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Mississippi State

Mississippi State announces attendees for 2025 SEC Media Days

3rupauk8_400x400by: Robbie Faulk07/08/25RobbieFaulkOn3
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Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby

A week away from SEC Media Days in Atlanta, Mississippi State has its contingent of representatives set.

Second-year head coach Jeff Lebby will be making another appearance at the event and will be flanked by three of his biggest leaders. Quarterback Blake Shapen will return to the lineup for the second-straight year, but the coach will also have junior safety Isaac Smith and first-year wide receiver Brenen Thompson will be in attendance.

Shapen enters year two with the Bulldogs as the team’s starting QB. It’s a surprise fifth year for the signal caller who was expecting to finish up his eligibility in 2024. An injury changed those plans for the Shreveport native as he hurt his shoulder in the fourth game of the season against Florida.

In those first four games, Shapen had completed 69% of his passes and thrown for 974 yards with eight touchdowns and an interception. Prior to arriving to Starkville, Shapen had thrown for over 5,000 career yards in three seasons with Baylor while tossing 36 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

Shapen dealt with injuries at his previous stop as well, but the focus for both the QB and coach Lebby this year has been him protecting himself on the field.

“There’s been a lot of conversations. Don’t take unnecessary hits,” Lebby said. “I’ve said it forever, one of the things you love about Blake the most is how he plays the game. The kid will go die for you. I want to make sure that he’s playing every single snap the entire year. So just trying to find ways to make sure he’s healthy.

“What we call ‘dive out of danger’ while taking care of the football and understanding situational football will be huge for him. He’s going to always have his edge, but him being smart with the ball in his hands in the open field will be important.”

Smith is a huge returner for the Bulldogs on the defensive side as he was one of the few bright spots for a unit that was dead last in the conference a season ago. The Fulton native went from 15 tackles as a true freshman to leading the SEC with 127 last season.

This offseason, Smith has emerged as the primary leader on the defense and a great leader on and off the field.

“Nobody wants to go 2-10, especially me and the guys that were here. Just preaching to the new guys that we’ve got something bigger to prove,” Smith said back in the spring. “They came in and worked hard in the winter and now we’ve just got to put a great spring together, great summer and fall camp and we’re right there.”

Thompson is the new face of the group as he comes to State from Oklahoma. Lebby initially coached Thompson as a receiver in his Sooner offense. In the first two seasons under Lebby’s watch, Thompson had eight catches for 273 yards and two touchdowns as his speed created big play opportunities.

Last year under a new regime, Thompson’s catches went up to 19 and he had 230 yards with two more scores. He’s poised to have a good junior season with the Bulldogs after a strong spring.

The trio of State players and their coach will take in Media Days on Wednesday, July 16 at the Omni Hotel in Atlanta.

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