100 Day Bulldog Countdown: 53 Days – No. 53, So. OL Malik Ellis
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 look at a player that is making a move back to his natural position this fall.
100 Day Bulldog Countdown: 53 Days – No. 53, So. OL Malik Ellis
A native of Laurel, Ellis didn’t sign up for what he had to go through in 2023.
With State’s change in offense under Kevin Barbay, the Bulldogs were scrambling for tight ends. Strapped on its options, State had to turn to defensive linemen and offensive linemen to do the job. Ellis was a player that the staff used as a blocking tight end and he did a fine job of it.
Ellis would play in 11 of the 12 games and even started in four of them at the tight end position. Ultimately, State’s offense was a failure. It wasn’t because of Ellis, but State struggled on that side of the ball.
With a new sheriff in town in Lebby, State isn’t moving any players around to play out of position. Now, Ellis is getting a chance to develop at his own spot under OL coach Cody Kennedy.
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Ellis is in the middle of what is the golden era of offensive lineman at Laurel High School. Charles Cross came through as a five-star OT for the Golden Tornadoes and left State as a first round draft pick and a starter on the line for the Seattle Seahawks. Ellis also signed with the Bulldogs and four-star Tyler Miller is behind him and committed to LSU, though State stays in pursuit.
While Ellis isn’t as highly rated as either of the other two linemen, he’s a really good player in his own right. He came out of high school as a three-star and the No. 18 player in the state but the On3 Industry Rankings. His best offers came from Auburn, Ole Miss, Oregon, Florida State and Missouri before he picked the Bulldogs in April of his junior season and he didn’t have any drama the rest of the way.
Ellis can play either of the tackle spots and has been putting on good weight over the last several months. He currently stands 6’5, 285 pounds and will have plenty of opportunities in the fall to fight for playing time.
The good news for the Bulldogs is that they have a chance to redshirt Ellis if he doesn’t win out a job and he can get that true freshman year back that was spent at tight end. Either way, his time spent on the field last year and enrolling early after high school graduation was nothing but good for his career moving forward.
