While the national attention of the college football world is on how things will shake out in the College Football Playoff race, the buzz in Starkville has been about finding the next Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach. And it looks like they may have found him in Norman, OK.
According to Ross Dellenger of Yahoo! Sports, Mississippi State's top target is Oklahoma Sooners offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby.
Dellenger reports that, though the dotted line has not been signed yet, the ongoing discussions between AD Zac Selmon and Lebby are expected to result in the Bulldogs hiring the brilliant offensive mind.
Mississippi State football rumors: Bulldogs expected to hire Jeff Lebby
In terms of the on-field ramifications of Mississippi State hiring Lebby, it seems like a home-run head coaching move for the Bulldogs. Lebby has overseen some highly prolific offenses in his career working under Lane Kiffin, Josh Heupel, currently Brent Venables at OU and formerly Art Briles. In terms of closing the talent gap in Starkville with schematic advantages, Lebby is well-equipped to do so.
However, the Art Briles connection looms over this move in a massive way from his time at Baylor.
Lebby was named as one of the Baylor coaches who didn't take action when former Bears running back Devin Chafin was accused of assaulting another student, Dolores Lozano, after it was reported to Briles and his staff. Furthermore, when the disgusting ongoings of the Baylor program under Briles' watch came to light and Briles was fired, Lebby voiced support for his former head coach and father-in-law.
That controversy has followed Lebby since and rightfully so. As he now gets his first chance as a head coach in FBS college football with Mississippi State, they won't go away either -- nor should they.
So while the football effects of this hire could be beneficial for the Bulldogs, it's a coaching decision that will begin mired in controversy given Lebby's past and is unlikely to stop being so in the coming months and years.
