Mississippi State’s roster overhaul gave Jeff Lebby a team with plenty of new faces, but it also created a simple problem that never goes away: players want to play. And for a handful of Bulldogs, the clock is already ticking toward the next transfer portal window.
A few Mississippi State players spent September on the fringe or entirely out of the rotation, even though they arrived in Starkville with real credentials. None of them has announced any plan to leave, but their roles are worth watching closely.
The most recognizable name is Womack, a former five-star prospect in the 247Sports Composite and Mississippi’s Gatorade Player of the Year at Hartfield Academy. He flipped from Auburn to sign with his home-state school and has worked in as a reserve, but he still hasn’t earned a start. On the LSU depth chart, he was behind veteran Jardin Gilbert.
Lebby made his view of Womack clear on signing day in December: “There’s been great dialogue, I believe, in that young man in a great, great way,” Lebby said. “He’s loved Mississippi State for a long time, and he has been over here a ton.”
Miller is another player who ought to be in the conversation. A consensus four-star offensive lineman in the 2025 class, he returned home from LSU after a redshirt year without game action.
Through September, he had not played a snap, and he did not appear on this week’s depth chart. He told On3 in January, “I want to put on for my home state, and I am glad to be back,” and added, “I am versatile so I can play wherever they need me to.”
Taylor’s résumé already shows he can produce. The Iowa State transfer arrived with six starts and a team-high five pass breakups, but at Mississippi State he has been used only as a reserve. He is third at his cornerback spot behind Jett Jefferson and Jamroc Grimsley, after coming in to compete opposite Kelley Jones.
Holman rounds out the group. The Florida State transfer is a redshirt freshman who has not played through September, and even with linebackers Jalen Smith and Zakari Tillman out against LSU, he still was not listed on the depth chart. With seven games left, Mississippi State could use help at linebacker, and Holman looks like a natural candidate if the staff wants to get him on the field.
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Afterward, LSU coach Lane Kiffin made clear he wasnt interested in softening the edges of the result based on Mississippi States situation. The Bulldogs were already shorthanded, and the question hanging over the postgame discussion was whether those absences changed the meaning of the win at all, a point Kiffin brushed aside in a way that only added to the sting of an already lopsided night. [Read more 🡒]
Mississippi State Faces A Defining Home Test After Another Brutal Loss
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Oklahoma comes in with momentum after upsetting Texas, but it still has Kentucky ahead before turning its full attention to Starkville. For Mississippi State, this is the kind of game that can either steady a season or deepen the concerns, especially if the offense can finally get back to something closer to full strength. [Read more 🡒]