All-American Johnthan Banks Named Senior CLASS Award Candidate

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI/MSU Athletics) —Excelling both on and off the field, Mississippi State All-American defensive back Johnthan Banks was one of 30 FBS seniors named a candidate

(Courtesy of Commercial Dispatch)
MSU Senior DB Johnthan Banks has been named to the Senior CLASS Award Candidate List for 2012.

for the 2012 Senior CLASS Award, Premier Sports Management announced Thursday. Banks is the first football player in school history to be a candidate for the award, which celebrates loyalty and achievement for staying in school (CLASS).

Johnthan Banks’ Senior CLASS Bio

Football Senior CLASS Award Candidates

Senior CLASS Award Selection Process

This season, Banks has tallied 12 tackles, two interceptions and two pass breakups. Among active players in the FBS, the Maben, Miss., native is tied for first with three pick sixes, is tied for second with 14 career interceptions, ranks second in career interception yards (227) and is seventh in interceptions per game (0.35). As a result of offenses avoiding the team captain, Mississippi State is tied for first in the country with seven interceptions and tied for first in the FBS with a plus-11 turnover margin.

This past Saturday at Troy, Banks was thrown at just six times in 47 attempts (7.8 percent) and allowed just 4.8 yards per catch. All six passes that went his direction were screen passes, while both interceptions Troy threw were a direct result of Banks blitzing the quarterback on a corner blitz.

The Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. Starting in October, the candidate class will be narrowed to 10 finalists, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one candidate who best exemplify excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition. For more information on all the candidates, visit seniorCLASSaward.com.

Mississippi State Senior CLASS Award History
2012 – Johnthan Banks (Football) – Candidate
2010 – Chelsea Bramlett (Softball) – Finalist
2005 – Lawrence Roberts (Men’s Basketball) – Finalist
2005 – Tan White (Women’s Basketball) – Finalist
2003 – LaToya Thomas (Women’s Basketball) – WINNER

Johnthan Banks’ 2012 Honors

• Senior CLASS Award Candidate
• Week Two Honors: Jim Thorpe National Defensive Back of the Week, CBSSports.com SEC Defensive Player of the Week, CollegeSportsMadness.com National Defensive Player of Week, CollegeFootballPerformance.com All-Purpose Performer of the Week, Hornung Award Honor Roll (1 of 3 players nationally).
• Preseason Watch Lists: Bronko Nagurski Trophy, Bednarik Award, Jim Thorpe Award, Lott IMPACT Trophy, Paul Hornung Award, Senior Bowl
• Preseason All-American: Sports Illustrated (First Team), ESPN.com (First Team), Yahoo Sports (First Team), CBSSports.com (Second Team), Athlon (First Team), Phil Steele (Second Team)
• All-SEC First Team (Defense): SEC Coaches, Sports Illustrated, ESPN.com, CBSSports.com, USA Today, Yahoo Sports, Athlon, Blue Ribbon College Football Yearbook, Birmingham News, Lindys, Phil Steele
• All-SEC Second Team (Defense): SEC Media
• All-SEC Second Team (All-Purpose): SEC Coaches, Yahoo Sports
• All-SEC Third Team (Special Teams): Athlon, Phil Steele
• CollegeFootballNews.com’s “Best Corner in the Country”