Fansided

National Signing Day: Winners and losers – USC, Ole Miss knock early signing period out of park

By Cody Williams

Nov 14, 2020; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin looks on during the first half against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 14, 2020; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin looks on during the first half against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 6
Next
National Signing Day
Mississippi State Bulldogs. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

Early National Signing Day Loser No. 3: Mississippi State Bulldogs

Though Mike Leach traditionally hasn’t been known as an ace recruiter, having the backing of an SEC program behind him seemed to be setting the enigmatic head coach up for a strong class in his first full year. Unfortunately, things started to go awry from the Pirate and Mississippi State as the early signing period drew to a close on Wednesday.

It’s worth noting that the Bulldogs did land the No. 297 overall prospect, wide receiver Antonio Harmon, early on Wednesday, but things went south beyond that. On Tuesday, LSU got the party started when they flipped the No. 19 JUCO recruit in the country, Navonteque Strong, and brought him in. The hits kept coming from there.

LSU took another big-time name from the Mississippi State class as they flipped 4-star wide receiver Malik Nabers, a big blow to the offense. Meanwhile, 3-star athlete/cornerback MJ Daniels, a player who it looked like the Bulldogs might’ve stolen from rival Ole Miss, flipped back to the Rebs on Wednesday.

Currently sitting outside of the top 30, this is a tough look for the Bulldogs. Leach already had a tough task ahead to get the roster in the shape it needs to be for him to succeed given all that he’s lost since arriving in this calamitous season. What happened on Wednesday only makes that harder to accomplish.

Home/College Football