STARKVILLE — Mike Leach has hit the ground running since arriving at Mississippi State in mid-January.
Taking over for the oft-maligned Joe Moorhead, Leach has quickly breathed life into a previously apathetic fanbase with his wit, wordplay and, perhaps most importantly, ability to recruit.
For all the knocks on Moorhead’s on-field product, the Pittsburgh-area native reeled in three-straight top-25 classes during his tenure in the maroon and white. And though Leach isn’t quite on that kind of pace, the former Washington State coach has seen an uptick as to where his 2021 class stands relative to his time in Pullman.
While recruiting data has gotten more and more complete in recent years, Leach’s time at Washington State was marred by bottom-third finishes in the Power Five Conference recruiting rankings. Over his eight seasons coaching the Cougars, Washington State averaged the No. 52 class nationally, never finishing higher than No. 42 in the 247 Composite rankings.
But now entering the second half of his first calendar year in Starkville, the fertile recruiting ground Leach lauded during his introductory press conference on Jan. 10 and the built-in advantages an SEC program boasts — even one as cash-strapped as MSU is relative to its competition — are beginning to pay dividends.
“I got a lot of face time with airplanes out there on the West Coast which is a great region and great geography and everything’s different from one place to the next,” he said on National Signing Day in February. “Here, it’s exciting that you can see a lot of recruits quickly. I think you’ve got the benefit of quality time as far as getting to know one another.”
MSU currently boasts 10 commitments — nine of whom jumped on board after Leach’s hiring in January — in a 2021 class that ranks No. 50 nationally and No. 12 in the SEC, though it previously ranked as high as No. 41 in the country and No. 11 in the conference prior to three-star athlete Kadarius Calloway flipping his commitment to Alabama Wednesday night.
Aiding in Leach’s early recruiting success are the class’ headliners — four-star Texas products Sawyer Robertson and Theodore Knox.
Robertson was the first major haul for Leach and his staff when he committed to the Bulldogs for both football and baseball in March. Rated the No. 145 player and No. 9 pro-style quarterback in the 2021 class, he’s the highest-rated quarterback pledge MSU has received since 2003.
“I guess one of the biggest things was the numbers that (Leach’s quarterbacks) put up, year-in and year-out,” he said of why he chose the Bulldogs. “In my opinion, there’s no better place for a quarterback to go and the baseball program is second to none.”
As for Knox, his commitment last week marked a renewed focus on receivers for a program that has struggled to find consistent playmakers at the position for the better part of two decades. Since Dan Mullen took over at MSU program ahead of the 2009 season, the Bulldogs have received commitments from just seven four-star pass catchers. Of those, Knox is the fifth-highest rated receiver to land with MSU in that span.
Building a class that could have as many as five receivers on board for 2021, the Bulldogs are also heavily in the mix for four-star Louisiana receiver Malik Nabers (No. 249 in the 247sports Composite class of 2021 rankings).
Recently whittling his choices down to Leach’s Bulldogs and Georgia, if Nabers ends up in Starkville it’d be the first time in MSU’s history it would bring two top-250 receivers to campus in the same year.
The Bulldogs are also expected to be heavily in the running for 2022 receiver Shazz Preston (No. 38 overall in the 247sports Composite) and are a favorite for three-star 2021 receiver Da’Wain Lofton — another Texas product.
“They’re prioritizing Texas, for sure, in the (2021) cycle,” 247 Sports Director of Recruiting Steve Wiltfong told The Dispatch in April. “There’s a ton of really good players in that state, and it’s not just the ones that are the most touted that end up playing in the NFL down the road.”
“With the ties that this staff has, I think it’s made it more advantageous for Mississippi State to go into Texas, and you’re seeing the results,” he continued in reference to Leach’s 10-year-run as the head coach at Texas Tech.
Leach, much like MSU coaches before him, has also made a living developing less-heralded recruits into highly productive collegiate players.
Having earned commitments from Holmes County athlete Corey Ellington and Deland, Florida prospect Myzel Williams — who pledged to MSU last week — Leach has continued that trend in landing raw playmakers that offer high-upside despite being ranked on the lower end of MSU’s 2021 class.
“I really believe that they’re getting a sleeper,” Holmes County defensive backs coach Alan Washington said of Ellington in May. “This kid could easily be one of the top players in the SEC if he just keeps building that confidence and he just keeps going with it. The sky’s the limit with this kid.”
In the seven months since Leach’s introductory press conference at the Leo Seal Jr. Football Complex, plenty has changed — chief among them the COVID-19 pandemic. And while it remains to be seen whether a fall football season is even played due to the ongoing pandemic, Leach has almost immediately set up MSU for future success.
This story has been updated to reflect three-star athlete Kadarius Calloway’s flip from Mississippi State to Alabama on Wednesday night
Ben Portnoy reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @bportnoy15.
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