How Jeff Lebby got Mississippi State football from nowhere near a bowl to one win away
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STARKVILLE — Jeff Lebby never publicized a goal for win total in his first season as the Mississippi State football coach in 2024.
Instead, he said he wanted fans to be encouraged that he had the program headed in the right direction. But after the 2024 season, it was difficult to say that was true.
The Bulldogs slumped to a 2-10 record with no SEC wins. An early season-ending injury to quarterback Blake Shapen didn’t help, but they had issues beyond the quarterback like the conference’s worst defense.
One season later, Mississippi State (5-4, 1-4 SEC) is on the cusp of bowl-eligibility for the first time since 2022, in need of one win in its final three games. The Bulldogs can reach that as soon as Week 11 when they host No. 5 Georgia (7-1, 5-1) at Davis Wade Stadium on Nov. 8 (11 a.m., ESPN).
“It’s huge for a lot of different reasons,” Lebby said. “I think as we stand here today, and I don’t talk about it with our football team, but thinking about where we were a year ago today and what the product looked like in comparison to what the product looks like today is, to me, opposite ends of the spectrum.
“We haven’t gotten the results we wanted non-stop, but our football team and our belief and the way we’re playing the game is a Mississippi State football team. I’m proud of that. We’ve got a lot left out in front of us. Our guys can see that and feel that. We got to find a way to go be plus-one Saturday.”
Mississippi State football was once a consistent bowl team
Bowl games were a constant for Mississippi State not long ago. The Bulldogs made a bowl in 13 consecutive seasons between 2010-22 under three different coaches. MSU hadn’t missed a bowl game in consecutive seasons since 2008-09.
Mississippi State fell on hard times when coach Mike Leach unexpectedly died in December 2022 before the ReliaQuest Bowl. Zach Arnett was promoted to the head coach, but didn’t last the full 2023 season before being fired.
Then in Lebby’s first season, it became obvious quickly that Mississippi State’s roster was not at the level to compete in the SEC.
“I feel like the big thing is we all had a common goal just coming to State,” said linebacker Malick Sylla, who transferred from Texas A&M this season. “Everybody wants to turn the program around, and I feel like on defense we’ve been playing pretty well.”
Lebby was clearer with his goals for Mississippi State in 2025.
It started with getting a season-opening 34-17 win at Southern Miss. Then, the second goal was to go undefeated in the non-conference schedule. That was accomplished too, highlighted by the upset win against then-No. 10 Arizona State when fans stormed the field.
The third goal was to become bowl eligible as quickly as possible, but that got difficult when Mississippi State lost four consecutive games. But even in the losses, it was clear that MSU was an improved team. Three of the losses came down to the very end, including overtime losses to then-No. 15 Tennessee and then-No. 18 Texas.
MSU finally broke through on Nov. 1 when it rallied from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to win at Arkansas. It also snapped the program’s 16-game SEC losing streak that dated back to 2023.
“It doesn’t change our mindset on anything, but we definitely want to get to a bowl game and bowl eligible as fast as possible,” Shapen said.
How Mississippi State football can reach bowl game
The Bulldogs will need an upset to get their sixth win.
After playing Georgia, they will travel to No. 17 Missouri (6-2, 2-2) for their final road game of the season Nov. 15. However, Missouri could be starting a third-string quarterback after injuries to starter Beau Pribula and backup Sam Horn.
Then, Mississippi State will conclude the season on Black Friday against No. 7 Ole Miss (8-1, 5-1), which likely will be playing for a spot in the College Football Playoff.
“It would mean a lot because last year with the season that we had and coming back this year, we’re having a much better season,” said defensive lineman Trevion Willliams, who was on MSU’s 2022 team. “So a bowl game would be much needed.”
Mississippi State bowl game projections
Some experts have projected Mississippi State to make a bowl game.
ESPN and The Athletic predict MSU to play in the Liberty Bowl, while On3 has MSU in the Texas Bowl.
USA TODAY and CBS Sports do not forecast MSU to make a bowl game.
Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for The Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi State bowl chances: Jeff Lebby, Bulldogs need one more win
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