Mississippi State football wrapped-up 2025 spring practices on Saturday. The Bulldogs, led by second-year coach Jeff Lebby, took the field in Davis Wade Stadium for the playing of the Maroon and White Spring Game.
In a shortened, two-quarter format, the White team prevailed 9-0 over the Maroons. There were not nearly as many fireworks as we saw in the 2024 spring game, but seeing as how that team went just 2-10, clearly, there's no reason for any overreactions one way or another in the spring.
That said, we can still have some takeaways from the action. Here are three things that stood out in the 2025 Maroon and White game...
Kamario Taylor lived up to the hype
There is no bigger takeaway to have from the spring game than quarterback Kamario Taylor's performance. The true freshman signal-caller is the highest-rated QB signee Mississippi State has ever had, and he lived up to that billing on Saturday. His first pass attempt of the day sailed high, but from that point on, he was locked in. Taylor showed off his arm talent and looked to have good command of the offense after just one spring. He led the only two scoring drives of the day, capped off by a walk-off 30-yard TD pass to Sanfrisco Magee. While it's still too early to say if he will factor in right away, he's certainly not a typical freshman.
The defensive front looks significantly improved
Last year, the Mississippi State defense was horrific in the defensive front. They had G5 level talent and FCS level depth. With an influx of transfers, that unit should be at least marginally better in 2025, and they impressed in the spring game. They did a nice job of bottling up the run game, and they actually generated pressure, registering six sacks. Some of that is a product of an OL that still needs work (as I'll address), but actually having SEC-caliber pieces up front on defense makes a huge difference. We're still a long way off from knowing if this will be an impressive unit, but they shouldn't get bullied in the same way they did last year.
The offensive line is still a work in progress
The flipside to that success by the defensive front is that the Bulldog offensive line still needs some work. We know the talent Mississippi State has in the backfield, but outside of a few solid runs, the ground game never got going the way you'd have liked to see because there wasn't enough push up front. And an aggressive defense generated plenty of pressure. To be fair to them, the group was split up, and starter Albert Reese was out. But it's been known for since the start of spring that Jeff Lebby will be pursuing more offensive lineman in the transfer portal to strengthen that unit, and today showed why.