Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby announces hires to offensive staff

Moments after meeting with the media for the first time, Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby remarked that he expected to have several official hires on his staff by the end of the week. On Friday that process continued with Mississippi State officially announcing multiple hires on Lebby’s offensive staff.

Earlier in the week it was confirmed that receivers coach Chad Bumphis and defensive line coach David Turner were being retained by Lebby and would be holdovers from the previous staff.

On Friday, the university announced the hiring of running backs coach Anthony Tucker, offensive line coach Cody Kennedy, tight ends coach Jon Cooper and quarterbacks coach Matt Holecek.

Tucker spent two seasons with Lebby on the UCF staff, three overall at UCF coaching runnig backs, and this past season he was Indiana’s co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach. Tucker has also coached quarterbacks at Utah State from 2021-22. During his time at UCF, the Knights posted a 28-8 overall record and played in the 2018 Fiesta Bowl.

Under his direction, UCF had the best three-year rushing stretch in school history, including a program-record 3,448 rushing yards in 2018,

At Utah State, his quarterbacks set eight school records and had three receivers with 10 or more touchdown catches. Utah State ranked 15th nationally in passing offense and 23rd in total offense.

“Coach Tucker has been instrumental in helping produce some of the country’s most explosive and exciting offenses,” said Lebby in a university release. “His track record speaks for itself. He is a proven winner that has elated the careers of so many under his tutelage, and we look forward to that continuing here at Mississippi State.”

Kennedy spent the past three seasons at Arkansas and was a 2021 Broyles Award semifinalist, which is given to the nation’s top assistant coach. In 2022, Arkansas’ offensive line paved the way for 6,128 yards and averaged 236.7 rushing yards per game.

Before coaching at Arkansas, Kennedy was Southern Miss’ offensive line coach and run game coordinator in the 2020 offseason. He also spent two seasons as Tulane’s offensive line coach and during that time, the Green Wave’s rushing attack ranked Top 20 in rushing offense.

“We are thrilled to add Coach Kennedy to our staff here at Mississippi State,” noted Lebby in a university release. “For more than a decade, including four seasons in the Southeastern Conference, he’s guided game-changing offensive lines. Coach Kennedy will bring a physicality and toughness to our front, and we couldn’t be more excited to have him join us in Starkville.”

Cooper, who played at Oklahoma, was the offensive line coach at North Texas this past season. He was also the UCF tight ends coach in the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Cooper has also served as the Arkansas tight ends coach in 2020 and the offensive line coach at Western Carolina in 2021.

“We’re extremely excited for Coach Cooper to join us at Mississippi State,” mentioned Lebby. “Over the course of his career, he’s been an integral part of coaching some of the nation’s most high-powered offensive attacks, plus he is very familiar with our style of play. Coach Cooper’s expertise will be invaluable to us and will elevate the play of our tight ends.”

Holecek has spent the past four seasons coaching with Lebby. He was the assistant quarterbacks coach at Oklahoma in 2022 and 2023, and was also the assistant quarterbacks coach at Ole Miss in 2020 and 2021. Before arriving at Ole Miss, Holecek was an offensive assistant at Missouri, his alma mater.

“Coach Holecek has had a hand in developing some of the country’s most successful quarterbacks in recent memory,” Lebby said. “His ability to mold quarterbacks along with his knowledge of and experience in our offense makes him a perfect addition to our staff at State.”