STARKVILLE — More than 20 years after an injury cut short his playing career at Oklahoma, Jeff Lebby is still an offensive lineman at heart.
So it should come as no surprise that Mississippi State’s first-year head coach had as much success attracting offensive linemen in the transfer portal as he did at any other position.
The Bulldogs are replacing all six offensive linemen who started a game in 2023, bringing in four transfers who have all played meaningful snaps at other schools. Along with several others who were reserves at MSU last year, Lebby said the offensive line has come a long way between spring practice and the first intrasquad scrimmage on Sunday.
“The group has really taken great strides since we ended spring ball, maybe the group that’s made the most improvement between the end of spring and fall camp and has continued to get better,” Lebby said. “I appreciate their spirit, their work ethic, their toughness and their camaraderie. They’re a tight group. For a bunch of guys who hadn’t known each other for a long time, you’d never know it.”
Ethan Miner, the Bulldogs’ presumptive starting center, and Makylan Pounders, who is likely to start at left tackle, have garnered the most attention. But nobody in the room has played more Southeastern Conference football than Marlon Martinez, who appeared in 45 games over the last four years at LSU.
Martinez, who started the spring game at right guard, started just four games in Baton Rouge but still helped the Tigers put up college football’s best offense last season by both points and yards per game.
“I left on amicable terms,” Martinez said. “But I decided it was time for some personal growth, and (MSU) was the place for me. Throughout my recruiting process, I was looking for a school where I knew exactly what the plan would be for me and a good relationship with the coaches.”
Less than a week after Lebby was hired, he added Cody Kennedy as the Bulldogs’ new offensive line coach. Kennedy had previously been in the same role at Arkansas, where he took over for Brad Davis — who then became Martinez’s offensive line coach at LSU.
Albert Reese, who has played in every game for MSU over the last two years (albeit with just one start) said after the spring game that the returners and transfers felt like they had known each other all along. But there will still be a learning curve once the games begin — the Bulldogs’ offensive linemen are experienced, but have not played together as a unit before.
“The spring period allowed for that growth within that relationship,” Kennedy said. “That’s a huge factor in modern football is how quickly can you build that and how quickly can you get the right personalities in the room that nurture that. It shows up a lot more on the field. When things get tough, you want to be around guys you trust and guys you have that bond with. Honestly, that’s an overlooked trait.”
The offensive line room grew even closer as fall camp got underway with a chicken wing-eating contest at Buffalo Wild Wings. Miner said Grant Jackson, who has played mostly on special teams over the last three years, ate more than 30 wings before his fiancé cut him off.
Martinez echoed Reese in saying it did not take long for him to click with his new teammates. His only disappointment is that with the SEC scrapping divisions, the Bulldogs will not play LSU this fall, the first break in the series since 1943 and the first year the teams will not meet in which both fielded a squad since 1925.
“I love all the guys on that team and I’d love to see them again on the field,” Martinez said. “(But) they’re probably going to be a tough opponent, and I’d have to hear all the talking from their defensive line guys. I have no ill will toward them. It would be cool to play them, but it is what it is.”
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