Jeff Lebby brings energy, excitement back to State football this spring
There hasn’t been any shortage of ups and downs for Mississippi State players over the last few years.
From some memorable moments with Mike Leach at the helm to the coach’s tragic death during State’s nine-win season in 2022, things were turbulent for State’s team. A year with Zach Arnett leading the charge brought some more struggles for the Bulldogs and the team has been searching for stability.
Enter Jeff Lebby.
In the last six months, Lebby has not only brought some structure and stability to the team, the coach has made it fun again for his players.
Perhaps no one can speak with more authority on it than senior defensive lineman De’Monte Russell. After being recruited by Dan Mullen, Russell played for Joe Moorhead, Leach, Arnett and now Lebby. This spring has been among his favorites.
“Probably one of the best springs that I’ve had since I’ve been here and I’ve been under four head coaches,” Russell said. “The energy around here is different. It’s just a different environment. Energy plays a big part and that’s what coach Lebby brought. It’s almost like we weren’t forced to just come out here, we know what is at stake and that’s to come out and get better every day.”
Saturday was the culmination of all the work put in so far in Lebby’s tenure as the Bulldogs hit Davis Wade Stadium for the Maroon and White Spring Game. The offense and defense went back and forth with big plays during the day with the offense coming out on top.
Lebby’s exciting offense has brought a new energy to Starkville that has been missing for some time. That was on full display in the game on Saturday with Blake Shapen at quarterback and a talented group of wide receivers stealing the show.
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The biggest takeaway for Lebby is everyone came to work.
“They did want to play football,” Lebby said. “That’s one of the things that has stood out is we have guys that are serious about being really good. That shows when they play with energy and they’ve got passion and it shows when they get on the field.”
The progress of the spring evident, the Bulldogs now move closer to the start of Lebby’s first season. State will hit the weightroom hard and train in preparation for the 2024 season and there is still work for the team to do in the transfer portal.
Over the last month, building relationships and camaraderie with the team has been paramount. Now they push forward for an exciting season ahead.
“I think we’ve got a good foundation set from the standpoint of guys understand what it’s going to take to be great inside our systems,” Lebby said. “Their energy, attitude, toughness and willingness to get better and take coaching is what’s going to give us a chance to grow over the next three months before we kick it off live.”
