Football is officially back in Starkville this week as Mississippi State opened spring practice Tuesday in preparation for the Bulldogs’ first season under head coach Jeff Lebby.
Eight of MSU’s 10 assistant coaches are also new to the program, with only wide receivers coach Chad Bumphis and defensive line coach David Turner back in the fold from Zach Arnett’s 2023 staff. The Bulldogs have added 14 players so far through the transfer portal and will likely bring more on board in the spring window from Apr. 15-30.
Coming off a 5-7 season and its first winter without a bowl game since 2009, MSU’s roster will look different at nearly every position group in 2024. With more than six months still to go until the Bulldogs’ season opener against Eastern Kentucky on Aug. 31, here are the three biggest storylines to follow over the next month of spring workouts.
Can anyone challenge Blake Shapen for the starting quarterback role?
Shapen, a former Baylor Bear, was the first transfer MSU brought in during the first portal window of the offseason. In 27 games at Baylor over the last three seasons, Shapen completed 64 percent of his passes for 5,574 yards with 36 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. While he is mostly a pocket passer, Shapen can occasionally get involved in the running game, with six touchdowns on the ground for the Bears.
The Bulldogs still have other quarterback options in house — Mike Wright made four starts last season with starter Will Rogers injured, and was also used in select packages when Rogers was healthy. He completed 48 of 85 passes for 453 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions while rushing for 324 yards on 71 carries with three more scores. Chris Parson appeared in two games as a freshman, completing 11 of 26 passes with three picks.
MSU is also high on incoming freshman Michael Van Buren, whom the Bulldogs were able to flip from his previous commitment to Oregon. Van Buren was named MVP of the Under Armour All-America Game in January and enrolled early to practice with the team in the spring. The starting job should be Shapen’s to lose, but Parson and Van Buren may well make him work for it.
What does the rest of the offense look like?
Lebby, who was previously the offensive coordinator at Oklahoma, Ole Miss and UCF, has managed successful offenses at each of those stops and will call offensive plays for MSU. But his first offense with the Bulldogs is full of question marks at the moment.
At running back, then-freshman Seth Davis showed flashes of brilliance at times in 2023 but sustained an injury in the Egg Bowl loss to Ole Miss. With previous starter Jo’Quavious “Woody” Marks now at USC, former junior college transfer Jeffery Pittman appears to have the inside track to start, though another juco transfer, Johnnie Daniels, could have something to say about that.
Receivers Lideatrick “Tulu” Griffin and Zavion Thomas are out the door, but MSU brought in a talented crop of high school recruits out wide, including JJ Harrell, Mario Craver and Starkville High’s own Braylon Burnside. The Bulldogs also added an exciting transfer from Texas-El Paso in Kelly Akharaiyi, who posted a 1,000-yard receiving season last year with the Miners.
MSU completely retooled its offensive line in the portal. The Bulldogs brought in Ethan Miner from North Texas, Makylan Pounders from Memphis, Marlon Martinez from LSU and Jacoby Jackson from Texas Tech, all of whom could end up starting with the entire 2023 starting group no longer with the program.
How does Coleman Hutzler’s defense come together?
MSU’s defense was much-maligned for the first half of last season before showing significant improvements down the stretch, particularly against Arkansas, Kentucky and Ole Miss. Star linebackers Nathaniel “Bookie” Watson and Jett Johnson have entered the NFL Draft, as have linemen Nathan Pickering and Jaden Crumedy and defensive backs Shawn Preston Jr. and Decamerion Richardson, among others.
Safety Corey Ellington put his name into the transfer portal but later opted to return to the Bulldogs. Other returning players include John Lewis and J.P. Purvis at linebacker, and Deonte Anderson and brothers De’Monte and Donterry Russell on the defensive line. Ty Cooper also saw some playing time on the line late in the 2023 season.
Under new coordinator Coleman Hutzler, MSU added defensive linemen Kendrick Bingley-Jones from North Carolina, Sulaiman Kpaka from Purdue and Wilky Denaud from Auburn, plus cornerback Tre Wright from Memphis.
But the Bulldogs’ biggest addition on the defensive side so far is linebacker Stone Blanton from South Carolina. Blanton, who grew up in Jackson, was initially committed to play baseball at MSU but started all 12 games last year for the Gamecocks, racking up 52 tackles and breaking up four passes. He also returned an interception for a touchdown against Jacksonville State.
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