#9 Days Until Kickoff: Montez Sweat

The Mississippi State Bulldogs kickoff the season in just nine days. In honor of that, let’s take a closer look at current Bulldogs senior defensive end, #9 Montez Sweat.

Sweat is a gifted and talented 6-foot-6, 245-pound pass-rusher from Stone Mountain, Ga. He attended Stephenson High School, where he was ranked one of the top tight ends in the nation. On the defensive side, he recorded 33 tackles, including six for losses with one sack, in 12 games his senior season. He also played basketball and averaged 12.3 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.4 blocks as a senior.

Sweat’s skillset made him a highly recruited player from Georgia. He ended up committing to Michigan State University, where he e recorded four tackles and .5 sacks in two games as a freshman for the Spartans. He was limited to two games in the next season and then ended up leaving the program for personal reasons.

After Michigan State, Sweat ended up at Co-Lin Community College, and once again became a highly recruited prospect after starting there in 2016. He was considered to be one of the best junior college defensive end prospects in the nation after recording 39 tackles with six for loss. He also recorded five sacks, forced two fumbles and snatched one interception.

He then committed to play at Mississippi State.

In his first season as a Bulldog in 2017, Sweat became one of the most feared pass rushers in the Southeastern Conference. He played outside linebacker in the 3-4 and defensive end in the 4-3. He tied led the SEC with 10.5 sacks and 15.5 tackles for loss. He earned SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week three times (vs. Kentucky, Texas A&M, Arkansas).

Following an impressive 2017 campaign, he earned First-Team All-SEC (Associated Press, Coaches).

Coming into the 2018 season, Sweat will be the leader of the Bulldogs defense. He has been selected as a 2018 Preseason All-American. He was also selected to the Ted Hendricks Award Watch List, the Bednarik Award Watch List and Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List.