STARKVILLE — Following a season-ending shoulder injury to Blake Shapen, true freshman Michael Van Buren will start for Mississippi State when the Bulldogs visit No. 1 Texas on Saturday, head coach Jeff Lebby said Monday.
Van Buren, the No. 15 quarterback in the class of 2024 according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, relieved Shapen in the fourth quarter against Florida, completing seven of 13 passes for 100 yards. Initially committed to Oregon before Lebby and his staff flipped him, Van Buren also had offers from Alabama, Tennessee, Michigan and several other prestigious football programs.
Now, the Baltimore product will be making his first collegiate start on the road against the top-ranked team in the country.
“The biggest change is just the experience piece of it,” Lebby said. “(Van Buren) can do a lot of very similar things that Blake has the ability to do. He can keep things alive with his feet, he can go make the throws we need him to make, but the experience piece of it is what matters, especially as we go on the road playing the program we’re playing. For Mike, it’s about focusing really small, taking great care of the football, creating predictable outcomes.”
Lebby said redshirt freshman Chris Parson, who appeared in two games with one start in 2023, will also play for MSU (1-3, 0-1 Southeastern Conference) on Saturday. Parson, a former four-star recruit from Brentwood, Tennessee, threw two incomplete passes in mop-up duty against Eastern Kentucky on Aug. 31, though he did gain seven yards on his only rushing attempt.
“Mike is going to run out first,” Lebby said. “I was proud of how he was able to put a drive together there in the fourth quarter (against Florida), a guy who has great confidence in himself and the guys around him. Chris has been unbelievable (in terms of) being a great teammate, working his butt off, doing some of the things that we need him to do to create a ton of confidence.”
Van Buren and Parson will be without their most experienced running back Saturday — Keyvone Lee sustained an injury against the Gators and did not play the second half, and Lebby said he will be out for an extended period of time. Lebby did not provide an update on safety Isaac Smith, who was injured on a blindside block in the third quarter of the Florida game.
Shapen, a fifth-year senior who battled injuries during his time at Baylor, played in just four games this year, so Lebby felt good after talking to Shapen and his family about being able to obtain a medical hardship waiver for an additional year of eligibility.
Lebby said Shapen was at practice Monday helping coach his teammates with his arm in a sling.
“He’s special. He’s an elite young man. He pulled into the office bright and early this morning. The man is in the building getting some rehab, he’s in the quarterback room, he’s coaching these guys up on the field,” Lebby said. “It’s just a reflection of exactly who he is. Couldn’t be more proud that I get to coach him every single day as we walk through this thing. He’ll be a huge part of the rest of the season just because of his leadership and his toughness.”
Scouting Texas
The Longhorns (4-0) will be playing their first conference game as SEC members Saturday and have breezed through their first four opponents, including a 31-12 road takedown of defending national champion Michigan in Week 2. Led by quarterback Quinn Ewers, Texas made the four-team College Football Playoff last year and lost a nail-biter of a semifinal to Washington.
Ewers looked as good as ever early this year, but sustained an abdominal injury in Week 3 against UTSA. That opened the door for Arch Manning, the nephew of famed NFL quarterbacks Peyton and Eli Manning, and he excelled off the bench against the Roadrunners and made his first start last week against Louisiana-Monroe.
Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian said Ewers practiced Monday and called him “questionable” to play against the Bulldogs.
“Arch did some really good things. He’s done some really good things the last two weeks,” Lebby said. “You want to be able to learn from good experiences and not have to go through some of the hardships and failures, but at the same time, that’s playing the quarterback position. It’s no different there than it is here. It’s all about taking care of the ball.”
Jerrick Gibson and Jaydon Blue give Texas a pair of talented running backs, despite the loss of both CJ Baxter and Christian Clark to season-ending injuries. Alabama transfer Isaiah Bond leads the Longhorns’ receiving corps along with Ryan Wingo, Gunnar Helm and Matthew Golden.
Linebackers Anthony Hill Jr. and Liona Lefau have been game wreckers, with a combined 7.5 tackles for loss and four sacks. Edge rusher Colin Simmons leads the way up front for the Texas defense, with Andrew Mukuba and Jahdae Barron anchoring the secondary.
“They’ve been incredibly dominant in all three phases,” Lebby said. “Defensively, they’re as good as there is in America. Offensively, they’ve got this incredible amount of skill. They’re playing really well up front, regardless of who the quarterback is going to be. Both those guys have the ability to run the offense the way (Sarkisian) wants them to. And they’re very aggressive from a team standpoint.”
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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 44 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
