STARKVILLE – Roster turnover is nothing new for Mississippi State football.
Over 20Bulldogs have entered the transfer portal since Mike Leach becameMSU's coach just over a year ago. Talented players have left, but Leach and his staff have also brought some in.
The Bulldogs cleared one key date for its offseason roster management Monday, which was the early-entry deadline for the NFL Draft.
With that date passing, here is a running list of the players who have decided to leave Mississippi State via transfer or otherwise, and the ones who have decided to transfer to MSU, as well.
Gaining quarterback depth
Let's start with the most important position in a Leach-led offense: quarterback. Mississippi State is set to welcome three new quarterbacks via the transfer portal.
- Former Southern Miss QB Jack Abraham
- Former South Alabama QB Chance Lovertich
- Former Sam Houston State QB Jack Kristofek
That trio will comein with a 2021 recruiting class duo of quarterbacks expected to do big things as Bulldogs: Four-star signee Sawyer Robertson of Lubbock, Texas, and three-star early enrollee Daniel Greek of Argyle, Texas.
Of the three transfers, Abraham figures to have the most upside. He played in 27 games at Southern Miss, including 13 starts in 2019. He could compete for playing time in 2021.
Other players joining via the portal
There have been more Bulldogs to leave via the transfer portal than players who have used it to come to Starkville. Here's a short list of players MSU has signed from the portal.
- Former Cal wide receiver Makai Polk
- Former UCF defensive end Randy Charlton
Both Polk and Charlton will have a serious chance to play regularly in 2021. Wide receivers are always needed in Leach's air raid offense, and Mississippi State is losing quite a bit of defensive line depth.
It's not like the two are strangers to Division I football, either. Polk played in 12 games at Cal. Charlton played in 26 games at UCF. They bring an element of experience to a Mississippi State team that is still trying to earn it.
Players leaving via the portal
Just to put things into perspective, the following list includes every former Mississippi State player who has entered the transfer portal since Leach took over.
- QB Keytaon Thompson
- QB Logan Burnett
- QB Garrett Shrader
- QB Jalen Mayden
- RB Kareem Walker
- RB Lee Witherspoon
- WR Tyrell Shavers
- WR Kyziah Pruitt
- WR Dontea Jones
- WR Cameron Gardner
- WR Cason Grant
- WR Devonta Jason
- WR Vincent Taylor
- OL Stewart Reese
- OL Brevyn Jones
- OL Nick Pendley
- OL James Jackson
- DL Fabien Lovett
- DL Devon Robinson
- DE Jamari Stewart
- DE Tre Lawson
- DB Jarrian Jones
- DB Javorrius Selmon
- DB Korey Charles
- DB Taury Dixon
- K Jace Christmann
Catch your breath yet?
Of course, some of those players were a given to leave. There wasn't any room for quarterbacks like Thompson, Shrader and Mayden. Running backs Walker and Witherspoon were firmly behind rising sophom*ores Jo'quavious Marks and Dillon Johnson on the depth chart.
Some of them, however, were peculiar cases.
Players like Selmon and Stewartwere big pieces of the 2020 recruiting class butnever played a down . Lawson was also a key signee a year ago and played sparingly before opting out midway through the season.
Much can be made of each players' individual case to leave the program, like MSU's all-time special teams points leader in Christmann getting scooted out the door by Brandon Ruiz, who announced he will give it another go in Starkville.
The simple fact of the matter, though, is that the players on the list aboveare gone and will not contribute for Leach any further, much like the players in the next category.
Declaring for the NFL Draft
Here's where Mississippi State is taking its biggest hits.
With all of the negatives from COVID-19, here's one positive: an extra year of eligibility for any player, including seniors, who played during the shortened season.
Many MSU seniors, and some juniors, did not take the NCAA up on that opportunity and decided instead to declare for the 2021 NFL Draft. Those players' names are:
- LB Erroll Thompson
- DE Kobe Jones
- DE Marquiss Spencer
- WR Osirus Mitchell
- DB Marcus Murphy
- RB Kylin Hill
- OL Dareuan Parker
The first threenames on the list might be the biggest losses. Thompson and Jones started every game for a Mississippi State defense led by coordinator Zach Arnett that exceeded expectations. Spencer started nine games, too.
Mitchell ranked second on the team in receiving yards with 505 and led the team in receiving touchdowns with four, but Leach's offense is expected to make a leap in Year 2 no matter who is lined up to catch passes.
As for Hill, it's a case of what could have been. Hill was on the fence for leaving after his junior season but decided to stay to play for Leach. It resulted in a messy breakup and less than 300 total yards to show for it when he was told by coaches he had a chance to lead the SEC in yards from scrimmage.
Draft eligible seniors expected back
Mississippi State is losing some key players to the draft, but the team is also expected to retainsome key seniors who could have tried their luck inturning professional.
The major ones are listed below.
- DB Fred Peters
- DB C.J. Morgan
- OL Scott Lashley
- OL Greg Eiland
- WR JaVonta Payton
- OL LaQuinston Sharp
Two of the more intriguing names are Morgan and Lashley, who both missed the season because of rehabbing injuries.
Morgan was made available during the final month butnever saw the field. He has played in 32 games for Mississippi State with 12 starts. He could work his way back into a starting role this season.
Lashley was set to be a major contributor on the offensive line before sustaining an offseason injury. The Alabama transfer played in 19 games as a backup for the Crimson Tide. His time as a DI starter could be coming.
Contact Tyler Horka at thorka@gannett.com. Follow @tbhorka on Twitter. To read more of Tyler's work, subscribe to the Clarion Ledger today!
