Skip to main content
Mississippi State

Terrell Johnson joins Holmes County fraternity with Mississippi State football

3rupauk8_400x400by: Robbie Faulk06/22/25RobbieFaulkOn3
terrell johnson
Photo courtesy of Terrell Johnson X

A pipeline between Holmes County Central High School and Mississippi State has formed in recent years as the Bulldogs have made a living putting talented Jaguars in maroon and white.

Add another one to the list on Sunday afternoon as 2026 cornerback Terrell Johnson took his official visit to Starkville and left committed to State. Johnson worked for Jeff Lebby’s staff at camp and earned an offer and both parties were ready to take the next step this weekend.

“It’s been amazing. To build the relationship with all the staff and see the love – I loved it,” Johnson said of his recruiting process with the Bulldogs. “I made it there Friday late because of a 7-on-7 and on Saturday we went to coach Lebby’s house and after I had a talk with him and my family, it all sounded good to me. I committed there.

“It felt amazing to know how good God is. Without Him, none of this would be happening for me.”

Official visit locks in Johnson’s decision

From the start of the visit until the end, Johnson felt like State was where he belonged. He grew up cheering for the Bulldogs as a kid, but he took a step back and wanted to look through a different lens during his recruitment.

After spending a weekend on campus and getting to get a different kind of feel from Lebby and the staff as well as the players on the official visit, it was where he needed to be. Several players would feel the same way as the Bulldogs have already landed five new commitments in the class with more expected to announce in the coming days.

“The love and the gratitude really stood out to me. They were so open and welcoming to me and my family and I loved that,” Johnson said of the State staff. “We had a group cooking session that was really fun. We were at coach Lebby’s house in the pool hanging out and got to spend some time getting to know each other two.

“All the commitments were crazy. Every minute I hear the cowbell going back-to-back. Trust and believe that some dogs have committed and when we get there it’s going to be balling.”

Johnson is coming off of a season where he locked things down for the Jags at defensive back. He finished his junior year with 35 tackles, nine pass breakups and an interception as he helped his team to the Class 5A North State Championship.

He joins a fraternity of former State players that came to Starkville from Holmes County. Two of them are set to become his future teammates at State with another that just left helping coach him at Holmes County.

“Terrance Hibbler and Joseph Head reached out to me and told me congratulations. Corey Ellington is a former player and is coaching us now and he was really excited for me. We get it out of the mud at Holmes County. Nothing is given to us,” Johnson said.

“I’m very excited to be honest. There’s a lot of relief. Everybody doesn’t get a chance to do this and it’s a blessing.”

You may also like