Oklahoma transfer DB Kendel Dolby commits to Mississippi State

Former Oklahoma defensive back Kendel Dolby has committed to Mississippi State, via the NCAA Transfer Portal. Dolby only appeared in four games for the Sooners this past season.

Dolby transferred to Oklahoma ahead of the 2023 campaign after spending two seasons at NEO A&M, a JUCO program.

Dolby only appeared in four games for the Sooners this season. Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables remained vague when asked about Dolby’s status in October, stating the veteran DB was “trying to figure everything out.”

Dolby recorded nine tackles in his four appearances this season. Dolby started in all three of the games he played in during the 2024 season before suffering a broken ankle. He finished the year with 10 tackles and a pass breakup. In September, Venables raved about Dolby’s recovery and ultimate return to the field.

“Kendel Dolby, how cool was that?” Venables said. “For me, want to make a grown man cry. Just proud of him, everything that he’s had to overcome. Very significant injury. To see him back out there this week in practice, in pregame, I had to ‘Man, you need to pull back.’

“My man, he was wide open in pregame. It was great for him, going to be good for us moving forward to get him back. One of best leaders we have on the team. One of the most competitive players that we have on the team, just a lot of passion and energy when Kendel Dolby’s around.”

Dolby’s best season with the Sooners was his debut campaign at OU in 2023. He made 13 appearances and three starts. He tallied a career-high 49 tackles, two sacks, four pass breakups and two interceptions.

For his efforts, he was named an All-Big 12 honorable mention selection. Dolby turned heads during his two seasons at the JUCO level. He was named the Southwest Junior College Football Conference Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore in 2022.

Now, Dolby will look to reach new heights at Mississippi State. Mississippi State is entering Year 3 under head coach Jeff Lebby. Mississippi State posted a 2-10 record in Lebby’s debut campaign at the helm. Additionally, the Bulldogs were winless in conference play.

The program showed improvement this past season, finishing the year with a 5-8 overall record and a 1-7 mark against SEC foes. After Mississippi State’s loss to Wake Forest in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl, Lebby addressed the importance of this offseason.

“As we are trying to portal the right guys, we’ve got to get the right people. They’ve got to be good enough to go play at a really high level and we’ve got to get guys that understand how to win,” Lebby said. “I do like our young players inside our roster. They are guys to be incredibly excited about at a lot of different spots that have great mentality.”

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.