Mississippi State’s player representatives at SEC Media Days are unbothered that outside expectations for the program are low. The faces of the maroon and white during the annual gathering – Isaac Smith, Blake Shapen, and Brenen Thompson – are more eager to let their hard work in the offseason define the Bulldogs when they kick off the upcoming season.
College football analysts and columnists, by and large, have reached a consensus that the Bulldogs will be in the basement of the SEC standings at the conclusion of the 2025 campaign. Smith, an All-SEC defensive back, was unsurprised by the fact that his team is not anticipated to light up the win column in the coming months, especially after a 2-10 record one year ago.
“We only won two games last year, and I would expect that,” the Fulton native and 2024 SEC-leading tackler said.
Fifth-year quarterback Shapen noted that his group has been successful in drowning out the noise, not letting preseason rankings define them. After suffering a week four injury against Florida last season, Shapen is ready to return better than ever for his final campaign, and he said the overarching sense of team unity has superseded any outside opinions.
“The locker room culture is way better this year. There is a lot more unity amongst the team this year, and we don’t look at all of that [preseason] stuff,” Shapen said.
Thompson, an Oklahoma transfer serving as an elder statesman in the wide receivers room, is more fixated on his team improving daily, more so than preseason projections. The senior contended that there has been strong competition in the offseason and that upcoming games will be won in the trenches, an area the Bulldog coaching staff believes to have seen improvement in.
“Competition has been really great, and our offensive line will control how far we go,” Thompson said. “We need to finish summer camp strong, go into fall camp with some momentum.”
Mississippi State will have plenty of chances to prove doubters wrong this season. The Bulldogs’ schedule features four teams that were in the College Football Playoff last year — Arizona State, Georgia, Tennessee, and Texas. All four of those games will be played at Davis-Wade Stadium. Second-year frontman Jeff Lebby’s crew will also have a golden chance to kill Ole Miss’ shot at an Egg Bowl three-peat on Black Friday.
But before the team focuses on its gauntlet of SEC opponents, Mississippi State must win game one. The Bulldogs will open the campaign with an in-state battle at Southern Miss on August 30. The Bulldogs have won six straight matchups against the Golden Eagles, but first-year USM head coach Charles Huff will be more than eager for the first win of his new tenure to be against a nearby SEC school.
For that reason, Smith is emphasizing preparation for his week-one opponent, rather than putting any stock into what folks not involved with the everyday affairs of the Mississippi State football program have to say.
“We have to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and be prepared,” Smith said of the upcoming battle at M.M. Roberts Stadium. “We just have to be ready to execute, go out there and play fast.”
