Finding The 'Wright' Fit
February 17, 2023 | Football
STARKVILLE – Quarterbacks are always highly sought after in the transfer portal.
A quarterback with starting experience in the Southeastern Conference is even more rare and coveted by programs across the country. When Mike Wright entered his name into the transfer portal in early December, schools from coast-to-coast began contacting the former Vanderbilt starting signal caller.
"My phone was ringing off the chart from December 5th until I made the decision to publicly commit (to Mississippi State)," Wright said. "Throughout the process, I didn't post any offers and just kind of kept it in-house because I wanted it to be purely a business decision. I'm not a guy that's interested in Instagram and Twitter likes. I'm just down to business because it's about ball and academics for me."
Walking away from the Commodores wasn't an easy choice. Wright saw action in 26 games and made 11 starts during his three years at Vandy and was a team captain last year. He threw for 2,067 yards and 21 touchdowns across his career while also adding 908 yards and seven more scores on the ground.
"I made a tough decision to enter the transfer portal," Wright said. "I had something good going on at Vanderbilt and could've returned but I decided to take a leap of faith."
That leap of faith caused Wright to prioritize what aspects of a program were the most important to him as he went through the recruiting process for the second time. He found exactly what he was looking for within the same conference and announced his commitment to the Bulldogs on Jan. 22.
"Really you just have to find a place that has your best interest at heart and an offense in which you can develop in," Wright said. "You have to find a coaching staff that you believe in and they believe in you as well and that's really what led me to Starkville. I really believe in coach (Kevin) Barbay's offense, how he's developed quarterbacks and his style of play. When you combine him with coach (Zach) Arnett, the option seemed clear."
Wright didn't have to wait long to get started in Starkville. The 6-foot-4, 195-pounder enrolled in classes last month and will go through practices with his new teammates this spring.
"One of the reasons I was so passionate to sign with State was that I wanted to be a part of a program that's continuing to build in coach Arnett's first year," Wright said. "I'm excited and wanted to get here as fast as possible. With coach Barbay coming in at the same time as me, it gives me a chance to learn his offensive system from Day 1."
Not only does Wright bring three seasons worth of SEC experience to the table, he also adds a proven dual-threat component to the position. He is confident in his ability to pick up yards with his legs as well as his arm and also make wise choices with the football.
"I can make some electrifying plays with the speed element," Wright said. "I know how to control a game and be a game operator. That's the missing element for a lot of quarterbacks. You see big arms or guys that can run but I always like to watch quarterbacks that control the game and that's what I've always strived to be. I know when to tuck and run it or pull it out in a zone read or make certain throws."
Wright is one of three new quarterbacks the Bulldogs will be breaking in this spring along with early high school graduates Chris Parson and Vic Sutton. Wright kept up with Parson's high school accolades while he was at Vanderbilt and had also already established a relationship with MSU's returning starter Will Rogers.
Rogers and Wright were both counselors at the Manning Passing Academy and have been in a group chat along with several other SEC quarterbacks since their time there together last summer. Wright's familiarity with the other signal callers at State has helped make his transition to his new school and team seamless.
"I already knew Will and Chris is from Nashville so there was no big introduction day," Wright said. "Working with Rogers is going to be fun. We're here to win ballgames, that's our main job as a quarterback and as leaders of this team. We're going to learn this system like the back of our hands and find every way possible to help this team win."
