playing the same position, he got a little insight from his former teammate.

"We just talked about the system, how everything is down there, how the team will be next year," he said. "We had a good talk about everything. He told me to get ready for a lot of running and working hard and he said everything is a lot different than JUCO."

Riley arrived in Starkville Friday night, and while the game was the biggest thing happening in town, that was perfectly fine with Riley.

"I really didn't do anything else," he said. "There wasn't really nothing to do down there, but that's good. It will keep me focused down there. The trip went alright, but the game didn't I thought it would.

"They got a little freshman quarterback and he's got a little ways to go, but he'll be alright. I think the team will be alright. I'm going to sign with State. I think I can come in there and be a threat on the offensive side of the ball and get everything turned around."

That was Riley's first visit, and he does not have any others planned.

Riley grew up a fan of Mississippi State - fellow George County and former Bulldog star Eric Moulds in particular - but he said his idol had nothing to do with his decision.

"I'm not going there because of him, I am going there because it is the right match for me," he explained. "I am going somewhere where I know I am going to start at, where I am going to get a lot of playing time at. It is a good system for to me to fit in.

"I feel real good about everything. I'm just waiting to get up there. Everything is looking good now. I am trying to get out in December."

Riley currently leads the entire Mississippi JUCO system in both catches (12 for 13.8 ypc and two touchdowns) and yards (138). Click here to see the entire JUCO list of stats leaders and how Riley stacks up against the rest of the state.

Miss. Gulf Coast will play Pearl River in its biggest regular season game of the year this week. Stay tuned for video from that game.