2024 juco DL Ashun Shepphard locked in with Mississippi State future
East Mississippi Community College’s Ashun Shepphard finished off his juco career earlier this month and was impressive during the Lions’ playoff journey, which ended last week in the NJCAA national championship game.
But last weekend, the 2024 Mississippi State commit and On3 three-star defensive lineman got a great view of his future in Starkville on his official visit. Shepphard is rated as the nation’s No. 41 overall juco prospect and the nation’s No. 6 juco defensive lineman per On3 rankings.
“I really enjoyed it,” Shepphard recalled. “I really felt at home and I feel like everybody showed good grace to me and my family.”
Naturally, the Brandon native spent most of his visit with future teammates on the defensive side of the ball. And in January, he will begin workouts with those guys at Mississippi State.
“(Kalvin) Dinkins was my host,” added Shepphard. “I was also around some other defensive linemen and linebackers. They are good people and they said they really see a fit for me in this program. They are ready to get to work with me.”
The weekend stay in Starkville also allowed Shepphard to learn more about head coach Jeff Lebby. And those talks allowed Shepphard to get a view of Lebby’s plan for the program.
“Coach Lebby is a real nice guy,” Shepphard mentioned. “I feel like he showed us great hospitality to me and my family. He put me down with their game plan and he talked about what they have to get done with his first season at State.”
As a sophomore at East Mississippi Community College, Shepphard totaled 39 tackles with nine tackles for loss and four sacks. At the next level, he discussed his possible roles on State’s defensive line during his weekend talks with defensive coordinator Coleman Hutzler.
“Real good talks with Coach Hutzler,” noted the 6-foot-3 and 285-pound Shepphard. “He said he likes the way I play. He likes my energy and said he likes the edge I will bring to the defense. He said I have versatility so he wants to play me some at defensive end and some at four high.”
Towards the late stages of his recruiting process, Shepphard had multiple Power 5 programs make a run at him, particularly Illinois. But after his State visit, Shepphard expects to sign with the Bulldogs on Wednesday.
“I am wrapped up with the recruiting process,” Shepphard remarked. “Illinois has been the other main school after me and they were in my Top 2. But I like the home atmosphere at State and Coach Lebby really came after me hard once he got the job.”
