STARKVILLE  – “When you have two quarterbacks, you have none.”

This quote is often attributed to Hall of Fame John Madden but has become a regular saying whenever a team is in limbo between leaders under center.

Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby has managed to avoid a full-on quarterback controversy in recent weeks, handling boos and criticism toward starter Blake Shapen amid the rise of true freshman Kamario Taylor, whose emergency appearances against Arkansas and Georgia yielded five touchdowns. 

Last week, concern over quarterback health presented the possibility that Taylor may get his first start on the road at Missouri, but Shapen’s availability was made clearer on the availability report leading into the game. 

Not only did Shapen start the game, he was taking hits early as part of a designed-run offensive approach. 

Shapen led the team in carries, running 14 times with three sacks also counting against him on the statsheet. He scored two touchdowns on red zone carries but found little success outside of those plays. He gained just 16 net yards on the ground despite the heavy workload, averaging 0.9 yards per carry. He also had one of his worst games as a passer, throwing two pick-sixes and posting a sub-100 passer rating for the first time this season. 

Shapen’s performance against Mizzou ranked bottom five in adjusted QB Rating from ESPN, and he was dead last in Pro Football Focus Offensive Grade among Power Four quarterbacks. 

After the game, Lebby defended his starter by pointing out his reliability, but on a night with so many negative plays, it was hard for the point to come through. 

“It’s decision making and having the ability to not waste a play,” Lebby said when asked about Shapen continuing to start over Taylor. “Knew that we had to come in here and not play perfect, but give ourselves a chance to not waste plays, and that’s the reality of it.”

Part of the decision came down to the environment on the road, and going against a defensive front that makes quarterbacks uncomfortable. Lebby pointed to that as well after the game and pointed to the value of experience, despite the outcome. 

“With (Taylor), does some great things. I think we all understand what kind of player he’s going to be,” Lebby continued. “In a setting like this, I don’t think it’s fair to have him go play 75 snaps. Blake gives us the opportunity to not waste a play. Frustrating that both interceptions are for touchdowns. They end up in their hands and end up spotting them 14 points, and that’s a huge piece of the game, obviously.”

Lebby was asked to clarify what he meant by wasted plays on Wednesday in his weekly availability with local media, and offered more scope to the situation in terms of what a veteran provides versus a true freshman. 

“For us, (it’s about) creating predictable outcomes,” he said. “The ability to make sure when I call something, I know one of two things is going to happen. That’s the reality of playing the position, it looks a lot of different ways, and for us it’s just having the ability to nail it every single snap and every situation, and not play perfect, be perfect. There’s going to be physical things that aren’t perfect inside a game, but from a decision-making standpoint, that’s what we’re striving to be, and that’s what I talk about when we want no wasted plays.”

Lebby has spoken highly of Shapen throughout the season and has focused his evaluation on execution rather than personnel problems. Penalties and negative plays have persisted, and sacks are a quarterback stat too, but the offensive line struggles have contributed to the Bulldogs allowing 37 sacks this season, 34 of those on Shapen. 

With one game remaining, and the Bulldogs needing one more win to attain bowl eligibility, the Bulldogs haven’t made any time for controversy. Lebby once again was clear with the point that Shapen is his guy and he’ll be under center against Ole Miss on Black Friday. 

“Every single one of us is doing everything we can to find ways to get better,” Lebby said. “We were on the field today, and we’ll be on the field tomorrow. If Blake’s available, I have great confidence in him to be able to do what we need to do to go win the game, and I have continued to feel that way.”