Mississippi State Receivers Come out Firing on All Cylinders
Times sure have changed in Starkville on the football field and specifically at the wide receiver position.
Just six short years ago when Dan Mullen was hired as the head football coach of the Bulldogs, he had four wide receivers to work with in his first spring practice– FOUR; now let that sink in for just a bit.
Receiver has never been a glamor position in Starkville and you can probably count the guys that have stood out over time at the position.
Eric Moulds, Justin Jenkins, Chad Bumphis, Kelvin Love and Kevin Prentiss come to mind right off the bat. After that, it truly has been slim pickins.
Dan Mullen stressed from day one that he needed several, several play makers at that position for his offense to be successful. So after three straight position coaching changes and sound recruiting, the Bulldogs felt this summer they finally had a super group at wide out.
This past Saturday night was everyone’s first look at Billy Gonzalez’s group and boy they did not disappoint.
Ten Bulldogs caught passes in the Bulldogs 49-00 thrashing of Southern Miss, nine whom were receivers or tight ends.
I would have to look back in the record books to see, but Id dare say over time that the Bulldogs rarely had ten players catch passes in a given season before Mullen arrived on the scene.
The Bulldogs have shown signs of decent receivers since Mullen arrived back in 2009, but none with the speed, size and athleticism of this group.
It all starts with 6-5 De’Runnya Wilson. Wilson hauled in 4-receptions for 65-yards and two scores Saturday night, but it was more than the scores that stood out about Wilson.
The guy is just big and he gets yards after the catch; he’s strong too – evident of him slinging two tacklers on the way to his second score.
We would also like to welcome the “Two Freds” to the show as well. Fred Ross and Fred Brown were considered nice pickups for the Bulldogs two years ago and after an up and down freshman campaign that saw limited playing time, injuries and more, they showed up on game one.
Ross caught 3-passes for 61-yards and two scores, while Fred Brown hauled in 3-passes as well for 51-yards.
Joe Morrow even got on the scene the other night with 2-catches for 50-yards. The competition will make him get better or get out of the way. As of now we will assume – better.
And of course there’s Jameon Lewis who had a quiet night with 3-catches for 25-yards. Brandon Hill, Gabe Myles, Malcolm Johnson and Josh Robinson also hauled in passes from Bulldog quarterbacks as well.
Again, the big takeaway is the speed, size and athleticism of this group. If this group continues to improve, no longer will teams be able to double down or shade the Bulldogs top Dawg. When State trots three or even four wide outs on the field, you now know they can all play.
Throw in the fact that Prescott and Bulldog quarterbacks are running threats on every play and this could be a banner year for the receiver position at State.
If Saturday night was any indication, this group is just getting going. As Jameon Lewis would say, this could be their $YR.