Senior Spotlight: Marvin Bure

It's July, which means it's basically football season, right? Well, we're certainly close. With that in mind, the BulldogBlitz.com Senior Spotlight continues today. Every day, until there are none left, we will profile one of Mississippi State's seniors entering their last year in Starkville.

No. 41 Marvin Bure, cornerback, 5-8, 190-pounds

How did he get here? Bure walked on to the team in 2007 after a standout career at Vicksburg (Miss.) High School where he was named All-County by the MHSAA Coaches Association.

What did he do in 2010? Bure saw action in all 13 games for the Bulldogs mainly on special teams. He recorded six tackles as well as forcing and recovering a fumble. Bure tallied a special teams tackle in six consecutive games last season and forced a key fumble in the win over Houston. He also blocked a punt in the Gator Bowl.

What does he need to do in 2011? Bure has been a playmaker for MSU on special teams in each of the past two seasons. He is one of the fastest players on the entire roster and uses his speed to his advantage on kickoff and punt coverages despite his lack of size.

As a fifth-year walk-on, Bure is a testament to sacrifice and dedication to the Bulldogs program. He may not be a household name among State fans but it is players like him who make the team better.

Bure simply needs to continue to excel on special teams and like he did in the Houston game and Gator Bowl last season, make something big happen. He and Damein Anderson have worked with Melvin Smith the longest at cornerback so it is up to them to become solid leaders for that unit.

Coach's quote: Melvin Smith, cornerbacks coach - "I like tough hard-nosed guys that are trained to play defensive back. They've all be trained to be db's and they are not five-star guys. They are all blue-collar guys and know the only way they can be successful is by working hard. They are just hard-nosed corners and I really like that about him."