Cliff Odom ready to roll with Bulldog special teams

Heading into 2024, Mississippi State has a lot of new faces on the field and it’s not just on the roster.

Jeff Lebby’s staff is almost entirely new with Chad Bumphis and David Turner the only carry over from last year’s team. Among the new coaches on the team is special teams coordinator Cliff Odom who enters his 10^th season of college coaching and will be leading the Bulldog special teams this season.

State had some good and some bad with that unit a season ago, but Odom is setting out to make it a solid part of the Bulldog game plan. With talent across the board set to compete for roles within the special team unit, Odom is excited about what’s ahead.

The Texas native discussed his thoughts with the State media this week.

Q: How did you become a special teams coordinator?

CO: “It really started at Martin High School in Arlington, Texas. My mentor, one of my closest friends Bob Wager. In 2007, our high school took special teams very serious. We had a lot of blocked kicks and some big returns. Playing and then coaching at the high school level, it was a very important thing for us. In 2018 at UCF, I’m a special teams analyst. Between those two things, it led me to getting here today.”

Q: Can you have a special teams philosophy?

CO: “Absolutely. Schematically, being multiple and then making sure that we’re simple in our execution. Then we need guys that are tough, fast and physical.”

Q: What are your thoughts on your returners? Do you like to get your best athletes out there and the ball in their hand?

CO: “The best guys are going to be our returners. (Kevin) Coleman and Creed (Whittemore) are two guys that immediately come to mind that have an elite skill set back there and allow us to have some success.”

Q: How did your relationship with coach Lebby develop?

CO: “It starts back to when I was 19 years old when we first met and he was off the field at Baylor. When you’re in college, you meet a bunch of people and have a little connection. Fast forward and I’m coaching at my high school and he’s now recruiting as a position coach and that’s really when our relationship took off.

“For whatever reason, through many conversations as I moved and he moved, we always kept contact. He was someone important to me as a player, then as I started my career in high school and once I got in college he was always a phone call away. To do this here in his first job means the world to me.”

Q: What’s your plan to improve punting this year?

CO: “We have two guys that have played a lot of college football. Zach Haynes – the timing worked out and he came from New Mexico State. Nick Barr-Mira – I know he came in as a kicker but he has a really big leg. They’re going to battle it out for punting and I’m excited to see it unfold.

“In a perfect world, I’d like to have one (punter), but if it comes down it and their skill sets are a little different we’ll use both.”

Q: What’s your thoughts on Kyle Ferrie?

CO: “I love Kyle. I know he’s out in the Twitter world and loves interacting with all of you guys. The thing I appreciate the most about Kyle is when he’s on, he’s on. He has the mentality that you want in a specialist. He wants 100,000 people at an away game and kicking the game winner. That’s who he is. It’s been really cool as I’ve gotten to know him the last seven months that’s in his core. That’s who he is. He wants to be in that moment and wants the weight on his shoulders.”

Q: What’s the challenge of looking at everyone on the team and their potential impact on special teams?

CO: “It’s really not a challenge. You have to spend intentional time getting to know guys and meeting them where they’re at and find out something in common from a human level so when it’s time to be coached, we have some sort of connection. It’s just been fun finding different ways to have conversations to get to know these guys.”

Q: How do you get guys to buy in to wanting to play special teams?

CO: “Whether it’s a freshman, whether it’s a guy battling for a position, it’s letting them know that the first play of the season is going to be a special teams play. You have a chance to impact the game on special teams. You have guys like JT Gray who is a captain in the NFL on special teams. We’ve had success here punting and playing special teams in the NFL and it all started here in special teams.

“Best guys play. Whether you’re a four-year starter or a true freshman. Except for Blake (Shapen) who we won’t be touching at all; everyone else is free game.”

Q: With rosters moving to 105 scholarships, is it more difficult for you or easier?

CO: “I think it’s a little bit easier. You’re able to cast a wider net and you’re able to get a better player because they are full scholarship players. I’m excited about that now going into the next recruiting cycle.”

Q: In what ways do you feel like special teams can change games under your philosophy?

CO: “It’s huge momentum swings. Whether it’s blocking a kick or getting a big return, it’s truly a one-shot, one-kill mentality. I think honing and doubling-down on that and being great at teaching the situational piece to our players and realizing we have one shot to do this. Let’s go execute at a high level.”

Q: What’s the situation with Ethan Pulliam?

CO: “Before I even get in the athletic piece: what a great kid and human being. His parents should be super proud in how they raised him. It’s a hard task that he has to play two sports, especially in this conference. I don’t think everybody can handle it, but he’s disciplined enough and that special of a kid to handle it.

“When he’s in baseball season it’s baseball. Whenever he can he’ll come over here. This fall, he’ll be with us full-time. He has an elite leg now. I don’t know if you guys were there early in the spring game but he hit a 60-yard punt.

“The biggest thing with Ethan is getting him reps. He’s kind of inconsistent right now which makes sense because he’s been focusing on baseball. But this fall we’ve got to do a good job of making sure he has a pretty high rep count so when his time comes, he’s ready.”

Q: Coach Lebby brought in a Director of Speed in Jawarski Beckum. Have you seen evidence of your guys getting faster since the spring?

CO: “The speed numbers starting out when we got here, through spring and then summer, seeing those numbers show up and start to increase has been huge. (The staff) truly is the best I’ve been around. I’m excited for that to then show up on the football field.”