2020 Football Roster
Roster
Walley, Jaden
Jersey Number 31
Jaden Walley
- Position:
- WR
- Height:
- 6-0
- Weight:
- 180
- Class:
- Freshman
- Hometown:
- D'Iberville, Miss.
- High School/Previous School:
- D'Iberville HS
Bio
Career Honors
SEC Graduate
2020 Freshman All-America, WR (The Athletic Second Team)
2020 Freshman All-SEC, WR
Career Notes
Played in 53 career games with 27 starts … Ended his career with 146 receptions for 1,743 yards and 12 touchdowns … His 146 career receptions tied for seventh on the all-time list with Sammy Milner (1968-70) … His 1,743 receptions rank ninth on the all-time list at Mississippi State … Four career games with 100+ yards receiving (all in 2020) … 12 career receiving touchdowns … In 2020 he set the MSU freshman record for 100-yard receiving games (4) … One of two Bulldog freshmen in program history to record multiple 100-yard receiving games, joining Mardye McDole (2) … First MSU freshman to record back-to-back 100-yard receiving games … First MSU receiver with four straight 100-yard receiving games since Fred Ross in 2015 (at Georgia (115), at Ole Miss (176), vs. Auburn (100) and vs. Missouri (129) … Broke a 43-year old record for single-season receiving yards by a freshman in his ninth game of the season vs Auburn (12/12), which broke Mardye McDole's record of 510 yards in 1977 ... Ended 2020 with 718 yards receiving to lead the team ... First freshman wideout to lead the team in receiving since Chad Bumphis (375) in 2009 ... Broke a 43-year-old record for single-game receiving yards by a freshman with 176 at Ole Miss (11/28), breaking Mardye McDole's 1977 mark at Auburn (143) ... Earned his undergrad degree from Mississippi State in interdisciplinary Studies.
2024 (Graduate Season)
Played in six games with zero starts … Did not record any offensive stats ... Florida (9/21): Made his season debut ... UMass (11/2): Returned one punt for 10 yards.
2023 (Senior Season)
Has appeared in 10 games, making two starts … On the year he had five receptions for 49 yards and one touchdown … Four of his five receptions went for a first down … Limited in 2023 due to injuries … SE Louisiana (9/2): Had 2 grabs for 9 yards and a touchdown … Returned 2 punts, one of which went for 12 yards … Now has 12 receiving touchdowns in his career with his first of the season from 5 yards out … Arizona (9/9): Had one catch for six yards … Western Michigan (10/7): Had two catches for 34 yards … Set season highs in receiving yards (34) and long reception (19).
2022 (Junior Season)
Appeared in 13 games with seven starts ... Finished with 34 receptions for 348 yards and three touchdowns … Averaged 27.8 yards per game ... Memphis (9/3): Hauled in three receptions for 30 yards and a touchdown in State’s season-opening win over Memphis ... at Arizona (9/10): Had a pair of receptions for 12 yards ... at LSU(9/17): Made two catches for 16 yards ... Bowling Green (9/24): Caught three passes for 39 yards and a touchdown ... Arkansas (10/8): Had two receptions for 27 yards and a touchdown ... at Kentucky (10/15): Made two receptions for 32 yards with a season-long 30-yard reception ... at Alabama (10/22): Snagged a trio of receptions for 13 yards ... Auburn (11/5): Had four receptions for 41 yards ... Georgia (11/12): Made three catches for a season-high 52 receiving yards ... at Ole Miss (11/24): Caught four passes for 43 yards ... vs. Illinois (1/2): Hauled in a season-high five passes for 43 yards ... Completed one pass for 13 yards.
2021 (Sophomore Season)
Played in all 13 games while making 10 starts for the Bulldogs ... Had 628 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 55 catches ... Averaged 48.3 receiving yards per game and 11.4 yards per catch ... Louisiana Tech(9/4): Had four catches for 64 yard and a touchdown in the season-opening win ... NC State (9/11): Made five catches for 44 yards and a touchdown catch ... Also returned three punts for 31 yards with a long return of 15 yards ... at Memphis (9/18): Totaled 58 receiving yards and a touchdown on five receptions ... at Texas A&M (10/2): Had three catches for 27 yards and a touchdown ... Alabama (10/16): Made six catches for 64 receiving yards ... at Vanderbilt (10/23): Had 72 receiving yards on five catches in State's road win over the Commodores ... Kentucky (10/30): Had a season-high 95 receiving yards on six catches in the win over the Wildcats ... at Arkansas (11/6): Had one reception for a 3-yard touchdown ... at Auburn (11/13): Had a season-high seven catches for 87 yards in State's come-from-behind win over the Tigers ... Tennessee State (11/20): Had three catches for 46 yards, including a 25-yard reception ... Returned four punts for a season-high 73 yards, including a season-long 29-yard punt return ... Ole Miss (11/25): Had five catches for 41 receiving yards and a touchdown.
2020 (True Freshman Season)
Appeared in all 11 games with eight starts ... Had 52 catches for 718 receiving yards and two touchdowns as a freshman at State ... One of nine MSU true freshmen to debut in 2020 ... One of 26 Bulldogs to make their first career start in 2020 ... One of 27 student-athletes to make their Mississippi State debut in 2020 ... Combined with Jo'quavious Marks and Will Rogers to make MSU the only FBS program to start true freshmen at quarterback, running back and wide receiver ... First freshman to record 100 yards receiving in a game since Chad Bumphis (123) against Georgia Tech in 2009 ... Sat No. 42 in the NCAA and No. 10 in the SEC in receiving yards (718) ... Ranked No. 86 nationally and No. 10 in the SEC in receptions per game (4.7) ... Was No. 2 in the FBS among true freshman in receiving yards (718) and No. 3 in receptions (52) according to PFF ... at LSU (9/26): Made collegiate debut ... Arkansas (10/3): Earned first career start ... Finished with six catches and 56 yards ... Recorded first career catch on State's second drive for a 16-yard gain ... Returned two punts for 21 yards ... Part of a freshmen trio (Jo'quavious Marks and Dillon Johnson) that accounted for 217 yards of offense, which was 54.3 percent of State's 400 yards ... at Kentucky (10/10): Logged two catches for 17 yards ... Combined with State's receiving corps to haul in an MSU-record 45 completions ... Returned the first kickoff of his career for 11 yards ... Texas A&M (10/17): Recorded three receptions for 37 yards ... Caught a career-long 19-yard pass in the second quarter ... at Alabama (10/31): Totaled three catches for 18 yards ... Vanderbilt (11/7): Finished with five receptions for 43 yards ... at Georgia (11/21): Logged seven catches for 115 yards ... Became first true freshman to reach the century mark since Chad Bumphis (123) against Georgia Tech in 2009 ... Just the sixth freshman to reach the mark in program history ... Made two receptions of 20-plus yards in the game, highlighted by a 51-yard touchdown reception ... The touchdown catch was the first of his career ... at Ole Miss (11/28): Became the first MSU freshman with back-to-back 100-yard receiving games in program history ... Caught nine passes for anb MSU freshman single game record 176 yards ... Bested Mardye McDole's 143-yard effort from 1977 at Auburn to surpass the 43-year-old freshman mark ... Auburn (12/12): Set the MSU freshman record for 100-yard receiving games in a season with his third ... Caught eight passes for 100 yards ... Added one special teams tackle ... Missouri (12/19): Caught five passes for 129 yards and one touchdown ... Extended his streak to four straight 100-yard receiving games, the longest streak by an MSU receiver since Fred Ross in 2015 (4 straight) ... vs. Tulsa (12/31): Caught four passes for 27 yards.
High School
Prepped at D’Iberville High School under head coach Larry Dolan … Three-star prospect per ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports … Top-20 prospect in Mississippi according to ESPN (No. 16) and 247Sports (No. 17) … As a senior, caught 12 passes for 389 yards and two touchdowns … Threw for 131 yards on 11-of-28 passing with two touchdowns … Rushed for 646 yards and six touchdowns … As a junior, threw for 660 yards on 31-of-65 passing with 10 touchdowns … Carried 162 times for 1,214 yards and 16 scores … Caught four passes for 63 yards … As a sophomore, threw for 371 yards on 26-of-72 passing with six touchdowns … Rushed for 308 yards and eight scores … Caught three passes for 24 yards … Invited to the Mississippi-Alabama All-Star Game as a senior … Mississippi’s leading receiver in the game … Also lettered in baseball … Committed to MSU on Aug. 27, 2019.
Personal
Born Jaden Malik Walley on Sept. 13, 2001 … Son of Kandice McCann and Oliver Walley ... Has two brothers: Justin and Jordan Walley … Majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies.
Social Media
X/Twitter – @WalleyJaden
Instagram – _jaden.walley_
Career-Highs
Receptions: 9, at Ole Miss (11/28/2020)
Receiving Yards: 176, at Ole Miss (11/28/2020)
Receiving Touchdowns: 1, 12x, Last vs SE Lousiana (9/2/2023)
Longest Reception: 51, at Georgia (11/21/2020)
Punt Returns: 4, vs. Tennessee St. (11/20/2021)
Punt Return Yards: 73, vs. Tennessee St. (11/20/2021)
Punt Return Long: 29, vs. Tennessee St. (11/20/2021)
SEC Graduate
2020 Freshman All-America, WR (The Athletic Second Team)
2020 Freshman All-SEC, WR
Career Notes
Played in 53 career games with 27 starts … Ended his career with 146 receptions for 1,743 yards and 12 touchdowns … His 146 career receptions tied for seventh on the all-time list with Sammy Milner (1968-70) … His 1,743 receptions rank ninth on the all-time list at Mississippi State … Four career games with 100+ yards receiving (all in 2020) … 12 career receiving touchdowns … In 2020 he set the MSU freshman record for 100-yard receiving games (4) … One of two Bulldog freshmen in program history to record multiple 100-yard receiving games, joining Mardye McDole (2) … First MSU freshman to record back-to-back 100-yard receiving games … First MSU receiver with four straight 100-yard receiving games since Fred Ross in 2015 (at Georgia (115), at Ole Miss (176), vs. Auburn (100) and vs. Missouri (129) … Broke a 43-year old record for single-season receiving yards by a freshman in his ninth game of the season vs Auburn (12/12), which broke Mardye McDole's record of 510 yards in 1977 ... Ended 2020 with 718 yards receiving to lead the team ... First freshman wideout to lead the team in receiving since Chad Bumphis (375) in 2009 ... Broke a 43-year-old record for single-game receiving yards by a freshman with 176 at Ole Miss (11/28), breaking Mardye McDole's 1977 mark at Auburn (143) ... Earned his undergrad degree from Mississippi State in interdisciplinary Studies.
2024 (Graduate Season)
Played in six games with zero starts … Did not record any offensive stats ... Florida (9/21): Made his season debut ... UMass (11/2): Returned one punt for 10 yards.
2023 (Senior Season)
Has appeared in 10 games, making two starts … On the year he had five receptions for 49 yards and one touchdown … Four of his five receptions went for a first down … Limited in 2023 due to injuries … SE Louisiana (9/2): Had 2 grabs for 9 yards and a touchdown … Returned 2 punts, one of which went for 12 yards … Now has 12 receiving touchdowns in his career with his first of the season from 5 yards out … Arizona (9/9): Had one catch for six yards … Western Michigan (10/7): Had two catches for 34 yards … Set season highs in receiving yards (34) and long reception (19).
2022 (Junior Season)
Appeared in 13 games with seven starts ... Finished with 34 receptions for 348 yards and three touchdowns … Averaged 27.8 yards per game ... Memphis (9/3): Hauled in three receptions for 30 yards and a touchdown in State’s season-opening win over Memphis ... at Arizona (9/10): Had a pair of receptions for 12 yards ... at LSU(9/17): Made two catches for 16 yards ... Bowling Green (9/24): Caught three passes for 39 yards and a touchdown ... Arkansas (10/8): Had two receptions for 27 yards and a touchdown ... at Kentucky (10/15): Made two receptions for 32 yards with a season-long 30-yard reception ... at Alabama (10/22): Snagged a trio of receptions for 13 yards ... Auburn (11/5): Had four receptions for 41 yards ... Georgia (11/12): Made three catches for a season-high 52 receiving yards ... at Ole Miss (11/24): Caught four passes for 43 yards ... vs. Illinois (1/2): Hauled in a season-high five passes for 43 yards ... Completed one pass for 13 yards.
2021 (Sophomore Season)
Played in all 13 games while making 10 starts for the Bulldogs ... Had 628 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 55 catches ... Averaged 48.3 receiving yards per game and 11.4 yards per catch ... Louisiana Tech(9/4): Had four catches for 64 yard and a touchdown in the season-opening win ... NC State (9/11): Made five catches for 44 yards and a touchdown catch ... Also returned three punts for 31 yards with a long return of 15 yards ... at Memphis (9/18): Totaled 58 receiving yards and a touchdown on five receptions ... at Texas A&M (10/2): Had three catches for 27 yards and a touchdown ... Alabama (10/16): Made six catches for 64 receiving yards ... at Vanderbilt (10/23): Had 72 receiving yards on five catches in State's road win over the Commodores ... Kentucky (10/30): Had a season-high 95 receiving yards on six catches in the win over the Wildcats ... at Arkansas (11/6): Had one reception for a 3-yard touchdown ... at Auburn (11/13): Had a season-high seven catches for 87 yards in State's come-from-behind win over the Tigers ... Tennessee State (11/20): Had three catches for 46 yards, including a 25-yard reception ... Returned four punts for a season-high 73 yards, including a season-long 29-yard punt return ... Ole Miss (11/25): Had five catches for 41 receiving yards and a touchdown.
2020 (True Freshman Season)
Appeared in all 11 games with eight starts ... Had 52 catches for 718 receiving yards and two touchdowns as a freshman at State ... One of nine MSU true freshmen to debut in 2020 ... One of 26 Bulldogs to make their first career start in 2020 ... One of 27 student-athletes to make their Mississippi State debut in 2020 ... Combined with Jo'quavious Marks and Will Rogers to make MSU the only FBS program to start true freshmen at quarterback, running back and wide receiver ... First freshman to record 100 yards receiving in a game since Chad Bumphis (123) against Georgia Tech in 2009 ... Sat No. 42 in the NCAA and No. 10 in the SEC in receiving yards (718) ... Ranked No. 86 nationally and No. 10 in the SEC in receptions per game (4.7) ... Was No. 2 in the FBS among true freshman in receiving yards (718) and No. 3 in receptions (52) according to PFF ... at LSU (9/26): Made collegiate debut ... Arkansas (10/3): Earned first career start ... Finished with six catches and 56 yards ... Recorded first career catch on State's second drive for a 16-yard gain ... Returned two punts for 21 yards ... Part of a freshmen trio (Jo'quavious Marks and Dillon Johnson) that accounted for 217 yards of offense, which was 54.3 percent of State's 400 yards ... at Kentucky (10/10): Logged two catches for 17 yards ... Combined with State's receiving corps to haul in an MSU-record 45 completions ... Returned the first kickoff of his career for 11 yards ... Texas A&M (10/17): Recorded three receptions for 37 yards ... Caught a career-long 19-yard pass in the second quarter ... at Alabama (10/31): Totaled three catches for 18 yards ... Vanderbilt (11/7): Finished with five receptions for 43 yards ... at Georgia (11/21): Logged seven catches for 115 yards ... Became first true freshman to reach the century mark since Chad Bumphis (123) against Georgia Tech in 2009 ... Just the sixth freshman to reach the mark in program history ... Made two receptions of 20-plus yards in the game, highlighted by a 51-yard touchdown reception ... The touchdown catch was the first of his career ... at Ole Miss (11/28): Became the first MSU freshman with back-to-back 100-yard receiving games in program history ... Caught nine passes for anb MSU freshman single game record 176 yards ... Bested Mardye McDole's 143-yard effort from 1977 at Auburn to surpass the 43-year-old freshman mark ... Auburn (12/12): Set the MSU freshman record for 100-yard receiving games in a season with his third ... Caught eight passes for 100 yards ... Added one special teams tackle ... Missouri (12/19): Caught five passes for 129 yards and one touchdown ... Extended his streak to four straight 100-yard receiving games, the longest streak by an MSU receiver since Fred Ross in 2015 (4 straight) ... vs. Tulsa (12/31): Caught four passes for 27 yards.
High School
Prepped at D’Iberville High School under head coach Larry Dolan … Three-star prospect per ESPN, Rivals and 247Sports … Top-20 prospect in Mississippi according to ESPN (No. 16) and 247Sports (No. 17) … As a senior, caught 12 passes for 389 yards and two touchdowns … Threw for 131 yards on 11-of-28 passing with two touchdowns … Rushed for 646 yards and six touchdowns … As a junior, threw for 660 yards on 31-of-65 passing with 10 touchdowns … Carried 162 times for 1,214 yards and 16 scores … Caught four passes for 63 yards … As a sophomore, threw for 371 yards on 26-of-72 passing with six touchdowns … Rushed for 308 yards and eight scores … Caught three passes for 24 yards … Invited to the Mississippi-Alabama All-Star Game as a senior … Mississippi’s leading receiver in the game … Also lettered in baseball … Committed to MSU on Aug. 27, 2019.
Personal
Born Jaden Malik Walley on Sept. 13, 2001 … Son of Kandice McCann and Oliver Walley ... Has two brothers: Justin and Jordan Walley … Majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies.
Social Media
X/Twitter – @WalleyJaden
Instagram – _jaden.walley_
Career-Highs
Receptions: 9, at Ole Miss (11/28/2020)
Receiving Yards: 176, at Ole Miss (11/28/2020)
Receiving Touchdowns: 1, 12x, Last vs SE Lousiana (9/2/2023)
Longest Reception: 51, at Georgia (11/21/2020)
Punt Returns: 4, vs. Tennessee St. (11/20/2021)
Punt Return Yards: 73, vs. Tennessee St. (11/20/2021)
Punt Return Long: 29, vs. Tennessee St. (11/20/2021)
FOOTBALL | Jeff Lebby Postgame vs. Southern Miss
Saturday, August 30
FOOTBALL | Brylan Lanier INT
Saturday, August 30
FOOTBALL | Fluff Bothwell TD
Saturday, August 30
FOOTBALL | Ferrie 55-yard FG
Saturday, August 30