STARKVILLE — The Mississippi State football team announced Tuesday that late signees Osirus Mitchell and Reginald Todd have enrolled at the school.
Both wide receivers signed this summer.
Defensive back Cameron Dantzler, of Hammond, Louisiana, will enroll today, according to a team spokesperson.
Mitchell and Todd join 14 others who enrolled during the June semester.
Mitchell, a three-star recruit, comes to MSU out of Booker High School in Sarasota, Florida. He was expected to be a non-qualifier, but he was cleared academically. He picked MSU over Maryland and Wake Forest.
Todd, a four-star recruit from Blount (Ala.) High School, committed to play basketball at New Mexico State, but he decommitted from the Aggies after he decided to pursue football. He chose MSU over Cincinnati, Southern Mississippi, and Louisiana Tech.
MSU reports for preseason camp Aug. 1. It will open the season against South Alabama at 11 a.m. Sept. 3 (SEC Network) at Davis Wade Stadium.
n Three Rebels land on preseason watch lists: At Philadelphia, Three Ole Miss Rebels were named to watch lists for two of college football’s most prestigious honors Tuesday, as announced by the Maxwell Football Club.
Senior quarterback Chad Kelly is one of 90 players on the preseason watch list for the 80th-annual Maxwell Award, which has been given to America’s College Player of the Year since 1937.
Senior defensive back Tony Conner and junior defensive end Marquis Haynes were named to the 90-man preseason watch list for the Chuck Bednarik Award, which has been presented to the College Defensive Player of the Year every season since 1995.
All three contributed to the team’s first 10-win season since 2003. Ole Miss defeated Alabama, LSU, and Mississippi State before defeating Oklahoma State in the 2016 Allstate Sugar Bowl.
After a breakout 2015 campaign, his first as a Rebel, Kelly enters his senior season as one of the nation’s top quarterbacks. Last year, he broke 14 single-season school records, including total offense (4,542 yards), completion percentage (65.1), passing efficiency (155.9), 300-yard passing games (eight), and touchdowns responsible for (41).
After playing in every game in his first two years on campus, Conner was limited to five games last year due to injury. In 31 career games, Conner has 152 tackles, including 18 for loss. He is receiving preseason recognition for the fourth-straight season, dating back to being a Freshman All-American in 2013.
With 17 1/2 sacks in his first two seasons at Ole Miss, Haynes is tied for fourth in school history. The Jacksonville, Florida, native recorded 10 sacks in 2015, cracking the top five in the conference and ranking 19th nationally. He also had 43 tackles, including 16 1/2 for loss
n Alabama places four on Bednarik Award watch list: At Tuscaloosa, Alabama, the senior quartet of defensive end Jonathan Allen, linebackers Reuben Foster and Tim Williams, and defensive back Eddie Jackson were among 90 student-athletes named to the Chuck Bednarik Award watch list announced Tuesday by the Maxwell Football Club. Alabama’s four selections is the most for any school.
Allen returns for his senior campaign after foregoing the NFL draft. He was named first-team All-Southeastern Conference by the league’s coaches and The Associated Press as a junior after ranking 17th nationally and second in the SEC in sacks with .80 per game (12 sacks). Allen had 36 tackles, including a team-leading 14 1/2 for loss.
Foster was second on the team with 73 tackles, eight for a loss (-24 yards). He had two sacks, three quarterback hurries, and nine pass breakups in 2015.
Jackson transitioned from cornerback to safety last spring and excelled in that role as a junior. He was named first-team All-SEC by the conference coaches and The AP. He also earned second-team All-America honors from Walter Camp and the FWAA, and third-team All-America honors from The AP after leading the team with six interceptions.
Williams played in all 15 games as a junior and ranked second on the team with 10 1/2 sacks and 12 1/2 tackles for loss.
n Mullens, Ito Smith named to Maxwell Award watch list: At Hattiesburg, Southern Mississippi senior quarterback Nick Mullens and junior running back Ito Smith were named Tuesday to the watch list for the 80th-annual Maxwell Award.
Mullens set several school records last season for the Golden Eagles, who finished 9-5, won the Conference USA West Division crown, and earned its first bowl berth since 2011. He established school single-season marks for passing yards (4,476), touchdown passes (38), completions (331), passing efficiency (155.16), and total offense (4,384). He threw for 300 or more yards in 10 games.
Smith rushed for a team-best 1,128 yards and 10 touchdowns. He added 49 catches for 515 yards. He rushed for 100 or more yards in six games last season.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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