EMCC DB Justin Cox commits to MSU

East Mississippi Community College safety Justin Cox, a 2011 MSU signee, has committed to MSU tonight, per Steve Robertson and Paul Jones. Cox is rated a 4-star JUCO prospect by scout.com and 247sports.com. He is the 20th commitment of the 2013 class and the second junior college commitment. This will not be the last junior college player MSU will take to finish the class of 2013.

Justin Cox played high school football at West Point High School just down the road from Starkville. He was a 3-star by scout.com out of high school, and committed to MSU in July of 2010. Despite a last minute push by Ole Miss to sign the corner, he stuck to his commitment and signed with MSU.

While Cox played mostly corner and some offense in high school, he added some size and moved to safety at East Mississippi. Not only did he add some weight and change positions, but he also added some offers from big name schools. The second time around for Cox, he had offers from MSU, Ole Miss, Georgia, Arkansas, Tennessee, among others. He also had serious interest from Alabama, although Alabama usually does not take junior college players they don't sign out of high school.

Cox is listed at 6-2, 190 pounds and reportedly runs a 4.28 40-yard dash. That 40 time may not be consistent, but he has blazing speed without a doubt and is a huge pick up for Dan Mullen. MSU will lose Johnthan Banks, Corey Broomfield, and Darius Slay from the 2012 secondary. So the pickup of Cox to fill the void left by those guys is huge.

Cox could end up being the most impactful signee of the 2013 class as far as production on the field next season. Expect Cox to start from day one.

The Bulldogs are not done in the JUCO ranks and may not be done at East Mississippi Community College, as they will look to add big time defensive end, Za'Darius Smith, as well.