Rooker Ferriss Trophy favorite
Brent Rooker has championship aspirations for his Mississippi State team with the postseason beginning Tuesday when the Bulldogs start play in the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
However, the MSU junior slugger is likely to win a trophy today, before any pressure-packed games are played.
Rooker will be in Jackson at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum for the presentation of the 2017 C Spire Ferriss Trophy. Southern Miss’ Taylor Braley, Matt Wallner and Dylan Burdeaux, along with Delta State’s Zach Shannon, are also finalists for the award, which is presented annually to the state of Mississippi’s best player.
It’s a spot that Rooker is thankful to be in.
“It’s cool to be recognized along with those other four guys who have had really, really good years and are really good players,” Rooker said. “It’s not the most important thing, obviously, but it is something I enjoy and something everybody enjoys. It’s a cool experience just getting to go down there and go through the whole thing.”
Rooker has to be considered an overwhelming favorite to take home the hardware. He has led the Southeastern Conference in most offensive categories for much of the season. Three times this year, Rooker was picked as the SEC’s Player of the Week.
“He’s a special, special leader and a special, special teammate,” last year’s Ferriss Trophy winner and fellow MSU Bulldog Jake Mangum said of Rooker. “He’s a lot of fun to play with and I’m really glad he’s on our team.
“He’s evolved so much as a hitter. He’s the biggest threat in the SEC right now.”
Going into this week’s SEC Tournament, Rooker is hitting .415 with 20 home runs and 73 runs batted in. He broke the school’s single-season doubles mark on Saturday with his 28th of the season.
Perhaps no one has enjoyed Rooker’s success more than first-year MSU head coach Andy Cannizaro. All year long, Cannizaro has been amazed as Rooker has smashed the baseball in, out and around every field the Bulldogs have played on.
“Rooker is into every pitch,” Cannizaro said. “He’s dialed in. He’s constantly figuring out pitch patterns, what’s going on and who’s in the bullpen. Brent Rooker is a tremendous college baseball player.”
Rooker hopes to carry his hot hitting right into this week’s SEC Tournament and then the NCAA Tournament. That’s where his primary focus is. Still, he’s happy to be in Jackson today to perhaps get pegged as the premier ballplayer in the state.
“I was honored when I found out I was a finalist for it and I’ll enjoy it, but at the same time keep it all in the right perspective,” Rooker said. “It’s not the reason why we’re here. It’s not the reason why I’m here. At the same time, it is a cool thing to have that experience.”