It's a Flipmas miracle! Lockhart stuns Rebels by flipping back to Bulldogs in final hour

This afternoon, Mississippi State fans could not have been angrier. Having already watched 4-star JUCO defensive end commit Zavion Hardy flip to South Carolina, the Bulldog faithful then endured a second crushing blow to their 2025 signing class when 4-star linebacker Tyler Lockhart flipped to rival Ole Miss.

With two instant impact commits at positions of desperate need flipping to SEC rivals on Signing Day, it seemed like riots were set to breakout in Starkville. But then in the final hour, a Signing Day miracle happened.

Despite apparent signing with Ole Miss, Tyler Lockhart is a Mississippi State Bulldog

Shortly before 9:00 PM CT, Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby took to "X" to post a very interesting GIF.

For those unfamiliar with internet culture, this GIF of the wrestler "The Undertaker" is a way of saying "we have life" or "we aren't done yet." That obviously raised some eyebrows. Clearly Lebby was suggesting that good recruiting news was on the way for the Bulldogs, but no one could've guessed what was about to happen.

Tyler Lockhart, after seemingly signing with Ole Miss earlier in the day, was instead signing with Mississippi State after all. The longtime Bulldog commit was officially a Bulldog.

It's a massive win for Jeff Lebby and Mississippi State. Rated at 92-overall, Lockhart is one of the best defensive prospects in Mississippi, and he is someone who'll have the chance to contribute right away on the MSU defense, which needs all the help it can get.

But how on Earth did this even happen anyways?

How exactly did Tyler Lockhart end up signing with Mississippi State?

Truthfully, we don't exactly know how this happened. There are conflicting reports out from both sides of the situation regarding whether or not Ole Miss had the needed signatures to enter Lockhart as a signee in the NCAA Database. There's a good chance we learn more in the coming days.

What we do know is that Lockhart has officially signed with Mississippi State, and that's massive for this coaching staff. There's been a long history of Signing Day shenanigans between Mississippi State and Ole Miss, and unfortunately for the Bulldogs, they've often found themselves on the losing end of those schemes.

This is perhaps the craziest recruiting story in Mississippi that any of us have ever seen, and this time, State pulls a massive win over their rivals on Signing Day.