The 2025 Mississippi State Bulldogs might be in a two-game slump, but the mood around the team is a far cry from the 2024 Bulldogs at this same point.
Head coach Jeff Lebby is still looking for his first SEC win, but has seen his group double its win tally from last year through just six games, including a ranked win and an undefeated nonconference record.
The first bump in the road came against No. 15 Tennessee, an overtime shootout loss at home with multiple opportunities to win the game passing the Bulldogs by. A difficult road loss to No. 6 Texas A&M followed, but the team returned from their off week with persistent confidence that things are looking up, and more importantly, that this group has what it takes to make that happen.
“To be honest, I think we gave up last year,” quarterback Blake Shapen said on Monday. “A lot of people did, and that’s just me being honest. I look at our team this year, we’re sitting at 4-2, and we’ve got everything ahead of us. You feel that throughout the locker room. There’s not a game that I feel like we go into like, ‘We’re going to lose this game.’ The expectation is you win, no matter who you’re playing. The morale of the team, the energy, the belief, all that stuff, it’s still there and it’s great.”
A big source of confidence for the Bulldogs comes from the defensive side of the ball. A unit that couldn’t stop a nosebleed in 2024 has been far from the primary culprit in the last two games, forcing turnovers and red zone stops that gave the team plenty of opportunity to win in both games.
“We had guys up front do a really nice job of not staying blocked, being able to shed and get off things and make the offense earn it,” head coach Jeff Lebby said. “Again, the first eight drives, the way we played was winning football. Having the ability to go finish is a huge piece of that as we got into the open date and get ready for this Saturday.”
The defense has done well despite losing star pass rusher Will Whitson for the year and leading tackler Isaac Smith for the A&M trip.
Lebby is hopeful Smith can return to action this week, but a deep safety and linebacker room helped out in his absence, especially veteran Jahron Manning and Tony Mitchell, who made a big impression after limited involvement early in the season.
“Tony Mitchell played incredibly hard, played with great physicality,” Lebby said. “For playing so little up to that point, for him to go into that setting and play a really good brand of football, far from perfect, but that was huge for us to see.”
The defensive backs in general have had a strong year. The group has a shutdown cornerback in Kelley Jones, who had an interception against the Aggies, and a group of veteran transfers and returners such as Manning, DeAgo Brumfield and Jett Jefferson to make plays.
Their confidence hasn’t waned, and it’s making the group stronger.
“Most definitely,” Manning said when asked about growing confidence. “We still have our best ball ahead of us, that’s the best part about it. So, continuing to grow as a defense, continuing to grow as a secondary to reach our full potential and be one of the most dangerous secondaries in the country.”
With a trip to Gainesville on deck, the Bulldogs have another opportunity to get back in the win column against a team in a similar position. The Gators are 2-4 and just suffered a difficult loss on the road at A&M, but have a new sense of confidence after a big upset of Texas two weeks ago.
The Bulldogs know that any road date in the SEC is a challenge, but from top to bottom, the team is expressing a belief that wasn’t there at this time last year.
“I think our best football is still ahead of us,” Lebby said. “I’m not surprised at all by the way we were able to start. Frustrated in the last two and how they went, but I think our guys are serious about being great and they’re serious about being able to go take advantage of a huge opportunity Saturday at 3:15. We need to go win on the road in this league and that’s something we’ve got out ahead of us.”
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