Moving In The Right Direction
August 17, 2024 | Football, Joel Coleman
State makes positive strides in second scrimmage of the preseason.
STARKVILLE – With just two weeks to go before opening up the 2024 campaign against Eastern Kentucky, Mississippi State got another day better on Saturday as the Bulldogs held their second scrimmage of the preseason at Davis Wade Stadium.
Head coach Jeff Lebby noted the action looked somewhat similar to what'd transpired six days prior in his team's first scrimmage, however he was proud to see progress had been made.
"It was similar [to the first scrimmage] from the standpoint there was a lot of back and forth," Lebby said. "Both sides of the ball had success. We were much better [Saturday] from a non-playing penalty standpoint, which was good to see on both sides of the ball. We've got to continue to stress that and move that in the right direction."
Improvement is obviously always the goal this time of year, even in areas that might not get the lion's share of attention. Sure, the growth and development of the offense, defense and special teams unit is critical. But just as key are things like discipline and guys knowing where they're supposed to be.
"Just being able to play clean before the snap, being able to play clean from a substitution standpoint and getting guys on and off the field as game-like as possible [was where strides were made on Saturday]," Lebby said. "We've got to continue to trend that way."
Mastering the small things will give Mississippi State's talent the best chance to shine in the season to come, and Lebby once again on Saturday praised many of the guys that are suiting up in Maroon and White and the potential they have in the year ahead.
Lebby shared he sees great depth developing at receiver.
"Between week one, week two and week three as we get into it, I think we will be able to play seven, maybe eight guys from the receivers room and count on those guys to play winning football," Lebby said. "It's like what I talked about last week. It's not just guys that can go play. It's guys that can go win. I feel good about where we're at in that room."
And, for a second straight scrimmage, Lebby bragged on the offensive line and the way those in that unit go about their business.
"We've got guys in that room that are doing a really good job of getting better every day and being intentional when they're in the building," Lebby said. "We're moving some guys around to make sure we have the best eight or nine with position flexibility as we get into it. I think we're finding the right ones. I'm proud of that group. We've got a lot of work to do and a long way to go, but that group is in a good spot."
Others received kudos from Lebby, too, maybe most notably MSU's kickers who are in the midst of a heated competition.
"It's neck and neck," Lebby said of the battle between Kyle Ferrie and Nick Barr-Mira. "We've got one more week of competition to work through and go through before we dial in on one guy and make him the starter, from a kickoff standpoint or a field-goal standpoint. I like where both of them are. Neither one has created a ton of separation and I think that's a good thing because both have been solid. We will see how this week unfolds."
And maybe that's the best news of all coming out of Saturday. That is, another week awaits for the Bulldogs.
Lebby and his squad are eager to make the most of it.
"I like where we're at, but I also like that we've got two weeks left to be able to clean stuff up and dial in on some of the detail and get ready for an opponent," Lebby said. "That's something I think all of our guys are looking forward to."
(Click the image at the top of the page to view head coach Jeff Lebby's full Saturday media session.)
