The 50 most important college players in Texas in 2016 — No. 42: Texas State's Demun Mercer

[caption id="attachment_23188" align="alignright" width="375"]UHvstexasstateFB2015_013 Photo by Diana Porter[/caption] The importance of a player is not always defined by their skill. The most important player on a team is not always the best player on a team. This list is designed to breakdown the 50 most important players in Texas college football for the 2016 season. It is not a ranking of the 50 best college football players in the state. Importance can be defined by position, need, skill or leadership. We’ll count down the list through the summer, all the way to No. 1.Previously — 43: UTEP S Devin Cockrell // 44: UNT DT Bryce English // 45: Texas OL Connor Williams // 46: Texas Tech DT Breiden Fehoko // 47: Houston DT B.J. Singleton // 48: Texas A&M DT Daylon Mack // 49: TCU S Denzel Johnson  // 50: Baylor S Chance WazNo. 42 – Texas State wide receiver Demun MercerThe History Mercer arrived at La Marque High School as a senior and immediately made an impact. He was named the District MVP after rushing and passing for over 1,000 yards while accounting for 33 total touchdowns. Mercer spent his sophomore and junior season at Chavez High School in Houston before transferring and taking over quarterback duties at La Marque. He was named a three-star recruit by Rivals.com and committed to Texas State in the 2013 class. Mercer took a redshirt in 2013 before playing in 11 games and catching nine passes in his redshirt freshman season. Expectations surrounded Mercer heading into his sophomore season. Three-star recruits are rare at the Sun Belt level and the 6-foot-2, 197-pound wide receiver has all of the tools to be an all-conference performer. His sophomore campaign was disappointing, despite a few big games. Mercer ended the season with 19 catches and only two touchdowns, but he showed promise in games against Houston, Prairie View A&M and Southern Miss. Mercer caught 13 of his 19 passes and both of his touchdowns in games against those opponents. The Skillset Mercer was a three-star prospect for a reason. He showed explosiveness and big-play ability as a prep quarterback. He also possesses the right size and speed for an FBS wide receiver. Mercer showed the ability to be a No. 1 target against quality competition. He had six catches for 72 yards against Houston and a season-high 72 yards receiving and two touchdowns against Southern Miss. Unfortunately for the Texas State offense, Mercer also showed the ability to disappear for entire games. Consistency is his issue and as an upperclassmen Mercer is likely to show a stronger urgency under a new coaching staff. Mercer is an outside target capable of moving the chains on third down and creating yards after the catch. The Impact Mercer is the only returning wide receiver on Texas State’s roster that had more than one catch in 2015. Everett Withers runs the ball the majority of the time and Texas State is best served to use the same strategy with a stable of running backs and a mobile quarterback in Tyler Jones. At points in every game, however, Texas State will need to convert on third down through the air. The offense also must create opportunities in the run game by keeping safeties honest. That’s where Mercer needs to impact the game. He’s Texas State’s most experienced wide receiver and, possibly, its best. Mercer doesn’t need 50 catches and 10 touchdowns to help improve Texas State’s offense, but he must be the receiver he was against Houston, Prairie View A&M and Southern Miss for the Bobcats offense to reach its full potential.

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