STARKVILLE — Jerkaila Jordan may not have started her collegiate career at Mississippi State, but she has become the face of the program since Sam Purcell arrived as head coach in 2022.
After playing her freshman season at Tulane in her hometown of New Orleans, Jordan has started all 124 straight games over the last four years with the Bulldogs. She was an all-Southeastern Conference second team selection last year and is currently fifth in program history in points, second in steals and sixth in made 3-pointers.
When MSU (18-9, 5-8 SEC) hosts Texas A&M on Sunday, it will not be Jordan’s last game in front of the home fans in Starkville. But Jordan will be honored — along with more recent transfer portal additions Eniya Russell, Chandler Prater and Kayla Thomas — as the Bulldogs celebrate Senior Day.
“Why it’s so special to me is the time and age of today’s climate,” Purcell said. “I come in as a first-time head coach, and her career is in my hands. At that point, she had to make a decision. She had to get to know me, trust me after she’s already made one move. She was willing to stick with me to try to get this program to another spot.”
Jordan, now a fifth-year, was part of MSU’s Senior Day festivities last season as well, when Purcell led the Humphrey Coliseum crowd in a chant of “one more year.” Purcell’s wish was granted a few weeks later when Jordan opted to return to the Bulldogs for her final year of eligibility, a year available to her after the NCAA’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Her career at MSU has not always been smooth, with a coaching change in 2022, an illness late last season and a career night going to waste this year. But she helped the Bulldogs reach the second round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament with a 20-point performance against Creighton, led her team to an upset of reigning national champion LSU last year and did not even let tonsillitis keep her off the court down the stretch last February.
“In my early coaching career, one of my fondest memories, and I have a picture in my office, is her slapping Mississippi State’s name on that board when we beat Illinois in that first round of the NCAA Tournament play-in game,” Purcell said. “I’ll never forget that moment.”
Jordan also teamed up with Kyvan Foods and Proof of the Pudding for the first food-centered NIL deal for an MSU student-athlete this season, introducing a barbecue sauce known as Jerk Sauce that is sold in bottles and on chicken sandwiches and nachos at The Hump. Kyvan Foods was founded by former Bulldogs football player Reggie Kelly, and Jordan receives a royalty for each bottle sold.
Her play this year, like that of her team, has been inconsistent, but she did score a career-high 40 points at Missouri in late January. Her second-half surge led MSU to a win on Jan. 9 over then-No. 10 Oklahoma.
“Today’s key to success is (retention),” Purcell said. “Retaining players, knowing that you’re doing a good job, knowing they feel valued, and most importantly they have a great experience. So for her to be with me as one of my top players for all three years is a statement that I’m forever grateful and proud of.”
Scouting Texas A&M
The Aggies (10-15, 3-10) will arrive in Starkville ice-cold, losers of seven straight games. Their best player, Aicha Coulibaly, sustained a season-ending knee injury in late January at LSU, and Texas A&M has not won since. Before Coulibaly went down, the Aggies had quality wins over Ole Miss and Kentucky, but their offense has fallen apart lately.
Texas A&M has been held under 60 points during all seven games in its current losing streak. The Aggies are last in the SEC in scoring, last in 3-point percentage and second to last in overall field goal percentage.
“They’re very physical. They try to control the tempo,” Purcell said. “They don’t want to necessarily, this year, get up and down and run. They want to be great in half-court sets and get to the free throw line and hope you play with not much speed.”
Coulibaly remains Texas A&M’s only player averaging double-figure scoring. Sahara Jones, Solè Williams, Janae Kent and Lauren Ware — who is second in the SEC in blocked shots per game — fill out the rest of the starting lineup.
Head coach Joni Taylor, who grew up in Mississippi, took the Aggies to the NCAA Tournament last year in her second season in College Station, in part on the strength of an SEC Tournament win over the Bulldogs. Taylor played at Alabama and reached four NCAA Tournaments as the head coach at Georgia before taking the Texas A&M job in the same cycle that saw Purcell land at MSU.
“I have the most respect for Joni Taylor. She’s the ultimate pro,” Purcell said. “We’ve had battles in the regular season where we’ve been fortunate, and she’s beaten me in the SEC Tournament. She does a great job of playing power basketball.”
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