Mississippi State football coach Jeff Lebby is revamping his coaching staff in Starkville in preparation for a critical 2026 season, and he's bringing in a veteran offensive assistant. Bush Hamdan has been named Mississippi State's Associate Head Coach for Offense. Hamdan spent the last two seasons as the Offensive Coordinator at Kentucky.
Welcome to StarkVegas, @BushHamdan!
— Mississippi State Football (@HailStateFB) December 10, 2025
A veteran offensive coach with 17 years of experience in college football and the NFL, Coach Hamdan brings a reputation for innovation, development, and high-level production.#HailState pic.twitter.com/1dpqjW1Ct4
Prior to his stint at Kentucky, Hamdan was the OC of Boise State in 2023. Before that, he worked with both WRs and QBs at Missouri from 2020-2022. He had multiple stints working under HC Chris Petersen at Washington. He was a Quality Control coach for the Huskies in 2015, was the WRs Coach and Passing Game Coordinator in 2016, and was the OC and QBs Coach in 2018 and 2019. Hamdan also brings NFL experience after spending the 2017 season as the QBs Coach for the Atlanta Falcons. Hamdan is expected to work with Mississippi State's QBs.
Bush Hamdan is a valuable addition to Mississippi State's offense
Some have been quick to ask why Mississippi State would want a coach who was in charge of an offense at Kentucky that struggled mightily over the last two seasons. The first thing that needs to be pointed out is that how one performs as an offensive coordinator and play-caller isn't indicative of their value as an assistant, and Hamdan is highly-regarded as a QB and WR coach.
But even as a play-caller, don't let Hamdan's run in Lexington cloud your view of him. Hamdan called successful offenses at Washington and Boise State before going to Kentucky, a program that was notoriously poor offensively under multiple coordinators throughout the Mark Stoops tenure. It's fair to think these last two seasons were outliers and more a reflection of the program he was coaching at.
Hamdan has worked with plenty of good coaches and players. He's led productive offenses. Having him as another voice in meeting rooms and on the practice field is a good thing.
It could be especially beneficial because he comes from such a different offensive background than Jeff Lebby, as Hamdan has largely worked in pro-style systems. While Lebby isn't moving away from his scheme, nor should he, having someone with Hamdan's experience and perspective to bounce ideas off of could help Mississippi State maximize its potential offensively next season.