STARKVILLE — Will Rogers cleared his throat loudly.
Waiting in a gray chair at the back of the room, the Mississippi State quarterback did his best to get wide receiver Caleb Ducking to notice his presence.
Ducking had credited fellow wideout Jaden Walley — rather than Rogers — with the best replica of Ducking’s post-touchdown “duck waddle,” so the junior signal-caller felt he needed to call it to Ducking’s attention.
“That’s ridiculous,” Rogers said with a smile shortly afterward. “I throw him two touchdowns, and he can’t even give me a shoutout.”
Ducking’s celebration is certainly getting a lot of work lately.
The redshirt senior had two more scoring passes in Saturday’s 45-14 win over Bowling Green, giving him five on the season. That put Ducking in a tie for second nationally as of Saturday afternoon, and he leads Mississippi State in catches (21), touchdowns and receiving yards (258).
“I think Caleb’s really doing some good things right now, and I also think he’s getting better,” Mississippi State coach Mike Leach said. “I don’t even think we’ve seen his best football yet.”
That’s a promising statement for a player averaging more than 12 yards a catch. The 6-foot-5 Ducking is a bona fide deep threat, and he showed that from the Bulldogs’ first possession Saturday.
Ducking got separation from a Bowling Green defender in the end zone and extended his long arms to haul in a 22-yard touchdown from Rogers, breaking a scoreless tie less than two minutes in.
The two connected again on a 26-yard slant in the second quarter, Ducking’s second touchdown.
Both times, the lanky receiver and his teammates waddled like, well, ducks in the end zone, a celebration often picked up by TV cameras and enjoyed by fans.
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle has gained fame for the same touchdown dance, but Ducking said he waddled first.
He said a friend back home in the Mississippi Delta came up with the idea, and Ducking ran it by his teammates in Starkville the week before the Sept. 3 season opener.
“I’d never seen Jaylen Waddle do it until after,” he said. “It’s fun when you’re celebrating with your teammates.”
If Ducking keeps playing like he did Saturday, there will be a lot more waddling to come.
He led the Bulldogs with seven catches, 96 yards and two scores, just another breakout game at Mississippi State.
Ducking was used sparingly as a pass-catcher at Holmes Community College, redshirted in 2020 with MSU and sat behind Makai Polk and other players last year.
He said he learned from players like Polk and Osirus Mitchell, the Bulldogs’ starter two seasons ago.
Now, Ducking is putting it into practice.
“I think he’s gotten better and better,” Leach said. “He was kind of a work in progress when he got here, but he’s worked hard. He’s a fast, relatively dynamic guy. When he uses his hands, he’s awfully tough to cover. And he’s fast — he’s inordinately fast.
“He’s gotten better and better the longer he’s been here.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.