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Mississippi State Bulldogs quarterback Blake Shapen (2) walks off the field after a turnover against the Florida Gators during the third quarter at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. Matt Bush-Imagn Images

Anonymous SEC coaches provide honest assessment of Bulldogs

Originally posted on Mississippi State Bulldogs on SI
By Jacob Davis | Last updated May 25, 2025 2:09 PM ET

STARKVILLE, Miss. — It’s that time of year again where “anonymous SEC coaches” are allowed to sound off about their conference foes. It's seemingly become a tradition.

For over three decades, Athlon’s preseason college football magazine has provided laughable, awkward and sometimes interesting comments from various coaches around the nation.

Most of the so-called anonymous coaches are likely graduate assistants or glorified coffee carriers for their bosses. It's easier to take these takes with a grain of salt instead of being bothered by them anyway.

There is no denying how bad last season was in year one for Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby.
But, the first coach shares his optimism toward the Bulldogs starting quarterback back along with a heavy reliance on the transfer portal.

Lebby still faces an uphill battle to rebuild the Bulldogs program but does have Blake Shapen set to return for one last ride this fall after suffering a shoulder injury that forced him out of the final eight games last season.

He was an efficient 68% passer for 974 yards, eight touchdowns and only one interception in his first year against SEC competition.

When healthy, Mississippi State averaged 30 points, 402 yards per game but were humbled in losses to Toledo and Florida.

“When [Blake] Shapen was healthy last season, the offense wasn’t bad at all," an anonymous SEC coach said. "He knows how to run that system.”

Like many programs around the country, Mississippi State lost plenty in the portal with 37 players opting to leave following a two win campaign.

The Bulldogs have seen plenty of turnover since the end of the 2022 seasons with 87 departures.

There were some standouts from last season gone such as defensive back Brian Pollock (Texas Tech), quarterback Michael Van Buren (LSU), wide receiver Kevin Coleman (Missouri) and wide receiver Mario Craven (Texas A&M).

“This was a thin roster to start with, and then they were hit hard in the portal," another coach said.

While Lebby was hit hard with losses, he did bring in some solid pieces capable of contributing immediately this offseason in explosive wide receiver Anthony Evans (Georgia), offensive tackle Jaekwon Bouldin (Purdue), Brenen Thompson (Oklahoma), quarterback Luke Kromenhoek (Florida State), linebacker Jalen Smith (Tennessee), defensive back Jahron Manning (Old Dominion), running back Fluff Bothwell (South Alabama) and Dwight Lewis (NAIA Marian University).

“Their biggest weakness outside of the defense is receiver but they’ve portaled some guys who will start on the line right away," one coach said. "I think they’ll improve on offense this season.”

One major addition to Lebby's staff this offseason was hiring Phil Loadholt away from Colorado and coach Deion Sanders.

He took over a unit that gave up 56 sacks in 2023 and trimmed that number to 43 last season even though the Buffaloes still finished No. 126 nationally.

Loadholt was challenged once again this offseason when hired by Mississippi State to improve its offensive line that gave up 38 sacks in 2024 which was No. 120 among FBS teams.

He led the charge to bring in several immediate impact players along the line like Bouldin, Blake Steen (Virginia), Koby Keenum (Kentucky) and center Brennan Smith (UTEP).

How good Mississippi State can be on defensive may be predicated by how much the offense can score and sustain long drives.

The Bulldogs defense allowed over 34 points, 456 yards and quarterbacks to complete over 70% of their passes per game.

How well the defense can stop the run will go a long way in reestablishing the Bulldogs as a hardnosed unit after it surrendered over 217 yards per game on the ground (No. 130 FBS) and 24 touchdowns (No. 97 FBS).

“The defense is legitimately bad," another anonymous coach said. "This is the ultimate line-of scrimmage league, and they were the worst defensive line we saw last season.

"Every one of their starters will be portaled, and some of those guys are very good, but even if they take that next step in the offensive system, the defensive front and run game defense have to improve dramatically. You don’t have that in this league and you’re dead.”