Memphis left tackle Makylan Pounders announces plans to transfer to Mississippi State

In a lot of ways, Memphis transfer offensive tackle Makylan Pounders has come full circle. That became evident on Saturday when the former Byhalia High School standout announced his intentions to transfer to Mississippi State.

Pounders, who has two years of eligibility remaining, started last season at left tackle for Memphis. Per PFF (Pro Football Focus), the 6-foot-6 and 300-pound Pounders allowed just one sack in 400 snaps this past season. He is also rated as the nation’s No. 2 offensive tackle transfer by On3 transfer rankings.

Once Mississippi State reached out to Pounders earlier this week and extended an offer along with a visit invite, he immediately started thinking about his future with the Bulldogs.

“Man, I knew where I wanted to be when they told me to come down for a visit,” Pounders explained. “As soon as they told me they wanted me to come down for a visit, I knew. Originally, I was going to make my decision in January and I had other visits planned for January.

“But Mississippi State told me to come down and I got to thinking. I never thought I would be here but three years later, I have ended up back at Mississippi State. I just felt like that was the sign I was looking for in this process.”

Pounders also held offers from Auburn, Ole Miss, Missouri, Texas A&M, South Carolina, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State among others. He also took an official visit to Auburn last weekend and had future visits scheduled for Missouri and Texas A&M in January, which he has canceled now.

During his senior year at Byhalia High School, Pounders was a long-time Mississippi State commitment in the Class of 2021. However, he briefly switched that commitment to Ole Miss close to signing day before eventually signing with Memphis. At the time of his Ole Miss commitment, Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby was the Rebels’ offensive coordinator.

“Coach Lebby was obviously the offensive coordinator at Ole Miss when all that stuff happened to me in high school,” recalled Pounders. “I saw the opportunity to come play at Mississippi State but I knew I needed to go there and talk to him first. Before this week, the last time I talked to him I was committed to him at Ole Miss to come play for him.

“Three years later he still wants me to play for him. That was the whole thing. Me and Coach Lebby had a good little talk and I didn’t blink after that. My mind was made up.”

And regarding Lebby’s first offense at Mississippi State, Pounders is excited about those possibilities.

“That’s going to be fun,” Pounders said. “Me and Coach Lebby are on the same page. We have a good transfer quarterback (Blake Shapen) from Baylor and it is my job to keep his jersey clean. I am excited to score a lot of points this year.”

Not long after entering the transfer portal, Pounders also developed a relationship with Mississippi State offensive line coach Cody Kennedy. Pounders also gained insight into Kennedy’s demeanor from a former teammate at Memphis.

“It’s good with Coach Kennedy, too,” Pounders added. “We hit it off from the moment we met. He is real laid back and chill. I know he coaches hard, too. I had a guy at Memphis that played for him at Arkansas. Talking to him, he told me how Coach Kennedy was a chill guy and laid back but that he is still going to coach you hard. So that was something that interested me.”

After spending his first two seasons of college close to home, Pounders is eager to play his final two seasons in the Magnolia State with his family and friends still cheering him on from Davis Wade Stadium.

“That is going to be fun, no lie,” mentioned Pounders about playing in his home state. “Obviously, I had everybody coming to the games in Memphis. But being on this side and in this conference, it is big because I am able to showcase my talent.”