Lebby Reflects On First Few Weeks At State
December 21, 2023 | Football, Joel Coleman
New State head man has hit the ground running in Starkville.
STARKVILLE – Ask new Mississippi State head football coach Jeff Lebby to talk about his electric offensive style and here's how he repeatedly describes it.
Fast. Aggressive. A show.
Well, the same could certainly be said for Lebby's first few weeks on the job in Maroon and White. It's featured a whirlwind of activity – from the hiring of a coaching staff, to putting together the majority of his very first Bulldog signing class.
On Wednesday, Lebby sat down with Joel Coleman and Logan Lowery to discuss it all on the latest edition of the Dear Ol' State podcast. You can listen to the full show BY CLICKING HERE, or below, check out a transcript of all the leader of the Dawgs had to say.
Question: What are your overall thoughts on your first signees here at Mississippi State?
Lebby: Feel good about addressing the needs. That's what [signing day] is all about. Got a chance to flip the roster a little bit more in today's age with the portal and able to go get some guys that have played some college ball. Again, feel really good about our mix – some older guys we've got in place, then our high school signees as well.
Question: How were you able to come in and hang on to some players that were already committed and then add to that?
Lebby: We were able to get off the ground as soon as we got here with a couple of key pieces that helped. [Assistant coach David Turner] being here and [assistant coach Chad Bumphis] were critical in that and being able to get us going. [Rod Gibson], same thing. [Greg Knox]. Guys that'd been here and had some relationships with some guys. That was huge. And for us, it was all about just spending time. Finding a way to get around these guys and get them on campus for official visits. And then connect with them while still adding to the pool and recruiting other guys. It was a lot of work, but it was really good and got us to this point.
Question: You mentioned Coach Bumphis and Coach Turner. What was it about those two guys that made you want to retain them and keep them a part of your first staff here at Mississippi State?
Lebby: It starts with people. They're great people. They're great guys. Everybody that's worked with them and been around them have incredible things to say. My interaction with them as soon as I got here just felt very, very right. [Turner] has done it a long time. He's had a ton of success. He's an unbelievable guy. He's a great recruiter and a great developer. I immediately just wanted him to be part of the staff. Then [Bumphis], the same thing. Obviously, he loves State. He had a ton of success as a player. Has circled back to coach the wide outs now. I wanted to give him that opportunity to continue that and go chase it. He's done a great job and man, appreciative of both of those guys.
Question: How important was it to get all these staff hires right? You've got such a good mix of guys, many of whom you've worked with in the past.
Lebby: It's huge. Again, for me it is all about the people. The people that are inside our building every single day, we get to choose that from a staff standpoint and from a player standpoint. So, bet on people. Get the right people in there and I feel great about that.
Question: So many of the guys on your staff mentioned part of the appeal to coming here with you was how you prioritize off-field things. From our D.A.W.G. Program to other off-field things, that component is vitally important to you, isn't it?
Lebby: No doubt about it. I want our guys to leave here equipped and ready to go do life. I want our guys to leave here and say, 'Man I had an incredible college experience.' I want our guys to be able to go chase championships and get a great degree. So, when we talk about purpose of the program, there's a lot of things that go before winning a championship, but winning a championship is dang sure on there. So, for our guys, it's all about growth and connection and having a great experience while we're on the chase to go win a trophy.
Question: You've talked about your offense being a show. What does a show look like?
Lebby: Fast. Aggressive. Throwing it over people's heads and running the rocket wheel. That's what it's going to be. Excited about Davis Wade man. It's going to be an electric environment and excited to get that show on the ground.
Question: What fostered your offensive style and helped you become the offensive coach you are?
Lebby: I think it starts all the way back being at Baylor and the beginning pieces of that – from a philosophical standpoint and how we want to spread people and run the ball and be aggressive and play the game and coach in a fast, fearless, physical kind of way. That's where it all started and been with some great offensive coaches since then as well to get me and us to this point.
Question: You've had such a good track record and reputation, so why was Mississippi State the right opportunity for you?
Lebby: I think there's a lot of things that made it incredibly easy for me. The first thing being our leadership with [MSU President Dr. Mark Keenum] and [Director of Athletics] Zac Selmon – guys that have great alignment. Obviously, there's the [previous] relationship with Zac, but knowing exactly who he was and how he was going to lead and being able to lock arms with him and Dr. Keenum to go chase this thing together was important to me. The next thing is just proximity to players. There are great players in this state. You don't have to get on airplanes and fly all over the world to go get great players to come to State. That to me is a competitive advantage. So, we've got to do a great job here. We will do a great job here. That's going to be a big part of our success.
Question: You're known as an offensive coach, but you've put together a great defensive staff. What are you wanting to see on that side of the football?
Lebby: I want to be aggressive. I want to be attacking. I want to be incredibly physical. Those are the things I want to stand out about us defensively. I think we've got the right guys in the room to get that done, that know exactly what that's supposed to look like [and] when it's not good enough, being able to get it fixed, to be able to play to the standard of Mississippi State defense which matters. So excited about those guys.
Question: Obviously another signing day coming in February. What are some positions you're looking to address to wrap up your first full class?
Lebby: On the defensive side, corner and getting an edge guy. Might be able to add another backer or safety. We'll look at those pieces again. We want to make sure we're taking the right guys. We don't have a ton of numbers left so we're going to be pretty selective here but feel really good about being able to add a couple of those pieces to the puzzle.
Question: What's the next little bit look like for you after the nonstop grind of the last few weeks?
Lebby: We're going to head back to Texas and be around family for a few days. We'll have Christmas there while being on the phone and continuing to finish off the staff from a support staff standpoint and continue to recruit these guys that are in the portal and maybe even a couple of high school kids for here in the February signing period. Can do everything we need to do now that it's gone [into a dead period] from a phone and on Zoom. So going to be around the family for a few days, which I'm looking forward to.
Question: How settled in are you in Starkville now? Is that something you just let your wife handle?
Lebby: Correct. She's got it all figured out. She's an unbelievable trooper and supporter and she's got all that stuff nailed.
Question: Along those lines, its so huge to have that support system at home as a coach. Can you speak to how important that's been for you to get here?
Lebby: It's huge…There's no chance I'd be sitting where I'm sitting today without [my wife] and without my family. Just incredibly appreciative to get to go do what I do, and they make it possible.
Question: Last thing, looking at the pieces you've inherited, what's your impressions of what you've seen from your guys here at State on film so far?
Lebby: I think we've got some good pieces. We've got to do a great job this spring of getting everybody up to speed and being able to go install our offense and our defense and our special teams to be able to get done what we need to get done. But there are definitely some pieces on both sides of the ball and on special teams to be able to go get it done on Saturdays next fall with continuing to add guys to the locker room.