Michigan State Football: Top 10 players of the Mark Dantonio era
B.J. Cunningham is probably the most quiet assassin in the Dantonio tenure thus far. The Westerville, Ohio, native has broken a handful of Michigan State records and not many people were really high on the wide out because he wasn’t overly flashy or speedy.
Cunningham came to MSU with the expectations of earning some average playing time and working his way to starter within the first couple of years on campus. Those expectations were crushed simply because he exceeded them all.
It was apparent in 2007 during his redshirt season that he would become a great player because of his work on scout team. As silly as that may sound, Cunningham earned scout team player of the week honors a few times, much like Tony Lippett did when he was redshirted. Both turned out to be pretty good MSU receivers.
The Ohio-native then played in all 13 games in 2008, recording 41 catches for 528 yards and 12 games as a sophomore, catching 48 passes for 641 yards and his first four career touchdowns. As a junior, B.J. took a step back in terms of yardage, accounting for just 611, but his touchdown number soared, nine, and his receptions rose a tick to 50.
Talking about breaking out in Darqueze Dennard fashion, Cunningham stunned basically everyone in 2011 when he helped the Spartans reach the Big Ten title game against Wisconsin before losing tragically. His numbers were nothing to scoff at as he finished the season basically doubling all his previous stats, catching 79 passes for 1,306 yards and 12 touchdowns.
He was chosen with the No. 183 overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins after finishing his career as the school’s all-time leading receiver in terms of yards and receptions.
Next: 5. Max Bullough, LB