Top Mississippi State signee to face charges for striking woman

Mississippi State's top-ranked signee, four-star defensive end Jeffery Simmons, will face charges after he was captured on video repeatedly striking a woman, the Macon Police Department confirmed to Sarah Fowler of The Clarion-Ledger.

It's not yet known how the charges will affect Simmons' standing with the Bulldogs.

He posted an apology on his Facebook page following the incident:

Where do I start? Where do I begin? Wow! Decisions, choices, and actions should always be carefully thought through when incidents occur. I take full responsibility for my actions that occurred on Thursday evening. My apology goes out to the Taylor Family and especially to Sophia Taylor. What was I thinking? Honestly, I wasn’t thinking, all I could think was this is my family and I am supposed to defend my family. Many know my deceased nephews were my pride and joy, I do everything I do in honor of the life they never got the chance to live, and to listen to someone speak so terrible about them really caused me to make choices, decisions and act in a manor that was out of character for me. Is that an excuse?…NO! I truly hope that you will find it in your hearts to forgive me for my actions. I want to apologize to those that have supported me, those who look up to me and those who I consider family. I hope that each of you will accept my apology. I was raised in church, I’ve asked for forgiveness and I pray for God’s continued guidance as I move forward.

The graphic altercation can be seen here.