Fletcher Cox, A.J. Brown Among Many From Mississippi in Super Bowl LVII
PHILADELPHIA - Believe it or not, the state of Mississippi produces more NFL players per capita than any other state, including the perceived football factories of Texas, Florida, and California.
When it comes to Super Bowl LVII, you can even drop the per capita because the Magnolia State has produced the most players on the Super Bowl rosters of the Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs.
The roll call for Mississippi-born Eagles is All-Pro receiver A.J. Brown, star defensive tackle Fletcher Cox, running back Kenny Gainwell, quarterback Gardner Minshew and linebacker Nakobe Dean.
The AFC champion Chiefs feature All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones, linebacker Willie Gay, and linebacker Darius Harris.
Cox and Gainwell are cousins from Yazoo City, which is also the home of Hall of Fame cornerback Willie Brown. Meanwhile, Brown and Gay played on the same state championship high school team in Starkville.
"It’s special to have that many guys from Mississippi," Cox said. "Who would’ve thought you’d have (8) players playing in the Super Bowl? All of us come from small towns. Me and Kenny, obviously A.J. He’s from Starkville.
"A couple of us went to school in the state of Mississippi, so we all get to represent the state of Mississippi and it’s very special."
Texas, Georgia, and Ohio all have seven natives scheduled to appear in Super Bowl LVII. The Lone Star State has 10 times the population of Mississippi while the other two have about four times as many people.
Add in players that went to Mississippi to play their college ball like Eagles' Pro Bowl cornerback Darius Slay (Mississippi State), and WR3 Quez Watkins (Southern Miss.), and the Super Bowl contingent with the state on their resumes reaches 12.
"I think the state of Mississippi is slept on," Brown said. "…they have Chris Jones and some others from the state and so do we. It’s a state that’s hungry. It kind of reminds me of Philly.
"We’re a poor state, not given much. We have to go earn whatever you want. I’m sure the state of Mississippi is proud of everyone who is playing in this Super Bowl."
-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's Eagles Today and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube. John is also the host of his own show "Football 24/7 and a daily contributor to ESPN South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
