The 10 finalists for the 2018 C Spire Conerly Trophy have been announced.
The award, named in honor of the former Ole Miss and New York Giant QB Charlie Conerly, is presented to the top college football player in Mississippi every year.
Last year’s recipient, Ole Miss WR A.J. Brown, is nominated once again and could become just the third player to win the award twice. If so, he would join Dak Prescott and Eli Manning as the only repeat winners.
The award will be presented during a ceremony on November 27th at the Country Club of Jackson with Ole Miss legend Deuce McAllister serving as the keynote speaker.
Players are chosen by their respective schools and a combination of votes from the C Spire fan voting and a poll of sports news media representatives who cover the games determine the winner.
Fan voting begins at 5 p.m. today and continues through noon on Sunday, November 25. Voters go to www.cspire.com/Conerly and may vote up to three times per day for their favorite player from their email address.
The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame announced the finalists and included a brief summary of their 2018 stats:
Alcorn State University – Junior QB Noah Johnson is the Braves nominee. He leads the team in both passing and rushing. He has accounted for 21 touchdowns, 14 passing and 7 rushing. Alcorn was leading the SWAC with a 5-1 record coming into this past weekend.
Belhaven University – Jr. LB Denarrius Noel represents the Belhaven Blazers. This 3- year starter made 70 tackles, recorded 2.5 sacks and made 10.5 tackles for losses. He also recorded a team-high 3.80 GPA
Delta State University – Gulf South Conference co-offensive freshman of the year Statesman QB Patrick Shegog is the Delta State nominee. Shegog played in 10 games and started eight. He totaled 203 yards rushing and 90 yards passing with 2 TDs vs. Mississippi College.
Jackson State University – Senior K/P Christian Jacquemin represents the Blue Bengals. Jacquemin is a two-time SWAC Specialist of the Week. He has converted 15 of 17 field goal attempts and averages almost 42 yards per punt.
Millsaps College – Senior ILB Chandler Coleman was chosen by the Millsaps staff to represent the school. His 6.5 sacks are tied for the 4th best in the SAA conference and his 14.5 tackles for a loss rank 5th. He is in the top ten in the loop for both total tackles and tackles per game.
Mississippi College – RB Tiberias Lampkin is the Choctaw nominee. The senior averaged 5.4 yards per carry and 77 yards per game. He ran for over 100 yards three different games and had a season-high 126 yards vs. Florida Tech. Against rival Delta State, he had 117 yards and a touchdown.
Mississippi State University – Pre-season All-American DT Jeffery Simmons represents the Bulldogs. Entering this past weekend, Simmons had 48 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, 20 pressures, 4 QB hits and 15 QB hurries. He is a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award for the second straight year.
Mississippi Valley State– Receiver/Running back Booker Chambers is the Valley State nominee. The versatile back averaged 8.6 yards per carry and ran for 3 TD1s, caught 41 passes for 530 yards and 3 TD’s, and averaged 23 yards per punt return and 25.3 yards on kickoff returns for 2 more TD’s.
University of Mississippi – 2017 C Spire Conerly Trophy winner WR A.J. Brown is the nominee for the Rebels. Brown is closing in on all-time receiving honors at Ole Miss in just three years. This season he has caught 72 passes and averaged 104.7 yards per game and scored 5 TD’s as the team travels to Vanderbilt.
University of Southern Mississippi – Redshirt sophomore WR Quez Watkins, a wide receiver for Jay Hopson’s club is the representative for the Golden Eagles. In 9 games Quez rushed for an average of 3.3 yards per carry, averaged 12.4 yards per catch on 58 receptions and totaled an average of 106.8 all-purpose yards per game.
