Mississippi State has sent defensive tackles Fletcher Cox and Chris Jones to the NFL in recent years and another talented Bulldogs product announced he’s headed to the pros on Thursday.
Jeffery Simmons had 30.5 tackles for loss, six sacks and five fumbles over 37 college games and regularly appears at the top of lists of defensive line prospects. Simmons’ on-field production won’t be the only thing on the minds of teams as the draft approaches, however.
A video of Simmons striking a woman who was involved in an altercation with his sister went viral in 2016. Simmons, who was in high school at the time of the incident, pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of simple assault and was found guilty of malicious mischief.
“I’m getting ready for that right now,” Simmons said over the summer, via Chris Hummer of 247 Sports. “If everything stays in the direction I want it to go, that’s going to have to be a part of it. I’m going to have to go and talk with scouts.”
Simmons was suspended one game by Mississippi State for what he calls “one bad mistake” that doesn’t define him as a person.
