Mississippi State football coach Jeff Lebby answered questions from the media on the SEC Coaches Teleconference on Wednesday afternoon before the Bulldogs travel to Knoxville for a SEC matchup with Tennessee.
Lebby discussed where Mississippi State has improved, what stands out about Nico Iamaleava and more. Here’s everything Lebby said.
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Opening Statement
“Yeah, for us, obviously a great challenge as we go on a road to another incredible atmosphere, another top-10 team in the country. Our guys are excited about the opportunity and going to be ready to roll.
On what he liked about Mississippi State beating UMass 45-20 after trailing 10-0 at the end of the first quarter
“I love the fact that our guys didn’t flinch after not starting the way we needed to, being down 10-0 right there at the end of the first quarter. And then having the ability to bounce back the way we did. I love the way we played collectively in the second half. Find a way to get off the field defensively and then finding a way to score touchdowns in the red zone, take care of the ball offensively. So plenty of good to build on, but plenty of things to be able to clean up and coach off of as we’ve gotten into the week.”
On the best story he has from his time working with Tennessee coach Josh Heupel
“I don’t know about the story. I’ll say this, again, I talked a little bit about it the other day, but a guy that I’ve got incredible respect for. And obviously everything he’s been able to accomplish as a head coach has been impressive. So again, just it will be a great atmosphere and the energy will be incredible inside Neyland. And our guys are going to need to be incredibly strong because they’ll play really well if you give them a chance.”
On what he saw from Tennessee QB Nico Iamaleava against Kentucky
“I see a guy when he gets in rhythm plays really, really well. And obviously, this is a guy that can make every single throw on the field. He does. He makes you defend every blade of grass on the field and then can make plays with his feet. And so as he’s in rhythm, he’s played really, really well. They put him in really good position to be able to go take care of the ball. And, again, a guy that we’ve got to find a way to get out of rhythm. We’ve got to get to him and get him on the ground to create some success for us defensively.”
On the importance of development tis time of year
“You want guys every single day being better, and that, to me, is all we talk about inside our program. On Saturday night, individually, collectively, we need to be the best we’ve been all year long. And to me, that’s just getting better one day at a time, one week at a time and finding a way to play that way every single Saturday. So that is the goal. From a developmental standpoint with young guys inside the program that maybe aren’t getting a ton of opportunity on Saturday, those guys understanding how important it is to be better today than they were this time last week. And so that is a strain. It’s incredibly important as we continue to build the foundation and will be important as we move forward.”
On where he believes this team has improved the most
“For us, I think we played better-and-better normal down defense. Outside of the the Arkansas game, I feel like that’s something we have gotten better about being able to play better, sounder. Being able to run and hit, get guys on the ground on first and second down, and that’s gonna be huge for us on Saturday night. And our normal down defense needs to be really, really good. And then situationally, we’re gonna have to get off the field, but I do like how we’ve grown playing better defense on first and second down.”
