Message stays the same for Jeff Lebby after Bulldogs' tough setback

As Jeff Lebby walked back through the doors of the Leo Seal Jr. Complex on campus on Monday morning, his routine was no different than it had been for the previous five weeks.

After each week during the 4-0 start to the season, Lebby vowed to keep the messaging and the preparation the same as Mississippi State continues to try and build and sustain. Experiencing a gut-wrenching 41-34 overtime loss to No. 15 Tennessee last Saturday didn’t change that. It was time to turn the page and go right back to work.

“For us, our statement (Monday), understanding what we’ve got ahead of us. It’s always about what’s next. It doesn’t matter what happens on Saturday whether on the right side or the wrong side. You got to get better on Monday. We’ve got to have the best Monday we’ve ever had. That is the message,” Lebby said.

“I think because that’s the message every single week, I’m hopeful our guys are able to clear this and have the ability to go prepare the right way. Our preparation has to be advantage us. It’s how we do what we do on Monday and throughout the rest of the week. I think our guys sense that. There’s great urgency in fixing the problems and getting ready to be able to go 1-0.”

1-0 is the goal for every coach each week but this is especially been the right approach in Lebby’s mind. Lebby inherited a program that had been through a tumultuous calendar year with the sudden death of Mike Leach followed up by a failed experiment in the promotion of defensive coordinator Zach Arnett.

While last year was a chance to build some of the foundation of Lebby’s program, it also was difficult to do in the middle of a 2-10 campaign while a large group of players were filtered out of the program either for more talented players or players that better fit the culture.

Through five games, Lebby is showing that his team is in a much better position in year two. Most of the SEC schedule last season consisted of the team leaving the field and covering the spread being considered a small victory. After one game this year, not coming out with a win is a disappointment.

If there were positive takeaways from the game, it was that effort and response to adversity that really stood out to Lebby on Saturday. Until the final whistle, his team believed that they were going to win that game, without any reservations.

“There was a ton of growth. I told the guys today that the thing I was most proud of was, without a doubt, from play 1 to play 87, our guys continued to play and believed we were winning the football game the entire time,” Lebby said. “There was great energy. I thought we fought our butt off, very disappointed and frustrated that we weren’t able to make the plays to be plus 1 at the end of the game. Proud of our toughness and our effort, physicality, but making sure we are ready to go make the plays to be plus 1 and be on the right side.”

State takes to the SEC road for first time

Rebounding from a devastating loss is now the challenge for the Bulldogs and it isn’t going to be a small task.

The Bulldogs will travel to College Station, Texas, to take on the No. 6 Texas A&M Aggies (4-0, 1-0 SEC) on Saturday night as Mike Elko’s team has aspirations of getting to the College Football Playoff. Is a team with some similarities to the Volunteers as they have a dynamic quarterback and an offense that has scored a boatload of points, but also some standout players on the defensive side of the ball that can make life miserable for the Bulldog offensive line.

“They’re a really good football team. We understand their roster and talent level and things like that,” Lebby said of the Aggies. “Offensively, they have been really explosive in the throw game. Two great receivers, they got two really good running backs and a veteran Oline that’s played a lot of ball.

“Defensively, there is some similarities (to Tennessee) from the standpoint that they’ve created a bunch of sacks. That’s going to be a huge point of emphasis for us this week. We got to find ways to protect, keep (Blake Shapen) upright, and give him a chance to pitch and catch.”

Despite the loss last Saturday, the Bulldogs moved forward as a program. They went toe-to-toe with a playoff team from a season ago and had their chances to win the game. At the same time, they didn’t get the job done.

For that reason, that loss still sticks in the craw of Lebby. A relentless competitor to the core, he won’t soon forget how close his team was and there were no moral victories from that day in Davis Wade Stadium. It’s back to the lab and finding a way to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

“I’m not able to give myself any credit,” Lebby stated. “We got our ass beat and it’s frustrating. I’ve got to do better, got to coach better. I have to get done what we need to get done so that at the end of the game, we’re plus 1. That’s the bottom line.”

Another chance comes this weekend as State heads to A&M. Game time is set for 6:30 p.m. as the Bulldogs and Aggies will face off on SEC Network in College Station.