STARKVILLE – Mississippi State lost its head football coach 10 days before national signing day but still persevered to sign a top 25 recruiting class that would've made "The Pirate" proud.
Zach Arnett assumed the helm of the Bulldogs' program following Mike Leach's passing on Dec. 12. Arnett and his staff solidified the signatures of 27 prospects on Wednesday in a class ranked in the top 25 of most major recruiting outlets.
"The guys that were committed prior to the tragic news of coach Leach's passing that still stayed and signed with us today sends quite the statement of the young men that we were recruiting and the families they come from," Arnett said. "I think it says a whole heck of a lot about the entire program and the coaches who went out onto the road and got in the homes and spent time with them and reaffirmed all the reasons why those guys were committed to us in the first place."
MSU's 2023 recruiting class is ranked as highly as 22nd nationally by Rivals.com and consists of 14 defensive signees, 12 offensive players and one special teamer. The Bulldogs inked seven defensive backs, five offensive linemen, four receivers, three linebackers, two running backs, a quarterback and a punter.
State's highest ranked signee according to 247Sports.com is Itawamba AHS four-star safety Isaac Smith. The 6-foot, 200-pounder who was named Mississippi's Mr. Football in Class 4A pledged his services on Wednesday and helped the Bulldogs make quite a splash on national signing day.
"He's a tremendous football player," Arnett said. "I think we've got the perfect position on our defense for him. There were quite a few cowbells ringing in the football building when that paperwork came through."
Smith wasn't the only four-star prospect that committed to Mississippi State on national signing day. The nation's No. 2 junior college offensive tackle Leon Bell also made his decision to be a Bulldog on Wednesday and is a cousin of MSU freshman linebacker Javae Gilmore.
"I prefer my recruiting surprises to be of the 6-8, 310 variety who can run like that," Arnett said of Bell.
Four-star quarterback Chris Parson was actually the first player to send in his national letter of intent to start the day off. The 6-foot-1, 200-pounder from Brentwood, Tennessee racked up over 4,500 yards of offense and 52 touchdowns over his final two seasons at the prep level.
"He's shown tremendous leadership with this class over the last 10 days," Arnett said. "Shoot, he might've worked just as hard as the coaches in talking to the other commits and keeping guys committed. We're excited for him to enroll here as a midyear enrollee and start getting to work in the spring."
Creed Whittemore was the only other four-star prospect the Bulldogs signed during the early signing period. The high school quarterback who threw for 2,693 yards and 35 TDs as a senior is expected to play receiver at the college level.
More than half of Mississippi State's signing class comes from within the borders of the Magnolia State. The Bulldogs brought in 15 players from Mississippi during the early signing period – 10 from the high school ranks, three from junior colleges and two additional transfers.
"You've got to be pretty stupid not to prioritize this state first and we take great pride in it," Arnett said. "We signed 12 of the top 25 rated players in the state of Mississippi, that's more than any other college inside this state. That included two of the top five and four of the top 10 players.
"We take tremendous pride in our efforts to evaluate the young men in this state, recruit them and get them signed and that's reflected on our roster. If you look at our roster, the No. 1 thing you'll see is a lot of kids from Mississippi. That's the way that it should be and as long as I'm the head coach here, that's the way that it will be."
State announced the additions of a pair of Power 5 transfers who hail from Mississippi as well on Wednesday. Horn Lake native Ray'Darious Jones is transferring in after appearing in 16 games at safety for LSU over the last four years as is former Miami cornerback and Madison native Khamauri Rogers. Rogers played in one game as a true freshman for the Hurricanes this fall.
"There's nothing like experience," Arnett said. "You get guys who have been in Division I programs. Obviously, they're more developed because they've been in those strength programs and have been through practices and are more prepared for the physicality of the game. Those are two guys from Mississippi who went off to other places and for one reason or another, it didn't work out and were looking for an opportunity. Heck, we're even going to recruit Mississippi through the transfer portal."
Arnett and his staff will continue to hit the transfer portal as well as the recruiting trail over the next month in hopes of adding to an already stellar class. The early signing period closes on Dec. 23 and will reopen on Feb. 1.
"If there's a dominant front guy on either side of the ball who is a difference maker, you've always got to consider that just because the game is won or lost on the line of scrimmage," Arnett said. "You're constantly evaluating and will never pass up a great player."