HOOVER, Ala. – Mississippi State cost of attendance stipend: $5,126
The Bulldogs’ coach Dan Mullen’s Kanye West sneakers: $200
A fifth-year senior at quarterback: Priceless.
In a division filled with teams in the midst of quarterback battles, Mississippi State heads into the 2015 season with a proven winner in Dak Prescott.
Despite finishing eighth in voting for the 2014 Heisman Trophy and being a finalist for both the Maxwell and Manning Awards, Prescott decided to return for his senior season.
“When you look at how this year is going to affect him in the big picture of football over the next 15 years, it’s a great experience for him to come back and get all those reps,” Mullen said. “On a personal level, I love having him back. He’s a great leader. He’s a great young man.”
Coming into this season, Prescott has the opportunity to make history as an individual and help the Bulldogs build on a historic 2014 campaign.
As a quarterback, Prescott enters the season with 41 passing touchdowns and 31 rushing touchdowns and the chance to become only the player besides 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow to to account for more than 40 passing and rushing touchdowns.
The shared connection with Tebow is appropriate considering Prescott wears No. 15 in honor of Tebow.
“Coming out of high school, my number wasn’t available, so I picked Tim Tebow’s number 15,” Prescott said. “He’s a great guy. He’s a great leader, so it’s cool.”
But Tebow isn’t the only player Heisman winner Prescott has career ties to . He is the only player besides 2012 Heisman winner Johnny Manziel to average at least 265 passing yards and 75 rushing yards per game.
Along with his individual accomplishments, Prescott has the talent surrounding him to learn from the mistakes the Bulldogs made last season when they reached No. 1 last season and fell to No. 3 Alabama on Nov. 15, 2014.
“It’s harder to stay No. 1 than it is to get to No. 1,” Prescott said. “We just got to win and stay focused to win those big time games.”