STARKVILLE – Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby informed the media on Monday that starting quarterback Blake Shapen did not return to practice after exiting the game against Georgia from a heavy blindside hit. The sack knocked Shapen out of the game, and though he returned from the locker room, he did not go back into the game.
“He did not do anything today, so we’ll be evaluating him as we move through the week,” Lebby said of Shapen.
True freshman Kamario Taylor stepped up in Shapen’s place, scoring all three MSU touchdowns in the 41-21 loss.
Lebby was asked if the door was open for Taylor to start, but the head coach remarked that the job is still Shapen’s if he is full go.
“If (Shapen) is healthy, truly healthy, he’ll start,” Lebby said. “It’s all about getting him healthy. As we evaluate this thing and move through, we’ll see where we’re at.”
Taylor’s arrival marked the second week in a row that he had to take over with Shapen exiting for injury evaluation. Taylor led two touchdown drives on three possessions in the third quarter of a 38-35 win at Arkansas, and led another pair of touchdown drives in the second half against Georgia at home on Saturday.
Taylor’s skillset was valuable enough early on for Lebby to burn his redshirt, and it has yielded positive results thus far. The former Noxubee County Tiger has played plenty of football at the highest stage in Mississippi high school ball, and now could earn his first start for the Bulldogs should Shapen not recover in time for a trip to face Missouri this weekend.
“I’ve got great confidence in Kamario,” Lebby said of the freshman. “We’ve got to make all the layups, and just play inside the scheme, play inside the system. 1 makes some great plays for us. He wants a lot of things back, which I knew he would, and as he watched the tape, there’s going to be great growth for him through playing. That’s the reality of it over these last few weeks, being able to watch the tape and learn from things. From a confidence standpoint, I’ve got great confidence in him.”
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