Mississippi State is heading into the back half of the season with one of its defensive leaders officially done for the year and its quarterback situation still hanging in the balance.
Head coach Jeff Lebby said Monday that linebacker Jalen Smith will not play again in 2026 after suffering a non-contact knee injury against Alabama. Smith left that game in the second quarter with help from trainers and never returned. Lebby also confirmed that Smith has already had successful surgery, but the operation ended any chance of a comeback this season.
It closes the book on what had been lining up as the strongest stretch of Smith’s college career. In Mississippi State’s first five games, the junior linebacker piled up 28 tackles, added an interception, broke up a pass and logged two quarterback hurries. At the time, he was second on the team in tackles and was tracking toward topping the 57 stops he made in his first season with the Bulldogs in 2025.
For a defense that has already taken its share of hits, losing Smith is another tough blow. His workload, production and presence in the middle will be hard to replace as Mississippi State tries to finish the season with something left in the tank.
The Bulldogs will lean more heavily on Fatt Forrest, who stepped in for Smith against Alabama. Forrest has played in all seven games and has totaled 30 tackles with half a tackle for loss.
Mississippi State should also get a boost from Zakari Tillman, who had been sidelined for much of the year before posting four tackles against Oklahoma. Along with Tyler Lockhart, Tillman could help steady the group while the linebacking corps adjusts.
The news was less clear on the offensive side, where Kamario Taylor’s status remains up in the air. Lebby didn’t offer a firm answer on the sophomore quarterback after Taylor aggravated a right foot injury in Saturday’s loss to Oklahoma.
Taylor first hurt the foot in Mississippi State’s Week 4 win over Missouri. He then left the Alabama game early and sat out the loss to LSU before trying to play through it again against Oklahoma.
That return attempt was brief and quiet: over four possessions, he completed two of five passes for 10 yards and lost 12 yards on three rushing attempts. Mississippi State announced before halftime that he would not return.
Lebby said the staff expects to know more about Taylor in about 48 hours.
That matters because Taylor had been a major driver of Mississippi State’s 4-0 start. He threw 14 touchdown passes in the Bulldogs’ first four games and added 178 rushing yards over the opening three weeks, giving the offense the kind of dual-threat punch it has been missing since the injury issues started piling up.
Until there’s a clearer medical update, Billy Puckett and the rest of the quarterback room have to get ready for the possibility that Taylor is out again.
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Steve Sarkisian is leaning into a familiar sports-psychology touchstone as Texas prepares for Mississippi State, pointing to Kobe Bryants Mamba Mentality as a reminder for his players to keep pushing for improvement. The Longhorns coach framed Bryants approach as more than a slogan, using it to underscore the value of relentless work and attention to detail after Texas recent win over Ole Miss.
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For a team that opened the year looking like a real surprise, the recent skid has made the margins much thinner. Injuries and missed chances on offense have only added to the frustration, leaving Mississippi State at 4-3 and searching for fixes before the problems on the back end become the defining story of the season. [Read more 🡒]