Mississippi State’s defense had not come up with a stop all night against Arizona State when the Sun Devils faced a third-and-7 on their own 28-yard line late in the third quarter.
The Bulldogs, who had just three players on the line of scrimmage for most of the game and could not stop Arizona State from running the ball, stacked the box this time even on a passing down, although they went with just a four-man rush.
But one of those four was Branden Jennings. Officially a linebacker, Jennings plays the “Jack” position, which is really a hybrid outside linebacker/defensive end whose main job is to rush the passer. And he executed perfectly on that play, racing straight past left tackle Josh Atkins before looping around to chase after quarterback Sam Leavitt. Jennings grabbed Leavitt’s ankle from behind and managed to bring him down for his first sack with MSU.
“The Jack position in our defense is very versatile,” Jennings said. “We are asked to do a lot, and I really like it. We can play off the ball, on the ball, they blitz us a lot, just different variations.”
Jennings’ college journey has not been the one he expected coming out of Sandalwood High School in Jacksonville, Florida, where he became a four-star prospect, the No. 18 player in Florida and the No. 12 linebacker nationally in his recruiting class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.
His offer list included seven Southeastern Conference schools, plus perennial powers like Clemson, Notre Dame, Michigan and Ohio State. But Jennings turned them all down and chose Maryland, a program coming off six consecutive losing seasons, for the chance to play right away. And he appeared in eight games with three starts as a true freshman, playing well enough to be named an ESPN and On3 Midseason True Freshman All-American.
After just one year at Maryland, Jennings entered the transfer portal, landing at Kansas State. But he lasted just one spring with the Wildcats before exploring other options again in the second portal window, this time ending up at UCF. He played in four games for the Knights, keeping his redshirt status intact, then entered the portal again before deciding to take the junior college route, enrolling at Hinds Community College in the summer of 2023.
“If anybody has the most faith in my abilities, it’s definitely me,” Jennings said during fall camp. “I’m always focused on football, whether there’s distractions or not.”
Jennings blossomed at Hinds, leading his team with 58 tackles (42 of them solo) as well as 6.5 tackles for loss. MSU took notice and was the first FBS program to offer him during that season, and he committed to the Bulldogs last October before enrolling in January.
It did not take long for Jennings to make his presence felt in a defense under new leadership and down nine of 11 starters from a year ago, including the SEC’s top two tacklers in linebackers Nathaniel “Bookie” Watson and Jett Johnson. Jennings even wears Johnson’s old number, although his skill set is more similar to that of Watson — he has excellent speed and a nose for the football.
“I kind of look at him as a psycho because he’s always flying around to the ball,” safety Isaac Smith said. “You look up, there’s number 44 flying around, putting his hat on the ball. It’s great to have a linebacker like that (after) we lost two great linebackers last year.”
Despite having to adjust to a new program yet again, Jennings felt comfortable quickly in Starkville. Several MSU players have come from the state’s junior college system, and fellow linebacker Nic Mitchell is also from Jacksonville and knew Jennings growing up.
In his Bulldogs debut against Eastern Kentucky, Jennings finished with six tackles and capped his day by teaming with John Lewis to bring down running back Brayden Latham in the backfield for a two-yard loss on a fourth-and-1. Late in the first half, he blitzed from his linebacker spot and nearly got to quarterback Matt Morrissey, instead knocking away his pass the moment he released the ball. The play was initially ruled a fumble before being reversed upon review.
“I honestly felt comfortable. That’s why I was so enthusiastic,” Jennings said. “I feel like this place is home. I was able to be comfortable with my guys out there, and we just had a lot of fun.”
Jennings made his first start with MSU last weekend in place of Ty Cooper, tallying five tackles including the sack. The Bulldogs’ defense struggled for most of the game, but Jennings always seemed to be near the ball and in position to make a play.
“We call him ‘Hammerhead,’” middle linebacker Stone Blanton said. “That dude’s crazy. He’s a hard hitter, he’s a funny dude. He’s going to play hard, and that’s how he’s always around the ball, being physical, beating people up. I love playing with him.”
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