Bigger, Faster, Stronger: State Seeing Positive Strides Early In Spring
March 28, 2025 | Football, Joel Coleman
Bulldogs have had a productive couple of weeks of workouts.
STARKVILLE – You won't find a scoreboard out on the practice fields at Mississippi State's Leo Seal Jr. Football Complex. Truth be told, without one of those and a team wearing a different colored uniform, it's always difficult to measure wins and losses, improvements or significant strides forward.
All that said, signs of progress can still very much be evident. The eye test is real. Feel can often foreshadow a team's drive to be great.
So, as the Bulldogs hit the end of the first couple of weeks of spring practice, there aren't any official victories to report. However, there is certainly a group that is looking and acting exactly like a unit that is being pushed by last season's pains. It's a squad obviously determined to do all that's possible each day to get a little bit better until the points and defensive stands start counting for real this fall.
"Everyone is here to work," tight end Seydou Traore said following a practice session last week. "What happened last year, no one wants to repeat that, and I think that in everyone's mind is pushing everyone so much harder. The people that were here felt the lows and we don't want to feel that again."
There is perhaps no better motivator and teacher than trials and tribulations. Fortunately, MSU has a roster and staff filled with individuals that seem to have been good students as they went through last season's fire and came out the other side.
No stone has been left unturned as this group strives to become the absolute best possible version of itself.
"I would say everybody worked hard this offseason," safety Isaac Smith said. "Strength coaches put us through it this winter. Conditioning-wise, weight room-wise and nutritionally, [assistant athletic director for sports nutrition Pamela Bartz] and her team have done a great job, staying on us about eating and just doing the right things. I feel that all played a big part in [us progressing physically and athletically]."
Words really aren't even needed to see State's growth. Just vision.
One of the first things head coach Jeff Lebby noted this spring was how his 2025 Dawgs compare to his first MSU team in sheer size.
"I think the best part is the fact that our bodies are completely different," Lebby opined. "From a D-line standpoint – night and day. From a [linebacker] standpoint – night and day. You look at our quarterback room and the physicality that's in that room and some of the things they're going to be able to do from a depth standpoint – night and day."
To steal from defensive back Hunter Washington's comments on himself and his teammates, the Bulldogs absolutely appear to be bigger, faster and stronger.
They're healthier and deeper, too.
Quarterback Blake Shapen is back to action following the injury that put a premature end to his 2024 campaign. His presence alone is a boon for the Bulldogs, not to even mention his game-changing ability.
"Everybody inside our program has great respect for Blake because of how he plays the game," Lebby said. "The guy will go die for you and he'll inspire every day. He spends more time in this building than anybody inside this program. That's the expectations we have and that's what we're going to have to have to get it done. He'll continue to do that for us."
The running back room is stacked with talent.
"I think we've got five or six guys really in that room that can go out and play," Shapen said of the running backs. "Obviously you need depth at that position, especially in this league, and I think we have guys that are ready to play and can go out there any time. Adding [Fluff Bothwell] was huge and then returning Davon Booth, Johnnie Daniels, Xavier Gayten and guys like that is huge for us."
Defensively, the vibe has been altered.
"I would say definitely the culture [is different]," Smith said of the defense. "I love the size we brought in up front. Which I mean, the guys last year were pretty good and big, but these guys have something different about them. Everybody is different. I love the fact they came in and are working hard. They know we all got something to prove and they're doing it right along with us."
There are many, many positive signs, even if there is very little numerical data to back any of it up.
Before you know it though, the scoreboards will turn on and then State can truly put its progress to the test. Until then, the Dawgs have to settle for doing all they can to simply wrap each day in Maroon and White.
Spring is only a start, but it's a strong one. That's really all anyone can ask for.
"We get 40-something new players and [some] new coaches on the team, you got to start somewhere," Smith said. "I think building that bond with each other first is going to play a bigger role this season. Nobody wants to go 2-10, especially me and the guys that were here. So, we're just preaching to the new guys that we have something bigger to prove. They came in and worked hard this winter. Now we have to all put a great spring together, great summer, and fall camp and hey, we're right there."
