100 Day Bulldog Countdown: 92 Days - No. 92, DT Eric Taylor
Jeff Lebby’s era of Mississippi State football has arrived.
The Bulldogs are on their third coach in as many years as Mike Leach’s tragic passing opened the door for defensive coordinator Zach Arnett’s debut as head coach last year. That experiment failed before the year even ended for State and now it’s Lebby’s turn to take the wheel.
While there is always a risk in hiring first time head coaches, Lebby brings to Starkville an exciting offensive scheme that has been productive everywhere he’s been. The coach has also brought with him some swagger that has the fanbase ready to see what’s next.
Over the course of the next 100 days, we will take a look at Lebby’s roster and even some fun historical rewinds that will bring back memories for Dawg fans of all ages.
Today, we take a look at a veteran defensive lineman on the Bulldog front this year.
100 Day Bulldog Countdown: 92 Days – No. 92, Sr. DT Eric Taylor
As questions persist about the Bulldogs’ prospects up front this season, players with experience carry more weight than ever for line coach David Turner.
The longtime assistant doesn’t have the luxury of having a roster full of players that have spent many years in the SEC, but there are a few that have. Taylor is one of those as he enters year two with the Bulldogs and is in his fourth season in the conference.
Taylor began his career playing for the LSU Tigers back in 2020. He was a four-star defensive tackle that was rated No. 273 overall by the On3 Industry Ranking. That metric had him 34th nationally on the defensive line and he was 12th in the state of Alabama playing for Hewitt-Trussville.
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After not playing his first two seasons, Taylor entered the transfer portal in 2022 and would land at Southwest Community College playing for former East Mississippi defensive coordinator Cliff Collins. At SWCC, Taylor made 28 tackles, had 8.0 tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks and a forced fumble.
That big season drew the attention of a couple of big schools with MSU and Florida State dropping offers along with several other Group of 5 options. He would choose to stay inside the state of Mississippi just a little longer as he signed with State.
As the season wore on last year, Taylor became a big part of State’s defensive plans. He factored into more playing time with the depth dwindling up front and made 15 tackles with a 0.5 tackle for loss. Eight of those tackles came in the final three games as the Bulldogs took on Texas A&M, Southern Miss and Ole Miss.
The junior Taylor should be an even bigger part of things this year as he carries over the end of his season.
