Randy Charlton found his pass rush prowess waning with every game in the 2021 season.
Filling Mississippi State’s defensive end slot after Jordan Davis went down with an injury in fall camp, Charlton started off well. But as the year went on, that began to change.
“I was doing alright at first, but slowly by the end, I wasn’t the player I was at the beginning,” Charlton said Tuesday.
The senior from Goulds, Florida, said it wasn’t just him: His teammates on the defensive line could have done better when it came to pass rush, too. Statistics bear that out: Last season, the Bulldogs finished 11th in the Southeastern Conference and tied for 65th nationally in sacks.
It’s why the defensive line’s No. 1 focus this spring is getting after the quarterback, even if it’s only chasing green-jerseyed Bulldogs signal-callers for now.
“Every day, every meeting,” nose tackle Nathan Pickering said. “That’s the main thing: We’ve got to get better at pass rushing. If we don’t get better at anything else this spring, we’re getting better at pass rushing.”
Pickering and Charlton had four sacks apiece in 2021 for Mississippi State, which finished with 27. Tyrus Wheat led with 7.5, and fellow linebacker Nathaniel Watson had five.
All four of those players return in 2022, and the Bulldogs return starting defensive linemen Jaden Crumedy and Cameron Young, too.
The veteran group can not only teach freshman Jacarius Clayton the tools of the trade but fine-tune the necessities of being an SEC D-line — including rushing the passer.
“The big thing for this spring has been working on the pass rush and getting pressure on the quarterback, so we can really dial into that,” defensive line coach Jeff Phelps said. “We’ve got a lot of the base, fundamental things that you’ve got to have as a defensive lineman covered over the last two years. We’re really being able to elevate our game to the next level, so that’s really exciting.”
Mississippi State saw the consequences of not being able to effectively get pressure at times last season. The Bulldogs were burned on the blitz by Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, who went on to win the Heisman Trophy; they sacked Louisiana Tech’s Austin Kendall just once in a near-upset bid in the Sept. 4 season opener.
Of course, that was without Davis, who reportedly tore his ACL in a preseason scrimmage and missed the entire season. Davis remains limited in spring camp so far, but his length and speed will be big assets to the Bulldogs’ line.
“Once he gets back to full capability, he’s going to be an animal on the field,” Pickering said.
Crumedy and Young have missed practice time, too, but their returns along with Davis’ reappearance bode well for competition along the line.
“Every time you get guys back in the fold and going, it adds competition to the group so guys can’t get comfortable,” Phelps said. “They’re all buddies, but they know that they want to win at the end of the day, and that competition is what’s going to continue to push those guys to continue to get better and better.”
Just take defensive end De’Monte Russell, who did not record a sack last season but managed 2.5 tackles for loss in 11 games.
Russell said he plans to get bigger and stronger and “knock the rust off” during spring camp. If he does, he could be poised for more playing time in 2022.
“He got a little bit of a taste last season getting in there and getting a feel for it, trying to get his legs back underneath him,” Phelps said. “Now he knows the defense, he’s trusting his body again, and now we’re seeing him go full speed ahead at those offensive tackles. He’s done a pretty good job of it so far.”
A redshirt junior, Russell is in fact one of the younger players along the Bulldogs’ line. Davis, Charlton and Pickering are all seniors; Crumedy and Young are redshirt seniors.
It’s an experienced group — one with a clear goal.
“We know what we’ve got to do,” Charlton said. “We’ve just got to do it now.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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