Making a name

As one Favre seeks to quarterback the Minnesota Vikings to the Super Bowl with a win tonight in the NFC title game, another is on the doorstep of college football's grandest league.

Dylan Favre, Brett's nephew, committed to Mississippi State earlier this month after a record-setting career at St. Stanislaus in Bay St. Louis, Miss. In leading the Rock-a-Chaws to the AAAA state championship, Favre threw for 5,539 yards, rushed for 1,228 and accounted for 81 touchdowns.

He also played safety, tallying 16 tackles and an interception in the victory that yielded St. Stanislaus its first state title in 94 seasons of playing football.

"I think the statistics are only half the story," St. Stanislaus coach Forrest Williams said. "He's a tremendous leader on the practice field and is very smart in the class room. A lot of people question his stats and how much were made up and whether it was the system, but Dylan is a very special player."

Favre's famous uncle is the NFL career leader in passing attempts, completions, yards and touchdowns, and he's the first 40-year-old quarterback to start a playoff game. The two text each other before games, but when asked about the relationship, Dylan said, "People have always made it out to be a lot bigger than it is."

Williams believes his quarterback hasn't always benefited from the link.

"I would probably say it's been more of a burden, because a lot of people say he just gets attention because he's Brett Farve's nephew," Williams said. "I tell people he would be special if he was a Smith or a Jones or a Williams. A lot of people expect a lot more of him, but everything he did he earned himself. Brett didn't walk in and make him a great quarterback."

Despite setting the Mississippi prep record for career passing yards (14,175), touchdowns responsible (169) and passing touchdowns (144), Favre is far from an elite prospect. Listed by Rivals.com at 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds, he is the only two-star commitment in Mississippi State's class.

Rivals.com doesn't have Favre among its top 30 prospects in Mississippi.

"Dylan is a limited guy physically," said Rivals.com analyst Barton Simmons, who has watched Favre play. "He's undersized, maybe 5-10, so that's a concern from the quarterback position. He's put up some great numbers and won a state championship, and I think his greatest attribute may be his competitiveness, but from a physical standpoint, I think he's going to have a hard time playing quarterback in the SEC.

"He's certainly an intriguing prospect, to say the least."

Williams insists that Favre is 5-11 and that he may not be through growing.

"I probably did him a disservice by being honest," he said. "I should have listed him at 6-2, because everybody always adds a little height. People think he must be 5-8 when they see him listed at 5-10 or 5-11, but he went to Mississippi State and was measured flat-footed with no shoes on at 5-11."

Favre's first scholarship offer came in early December from Southern Miss, where his uncle played from 1987-90. Then came Florida International, Tulane and Northwestern State, an FCS school in Natchitoches, La.

Mississippi State had been pursuing Cam Newton, who quarterbacked Blinn (Texas) Community College to the national title last season, but Newton announced New Year's Eve that he would sign and enroll at Auburn. Favre committed to MSU on Jan. 2.

The famous Favre was anything but during the '87 signing class. The top two quarterbacks from the South were Mickey Joseph of New Orleans, who signed with Nebraska, and Craig Erickson of West Palm Beach, who signed with Miami.

Rhea County's Andy Kelly, who went to Tennessee, was the highest-rated SEC quarterback signee.

"Nobody recruited Brett," said former UTC coach Rodney Allison, who was a Southern Miss offensive assistant during Favre's final three seasons. "From what I understand, Southern Miss offered him two or three days before signing day. I think it was Southern Miss and Delta State or somebody.

"It was a deal where you could just call and get him."

Favre signed as a 6-3, 195-pounder, and he wound up leading USM to an upset of Florida State in 1989 and a sweeping of Alabama and Auburn in 1990. Allison believes writing off his nephew might be a mistake.

"If I made an error, it would be on the side of the bloodlines and not the 5-10, I can promise you," Allison said.

Photo courtesy of St. Stanislaus

Dylan Favre, the nephew of Minnesota Vikings quarterback Brett Favre, committed to Mississippi State earlier this month after a record-setting prep career.