(Photo from Mississippi State Athletics)
- “We’re going to be exactly true to who we are supposed to be and what we’re creating,” the Mississippi State Head Coach said at last week’s SEC Media Days.
Sometimes football is easy to understand.
So it is with Mississippi State this season.
When you won just two games the year before changes have to be made. State coach Jeff Lebby has made the changes with his roster and his staff that he thinks will help the Bulldogs climb from the depths of mediocrity.
However, amid the scoreboard washouts there were periods of fight within most games. Stretches of play against Texas, Georgia and Ole Miss come to mind.
That’s not how success is measured in SEC football programs, but it might be a window into Lebby’s decisions as he approached a second season that takes on heightened awareness from the administration.
Lebby felt like he could plug holes, find ways to support an embattled defensive coordinator and make the fixes he believes will lead to better outcomes.
In short, he didn’t have to blow up the program and start over.
“We’re not trying to create a new culture. We’re going to be exactly true to who we are supposed to be and what we’re creating,” Lebby said at last week’s SEC Media Days.
The existing culture, perhaps, could be saved, but it still needed new participants, particularly on the defensive side.
Standing by his man
Lebby stuck with his DC, Coleman Hutzler. Widely considered an elite recruiter, Hutzler’s first season produced, statistically, one of the worst units in the country.
But Lebby got Hutzler, 41, some help by adding defensive staff analysts Mike MacIntyre and Paul Rhoads. They’ve both been head coaches in power five conferences, and they’ve combined for almost 70 years in the business.
These guys are not going to be on candidates’ lists when head coaches are fired around the country. They are in the twilight of their careers. Lebby is banking their combined experience will help Hutzler, who faced social media backlash last year, put a competitive product on the field.
“The coolest thing about both of them is there’s zero ego. They’re trying to make Mississippi State football as good as they possibly can as fast as they possibly can. They’re all into that. Having the ability to go supplement and support Coleman as he leads that room and leads that unit has been awesome.”
Lebby had defensive personnel fires to put out too. He hopes he’s done that with 10 defensive transfers, most within the front seven, four of them from power conference teams.
The greatest offseason portal win for the Bulldogs was not in who’s coming but in who stayed.
Fulton’s Isaac Smith made the coaches All-SEC second team last year and chose not to transfer after leading the league with 127 tackles.
“Last year, I feel like a lot of the criticism got put on our coaches, but I always tell the guys, the coaches can’t go out there and play for us. It’s up to us to go execute and make plays. That’s what we didn’t do last year,” said Smith, a junior safety. “Maybe this year we’ll be on the other side of things instead of going home sad and mad that we lost close games that we should have been winning.”
Smith had elite offers in the 2023 recruiting cycle but chose to stay in state. He bonded with former coach Mike Leach then hung around for the Zach Arnett experiment.
“I felt at home in Starkville. There are no distractions in Starkville, a small town and a really pretty community. The people are awesome. I fell in love with it. I’m still in love with it and will always be in love with it.”
The Walking Billboard
Smith is the walking billboard that Lebby needs to build his program. Lebby needs the Bulldogs to win, the cure for all that ails you. If they can do with with a productive Isaac Smith leading on the defensive side a corner will be turned.
Lebby will have something else to sell, something more than an SEC second chance to players on the rebound.
Maybe that will be what it looks like in late November.
For now, Smith’s mere presence, his commitment, is a boost for Lebby.
“It’s a great statement that he has great belief in what is going on (in Starkville). The result was far from what it needed to be. Isaac sees what we see. He has great understanding of what the expectation is,” Lebby said.
The coach and his best defensive player are on the same page.
In a 2-10 season there is blame to be shared. Proportionally, more of it should go to an abysmal defense.
Smith had options but felt like his best one was to stay put.
“This is a guy that does it the right way. I’m proud of him. I love coaching him, and I’m excited about his opportunity,” Lebby said.
Parrish Alford
