STARKVILLE — A head coaching tenure that began with tragedy ended Monday morning after less than a year, as Mississippi State fired head coach Zach Arnett with two games remaining in his first full season with the Bulldogs.
“When necessary, it is my responsibility to correct areas where we are falling short. It has become clear that we need a shift in leadership, so therefore we must act,” athletic director Zac Selmon said at a press conference. “Throughout the season, you want to see progression in certain areas, and I don’t think we met the standard on the field.”
Selmon said he met with university president Mark Keenum on Sunday afternoon, the day after MSU (4-6, 1-6 Southeastern Conference) lost 51-10 at Texas A&M. The Aggies fired their own head coach, Jimbo Fisher, on Sunday morning.
Greg Knox, a senior offensive analyst who was hired in January after previously working for the Bulldogs from 2009-17, will be MSU’s interim head coach for the rest of the 2023 season. Knox also served as interim head coach for the 2017 TaxSlayer Bowl, in which the Bulldogs defeated Louisville, after then-head coach Dan Mullen left to take the job at Florida.
“It’s very similar in the fact that I’m going to be me,” Knox said. “Energy, effort, attitude, demanding attention to details, those are the things that I’m going to continue to do. The last time I was here, I’m not (Mullen). I can’t be Dan Mullen; I can’t be Zach Arnett. The same guy (the players) have been seeing every day, they’re going to continue to see.”
Arnett, 37, arrived in Starkville in January 2020 as defensive coordinator under Mike Leach, following nine seasons on the coaching staff at San Diego State. Three days after Leach’s death from complications due to a heart condition last December, Arnett was named full-time head coach, and he guided MSU to a win over Illinois in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
This season, though, has gone downhill quickly. The Bulldogs dropped their first three SEC games for the first time since 2011, lost several critical players on both sides of the ball to injuries, and have managed just two offensive touchdowns in their last four games.
“At this point in the season, we needed a jolt of energy,” Selmon said. “It’s also comforting to know you have somebody like Coach Knox, who has experienced this before. (He’s) somebody who’s a connector, somebody who builds people up, somebody who has over three decades of experience coaching the game of football. And also, we’ve got a lot of recruiting, a lot of things we have to do.”
Selmon said all assistant coaches will remain in their roles through the end of the season. After the athletic director met with Arnett and the coaching staff Monday morning to deliver the news, the players were called to a team meeting. MSU likely needs to win its final two regular-season games against Southern Miss and rival Ole Miss to avoid missing a bowl game for the first time since 2009.
Knox said he would meet later Monday with a group of veteran players, including linebackers Jett Johnson and Nathaniel “Bookie” Watson, whom he called his “leadership council.” Regarding recruiting, Knox said he and the staff will be calling every prospect on the program’s board, as well as those who have already verbally committed to the Bulldogs.
“There is always something to play for,” Knox said. “When we meet as a team, that’s the message I’ll definitely get across to them. We have two games coming up in 10 days, and we’re going to try to win the state title.”
The search for Arnett’s full-time successor has already begun, and MSU should have no shortage of money to throw around — Arnett is owed 50% of the remaining $9 million on his contract over the next three years, and if he were to take on a new job, that buyout would be reduced due to a mitigation clause. Arnett is likely to be a candidate for top defensive coordinator openings.
Selmon said he will use a search firm to help with the hire, which will easily be his biggest decision since he was named athletic director in January after 14 years in administrative roles at Oklahoma. A former tight end at Wake Forest and the son of a former NFL player, Selmon has connections at all levels of football coaching.
“I’ve been a student of this game for a long time. I’ve got a deep network, not only in college football (but) football at every level,” Selmon said. “I have a list of candidates, and I look forward to having conversations when the time comes. We’ll whittle it down from there.”
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