With 5 early enrollees already on campus and spring football practice in the books, State now turns its attention to the fall and the 2012 season. This fall 23 more new Bulldogs will join the roster and look to make their mark early on the Mississippi State football team. Fortunately, Coach Dan Mullen has built solid depth at most positions in his 4 years so far in Starkville, so many Freshman coming in will go exactly where you want most Freshman to go: to redshirt. Nevertheless, it seems like there's always a couple guys that could contribute right away, or may be forced to contribute right away due to lack of depth at their particular position. We'll take a look real quick at who could come in and make an impact this fall, and who will most likely be heading for the RS season.
| Nick James | 6'5", 335 lbs | DT | Long Beach, MS (Long Beach) |
| A.J. Jefferson | 6'2", 254 lbs | DE | Summit, MS (North Pike) |
| Beniquez Brown | 6'2", 215 lbs | LB | Florence, AL (Florence) |
| Will Redmond | 6'0", 180 lbs | ATH | Memphis, TN (East) |
| Xavier Grindle | 5'10", 190 lbs | RB | Columbia, MS (East Marion) |
| Richie Brown | 6'3", 230 lbs | LB | Long Beach, MS (Long Beach) |
| Quadry Antoine | 5'11", 205 lbs | S | Belle Chasse, LA (Belle Chasse) |
| Adarrius Perkins | 6'2", 220 lbs | WR | Brooklyn, MS (Forrest County Ag) |
| Deonte Evans | 5'11", 190 lbs | WR | McComb, MS (McComb) |
| Cedric Jiles | 5'10", 170 lbs | CB | Clinton, MS (Clinton) |
| Devon Desper | 6'4", 300 lbs | C | Madison, MS (Madison Central) |
| Nelson Adams | 6'4", 290 lbs | DE | Brandon, MS (Brandon) |
| Brandon Holloway | 5'10", 160 lbs | ATH | Tampa, FL (Alonso) |
| Frederick Brown | 6'2", 176 lbs | WR | Jackson, MS (Jim Hill) |
| Torrey Bell | 6'4", 222 lbs | DE | New Orleans, LA (John Curtis Christian) |
| Kivon Coman | 6'1", 185 lbs | ATH | Florence, AL (Florence) |
| Nick Schuessler | 6'4", 190 lbs | QB | Loganville, GA (Grayson) |
| Ryan Brown | 6'4", 240 lbs | DE | Marrero, LA (Archbishop Shaw) |
| Jordan Washington | 6'2", 265 lbs | DT | Suwanee, GA (N Gwinnett) |
| Cole Carter | 6'5", 290 lbs | OT | Caledonia, MS (Caledonia) |
| Gus Walley | 6'4", 220 lbs | TE | Leakesville, MS (Greene County) |
| Devon Bell | 6'2", 180 lbs | P | Vicksburg, MS (Warren Central) |
| Artimas Samuel | 6'2", 205 lbs | WR | Columbus, GA (Carver) |
The list above is the 23 man list of players Mississippi State signed this past February on National Signing Day that did not head to campus this spring as early enrollees (list via Bulldogs 24/7). For the most part, this list of players will be headed to campus to get bigger, learn the playbook, and redshirt. Several years ago State may have relied more on some of these talented youngsters to come in and contribute right away, but the depth Dan Mullen has built on this team keeps State from having to do that in 2012. Before I take a guess at who may get some PT, who will redshirt, etc., let me say that I am not aware of who was shipped off to JUCO as a sign-and-place, and so forth. So if you see that I included a player erroneously who went to JUCO or if you think someone will contribute and I didn't list them as such, let me know. These posts are meant to be conversational and debated, you definitely don't want to just take my word for it ha.
Could contribute in 2012:
Richie Brown - When he signed in February, many talked about Richie Brown's size, and his maturity for an 18 year old. They also talked about his talent, as he signed as a 4*. With the Bulldogs looking to replace Brandon Wilson in the middle at MLB, there is a possibility that Richie could come in and compete for PT right away. That thought was probably more wide spread prior to Spring Practice: when Bernardrick McKinney and Ferlando Bohanna both had good springs. Personally I think you RS Richie unless you just have to, but a guy like him may be too talented to keep off the field. Gut feeling: redshirts in 2012.
Beniquez Brown -Beniquez is another guy like Richie who comes in with a lot of talent. Will that talent equate to some PT in 2012? Only time will tell. When I look at the 2-deep across the 3 LB positions, I just don't see where he fits in there, at least for this year. My thought is you RS Beniquez and groom him to be Cam's replacement in 2013. He may surprise me, but for right now I'm going with RS. Gut feeling: redshirts in 2012.
Nick James -With the depth that State possesses on the Defensive Line, this is another guy that you probably won't see in 2012. That doesn't mean he isn't super talented, just that he has a lot to learn, and State has outstanding depth in front of him. J Short may tell you different, but I think Nick sits in 2012 and prepares himself to become the next monster interior lineman for State. It is worth mentioning that the man did supposedly bench 225 39 times. That's crazy. Gut feeling: redshirts in 2012.
Will Redmond -Will Redmond is a very talented athlete and I think he could come in immediately and contribute at Safety. That is, if Nickoe isn't healthy and Dee Arrington isn't what he's supposed to be. I think Redmond could make some noise in 2012. He's the one guy who I'm truly undecided on whether or not he'll see the field in 2012. Gonna take a leap here. Gut feeling: plays in 2012.
Devon Bell - State is BAD thin at K and only returns last year's kickoff specialist Brian Egan. Devon will get his opportunity to come in and seize the starting Kicker role, if he's up to the challenge. Gut feeling: plays in 2012.
Nick Schuessler - Not a knock on Schuessler, but I really hope we don't have to play him this year. That's mostly because if he sees the field, that means that Tyler Russell went down and Dak Prescott is nicked up, and our only other option behind Nick would be to convince one of the Carskadon brothers to lace 'em up. Again, both Russell and Prescott would have to be injured for Schuessler to see the field in 2012, so let's hope he can redshirt and rest quietly in the wings. Gut feeling: redshirts in 2012.
So, what do you think? Am I way off? Am I right on? Am I the second coming of J Short (God I hope not)? Let me know your thoughts, where I screwed up, and what your gut feelings are. Let's talk about it: it's all we have to do until August (OH MY GOSH NO SUMMER IS COMING SOON NO FOOTBALL).