STARKVILLE - Before Jeff Lebby became the head coach at Mississippi State, there was a stretch when just staying in the profession felt like a victory.
That came after the fallout at Baylor in the mid-2010s, when chances were scarce and Lebby had to keep climbing wherever he could. He landed at Southeastern University in Lakeland, Florida, and in 2017 got his first offensive coordinator job.
It didn’t take long for that stop to turn heads. Southeastern’s offense took off, the Fire won the Mid-South Conference Sun Division, reached the playoffs and finished No. 1 in the NAIA in scoring and No. 3 in total offense.
Around that same time, Lane Kiffin was trying to piece together his own next move after a stint at Alabama under Nick Saban. Kiffin had already seen enough of the veer-and-shoot world to know what he wanted, and he was interested in bringing in another coach from that Baylor tree. That led him toward Lebby.
"He may not know this, but part of what I loved about Lebby was when they had the issue and they couldn't get jobs," Kiffin said on Monday. "Kendal (Briles) was out.
Lebby was out. I hired Kendal at FAU.
Lebby was at a really, really small school [Southeastern]. It was a directional school.
I came down and I met him, because Kendal wanted to hire him. We talked about him as a position coach."
The move never happened. Florida Atlantic had already signed off on Briles and wasn’t about to open the door for another former Baylor assistant.
"Our administration was like, 'We're giving you one. We can't take more than one,'" Kiffin continued.
"[Lebby] was on like a 20-hour bus ride coaching, he said, 'It's just so awesome. I'm still coaching.'"
That part stuck with Kiffin. Lebby wasn’t acting like a coach waiting for the next big thing; he sounded like a guy grateful to be in the game at all. For Kiffin, that told him plenty.
The two eventually ended up together again at Ole Miss in 2020, and Kiffin said Lebby made a real imprint on what they built there.
"That (conversation) said a lot about him," Kiffin said. "I ended up hiring when we went to Ole Miss.
He was awesome and a huge part of our success there. He was part of building a cool place to go offensively."
Now, years later, Lebby’s offensive approach is being run through Mississippi State, with Kamario Taylor at quarterback and the same fast-paced, aggressive style that helped make Lebby such a coveted coordinator in the first place. He’s spent the past three seasons putting that system in place in Starkville, and Kiffin knows exactly how difficult it is to deal with.
"I just think he's really, really good," Kiffin said. "I don't like playing against him, because they go so fast.
He does a great job and a really unique job of staying in formations. They get it fast and can pick you apart."
The ideas that once spread out of Waco have been copied all over college football, but at Mississippi State, they’ve become Lebby’s identity. It’s the template he’s using to try to build something lasting in the SEC, and Kiffin understands the challenge that presents Saturday inside Death Valley.
In Other News...
Anthony Evans III Has Mississippi State Watching One Big Record Chase
Anthony Evans III has put Mississippi State in position to watch a record chase unfold over the rest of the season. The sophomore receiver has openly targeted the Bulldogs single-season receiving yards mark, and his start has given that goal real weight. Through five games, Evans has become one of the most productive targets on the roster, piling up catches, yards and touchdowns while giving Jeff Lebbys offense a dependable downfield threat.
What has stood out around the program is how Evans has gotten there. Lebby has pointed to his work ethic, while teammate Sanfrisco Magee has praised the consistency that has made Evans such a steady presence week after week. With seven regular-season games still to play, Mississippi State has a receiver who is not just chasing history but doing it in a way that keeps the conversation alive every time he lines up. [Read more 🡒]
Mississippi State Just Got A Harsh LSU Warning Before Kickoff
The line for LSUs matchup with Mississippi State has moved sharply as kickoff approaches, a sign that the market has grown more skeptical about the Bulldogs chances. LSU opened as roughly a 10.5-point favorite, but that number has climbed to 14.5, with Mississippi State quarterback Kamario Taylors status hanging over the game and shaping how oddsmakers and bettors view the matchup.
For Mississippi State, the concern is obvious: if Taylor cannot go, the Bulldogs offense becomes much harder to project against an LSU defense that already has a strong edge in the matchup. LSU is also coming off an upset loss, which only adds to the urgency around how it responds, but the bigger question for the Bulldogs is whether they can keep the game competitive if their quarterback situation remains unsettled. [Read more 🡒]
Mississippi State Needs Recruiting Momentum Back For Chris Jans
Mississippi States recruiting picture for the 2027 class remains thin as the program keeps working to reset the conversation around Chris Jans and the Bulldogs future. With the staff already looking ahead to the 2026-27 campaign, the push on the trail matters even more after a challenging 2025-26 season, because momentum there can change how the next phase of the roster takes shape.
For now, the class is anchored by combo guard Jacques Mitchell, while the Bulldogs continue to chase top-end talent to build around him. Among the names on the board are five-star prospects A.J. Williams and Lewis Uvwo, and landing either would go a long way toward giving Mississippi State the kind of recruiting boost it needs as Jans tries to get the program back on firmer footing. [Read more 🡒]