Minor Repairs Required
Head coach Zach Arnett will have his fingerprints all over Mississippi State’s 2023 Defense. After all, he was the defensive coordinator for the past three years. He knows the returning players, their strengths, and the schemes that work with the talent.
But now he is the head coach, taking over following Mike Leach’s sudden death. He needs to have a more helicopter view of all the moving pieces. As he did with the 2023 offense, Arnett had to delegate. But the defense is something closer to his heart. With that in mind, he promoted from within making Matt Brock the new defensive coordinator.
Brock joined the Bulldogs as linebacker coach three years ago and will continue in that role but with the added duty of defensive coordinator. There must be a comfort level for Arnett given his familiarity with Brock and a tried and true defense. Brock was elevated to that role for the ReliaQuest Bowl on January 4th this year.
In that game, the defense held Illinois to 22 yards of rushing, when the Illini hadn’t been held under 100 yards all season. Under his play calling, the defense had 10 tackles for loss and a school record of seven sacks, also a high for the season.
The Mississippi State 2023 defense has a number of returning stars. They ranked 5th in the SEC in total defense, rushing defense, and total turnovers. Time will tell if they can equal or improve on that.
2023 Mississippi State Defense
The Linebackers
Phil Steele, a well-known sportswriter, and analyst, selected seven MSU players in his preseason All-SEC team. Four come from the Mississippi State 2023 offense, the remainder from the defense, two of which are linebackers.
Jett Johnson: Bulldog fans are surely relieved about Johnson’s decision to “run it back” this year. He led the SEC with 115 tackles (48 solo), eight-and-a-half for a loss, and two sacks. This will be Johnson’s 5th season in Starkville like many of his fellow returning defensive players.
As he told The Dispatch of Columbus, MS, “Excited for one more with my brothers.”
Nathaniel “Bookie” Watson: Watson made headlines in May 2023, arrested on suspicion of DUI. There has been nothing further regarding his arrest by MSU police. At the time Coach Arnett stated, “We do not have any further comment at this time.” There may be further updates prior to the season.
Johnson and Watson have the distinction of being the only Power Five teammates to rank number one and two in their conference for tackles. Watson had an impressive 2022 season with 49 solo tackles out of 108 total. He also had five sacks, one forced fumble, and one interception.
If his past stats are any indicator, Watson’s NFL stock should only improve in the 2023 season, as long as he stays out of trouble.
John Lewis & J.P Purvis: Not everyone can make the preseason All-SEC selections, but that doesn’t diminish their effectiveness.
These two guys will get playing time probably rotating at the SAM or strongside linebacker position. Purvis got playing time last year in the Texas A&M game. He replaced Watson following his ejection for targeting. He also started in the following game against Arkansas. In his short stint, he got 13 tackles and one-and-a-half sacks. Lewis was a 4-star recruit back in 2020 but was plagued by injuries early in his tenure at MSU. His Spring turned out differently and he moved ahead on the depth chart. It will be interesting to see how Lewis and Purvis are used this Fall.
Rebuilding the Secondary
The most decimated part of the defense following the 2022 season was the secondary. It is the big question mark for the upcoming season.
Emmanuel Forbes is the most notable missing cornerback. He is slight in stature, but huge in effectiveness. Forbes holds the FBS and SEC records for pick-sixes and was Consensus All-American in 2022. Forbes decided to skip his last year of eligibility entering the NFL draft. That certainly paid off as he was selected in the first round, 16th overall by the Washington Commanders. His shoes will be hard to fill.
Some good news is that there are other veterans returning to the cornerback position.
Esaias Furdge is the most likely candidate to step up to the spot left by Forbes. He started at the FCB (field or wide side cornerback) position in the spring. He is listed at that starting position in this year’s depth chart. Furdge played in 10 games last year with 12 tackles and two pass breakups.
Decamerion Richardson is one of the more experienced secondary players, starting in all games of 2022 with 85 tackles, third on the team.
Given the big question mark about the secondary, there are others that have varying degrees of experience. They will rotate in and out of their 3-3-5 defense. Marcus Banks, a transfer from Alabama in 2021, will be at free safety. Shawn Preston will be at safety, and Corey Ellington at boundary safety.
The D-Line is Back
Mississippi State’s defenses have often been thought of as DLU (Defensive Line University) for the NFL.
Fletcher Cox (Eagles), Chris Jones (Chiefs), and Jeffery Simmons (Titans) are just three examples of those sent to the big time. There are many more going back in time, but that is a story for another article.
The good news for Dawg fans is that the Mississippi State 2023 defense has the bulk of the D-line from last year coming back. Rather than enter the draft or transfer, perhaps they’d like to improve on the 9-4 season from last year.
Jaden Crumedy is one of those bright spots coming back this season. He is the other MSU defensive tackle to make Steele’s preseason All-SEC team. Granted, Crumedy was out a great deal of last season due to injury. But over his four years in Starkville, he has impressive numbers with 84 tackles (29 solo), and six sacks.
Nathan Pickering joins Crumedy at the other tackle position. He has lateral movement and speed on his side, which helps the pursuit. He has 80 career tackles (32 solo), and 11 sacks
Finally, De’Monte Russell was a four-star recruit in the class of 2019 from Jackson, MS. He made up part of the fierce front impressively leading to their successful 2022 season. He’ll provide solid edge rushing at defensive end.
Coming Through the Portal
The transfer portal provided only three defensive players for the Bulldogs. All of them are in the secondary.
Khamauri Rogers is a cornerback that transferred in from the University of Miami. He came into the U as a four-star recruit from Madison, MS, so he is right at home. Rogers only played in one game as a true freshman, in which he had one tackle. As a Sophomore coming to State, there is a great deal of potential, at a time good secondary players are needed.
Raydarious “Radar” Jones is another Mississippi native and cornerback coming in from LSU. Jones was recruited as a four-star quarterback. He led his Horn Lake High School to win the Mississippi 6A championship. He was also first-team All-USA Mississippi Football Team. Interestingly enough, Jones never saw action at LSU as a quarterback. He saw limited action as a cornerback with the exception of 2021 where he had extensive playing time against Ole Miss and Alabama. Jones was suspended for the entire 2022 season for academic reasons, a good reason to enter the portal. MSU must see potential in this redshirt freshman, described by 247Sports as an athlete who could play multiple positions at the Power Five level.
Christopher Keys is a safety transfer from Indiana. Keys is also a native of, you guessed it, the Magnolia state. Keys was quite the star in high school. He played cornerback in the Mississippi – Alabama All-Star game, picking off six passes. He also ran back a punt and a kickoff for a touchdown. At Indiana, he was redshirted his freshman year and then suffered a season-ending injury the year after. In 2022, he had two starts and made some decent plays against some of the Big 10’s strongest teams. He comes to Mississippi State’s 2023 offense as a redshirt junior at a time when the secondary can use some help. However, his talent may be needed more in 2024.
Familiarity Breeds Contempt?
That old saying doesn’t have its original meaning in this context. Familiarity with each other here means contempt for their opponents, which in football is a good thing for a defense. Arnett’s original vision for the defensive structure he created three years ago should build and improve on last year’s success. His familiarity with Brock’s execution and some confidence in what they’ve built together will leave Arnett free to concentrate on the team as a whole. The Bulldog’s third game is LSU. By the time they get through that will tell the tale of how successful this defense and the offense could be for the season.
Photo courtesy: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
