Mississippi State Football Transfer Portal Tracker 2026: Who's In and Who's Out

Year two of the Jeff Lebby era is complete and Mississippi State is now pushing into an all-important third year for the Bulldog head coach.

After a 2-10 season in 2024, Lebby and his staff did improve the team with the transfer portal in year two, but a 5-7 record wasn’t good enough to satisfy many of the fanbase. With the Bulldogs’ struggles evident on the defensive side of the ball and the team losing seven of the last eight games, it creates even more urgency to improve the roster for an even better 2026.

The Bulldogs are slated to have more roster turnover this season as they continue to try and build things. That includes adding another big group of transfers. The portal doesn’t official open until January 2 and will be open until January 16, but players will continue to announce intentions to enter the portal before then. We will be tracking the comings and goings of all of it all offseason and fans can keep this article bookmarked for the full list and timeline of the process.

Transfers Out:

WR Sr. Jordan Mosely – Colorado State

SAF So. Stonka Burnside – Memphis

WR Sr. Cam Thompson – Northern Illinois

WR Fr. Anson Lewis

DL So. Terrance Hibbler

OL Sr. Jaekwon Bouldin – Jackson State

WR Sr. Jaron Glover – South Florida

DL Sr. Corey Clark – Florida Atlantic

OL RFr. Alex Lopez – Western Kentucky

K Sr. Marlon Hauck – Tulsa

OL Sr. Brennan Smith

SAF Sr. Tony Mitchell – Ole Miss

WR Sr. Markus Allen – Middle Tennessee

DE Jr. Joseph Head – Memphis

TE Sr. Max Reese – North Texas

OL So. Jimothy Lewis – California

WR RFr. Ferzell Shepard

TE Jr. Emeka Iloh

SAF RFr. Lo’Kavion Jackson

TE Sr. Cam Ball

QB So. Luke Kromenhoek – South Florida

RB Sr. Johnnie Daniels – Tulane

SAF Sr. Tyler Woodard – Coastal Carolina

DL Sr. Ashun Shepphard

CB Sr. Dwight Lewis III

WR RFr. Davian Jackson – Texas State

CB So. Elijah Cannon – Kansas

SAF Jr. Cyrus Reyes – Kentucky

DT So. Kai McClendon – Washington

OL Jr. Luke Work – Missouri

RB Jr. Seth Davis – Tulsa

C Jr. Koby Keenum – Memphis

LB Sr. Montrell Chapman

DT Sr. Kedrick Bingley-Jones – Alabama

CB Sr. Jayven Williams – BYU

OL Jr. Zack Owens – Missouri

WR So. Ricky Johnson – Utah

OL Jr. Jayvin James – Alabama

Transfers In:

WR Sr. Marquis Johnson – Missouri

DL Sr. Jayson Jenkins – Florida State

QB Sr. AJ Swann – Appalachian State

OL RFr. Mario Nash – Florida State

CB So. Quentin Taylor – Iowa State

CB So. Kaylib Singleton – Syracuse

CB So. Jamroc Grimsley – Florida

SAF Sr. Marcus Williams – Rice

OL RFr. Jaelyne Matthews – Florida State

Edge Jr. Amaree Williams – Florida State

OL RFr. LJ Prudhomme – Arkansas

DE RFr. Gus Cordova – USC

TE RJr. Riley Williams – Oregon State

WR So. Zion Ragins – Oklahoma

OL So. Isaiah Autry-Dent – Oklahoma

OL Jr. DJ Chester – LSU

SAF Sr. Kendel Doby – Oklahoma

SAF Sr. Jardin Gilbert – LSU

OL RFr. Tyler Miller – LSU

DL So. Dealyn Evans – Texas A&M

OL So. Miles McVay – North Carolina

LB So. Gav Holman – Florida State

OL Sr. Brandon Sneh – UAB

Timeline:

November 30: With the regular season complete, the first names announcing their portal entrance have come out. Senior wide out Jordan Mosley was the first to announce as the veteran has decided to look for another school next year. Mosley will have to apply for an extra year of eligibility due to the fact that he has already played five seasons.

 Also announcing his transfer was Starkville safety Stonka Burnside. After playing as a freshman on special teams, Burnside moved to safety in the offseason but redshirted this season. Now he’s on the move.

December 1: Another wide receiver transferring out is former Northern Illinois pass catcher Cam Thompson. He played in three games and recorded no stats.

December 3: On signing day, a couple of younger Bulldogs announced they’ll enter the portal. South Mississippi freshman wide out Anson Lewis has not been with the team since the summer and will be, expectedly, entering the portal. State is also watching redshirt freshman defensive tackle Terrance Hibbler move on to a new spot. Hibbler had high hopes in Starkville but couldn’t make an impact in his first two years on campus.

December 4: Transfer offensive tackle Jaekwon Boulding announced on social media that he plans to transfer. The former Gulf Coast Community College lineman turned down State for Purdue initially but would transfer from the Boilermakers after one year. Now he’s on the move yet again having not played for State.

The Bulldogs added two more in the portal with reserve WR Jaron Glover and DL Corey Clark. Neither were major contributors for State.

December 9: Backup center Brennan Smith is entering the portal. The former Austin Peay and UTEP blocker played in three games during the 2025 season and then sat out the rest of the year. The Bulldogs got some tough news on Tuesday in the form of contributing safety Tony Mitchell hitting the portal. Mitchell had a nice end to the season with 14 tackles and 3.0 TFL in his final three games.

December 12: State had two instate defenders announce their intentions to enter the portal. DE Joseph Head and LB Fatt Forrest will both enter their names in January after being on campus for multiple seasons.

December 14: Junior TE Max Reese will enter the portal, he announced on X. Reese transferred in from Eastern Michigan and played in 11 games this season but had just two receptions for one yard. Part time starting tackle Jimothy Lewis is also set to enter the portal. Lewis played in seven games this season and started in four of those contests as the Bulldogs looked for something on the offensive line. He struggled at times to protect QB Blake Shapen but had a promising future.

December 15: Freshman WR Ferzell Shepard is expected to enter the portal. After getting to Starkville late in the process due to academics, Shepard sat out all of this year and will have four seasons of eligibility remaining.

December 16: Junior TE Emeka Iloh plans to enter the transfer portal according to Rivals’ Steve Wiltfong. Iloh was an intriguing prospect out of Coahoma Community College, but hasn’t seen that talent come to fruition just yet.

December 17: It’s no real surprise to Bulldog fans, but backup quarterback Luke Kromenhoek plans to enter the portal in January. Kamario Taylor taking over the starting position assured that Kromenhoek was likely going to be looking for a new landing spot, but he is taking part in bowl prep and will play in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl if needed.

The Bulldogs also lost another reserve tight end as Cam Ball announced his intentions to enter the portal.

December 20: Backup RB Johnnie Daniels announced his intentions to hit the portal. Daniels sat out for most of the season.

December 22: Reserve safety Tyler Woodard is entering the portal. Woodard played in six games over the last two seasons and combined for 14 tackles. He redshirted after being injured for most of last year and played in four games. This season, he logged just two games of action.

December 23: A couple more reserve players are in the portal in DL Ashun Shepphard and CB Dwight Lewis jumping in. Lewis played in all 12 games this year, mostly on special teams. Shepphard played in two games and sat out to redshirt.

December 31: Freshman WR Davian Jackson is entering the portal. Jackson did not play a snap during his first year of college ball.

January 3: After the Bulldogs’ season came to an end on Friday, State had three players that entered the portal on Saturday. DT Kai McClendon and defensive backs Cyrus Reyes and Elijah Cannon all will move on. Reyes and Cannon were reserves that mostly played special teams with McClendon starting some as a freshman before missing all of 2025 with a knee injury.

January 4: State gets its first portal commitment of the 2026 season. Missouri WR Marquis Johnson is coming to Starkville after three seasons at Missouri in which he accumulated over 1,000 yards receiving and six touchdowns.

The Bulldogs also have had two more players enter on Sunday. Backup offensive lineman Luke Work entered along with running back Seth Davis.

Jan. 5 – State added its first defensive transfer of the portal cycle as former Tennessee and Florida State DT Jayson Jenkins announced his commitment to the Bulldogs. He started in five games this season for the Seminoles. The Bulldogs also landed a QB commit from AJ Swann who played for Vanderbilt, LSU and, most recently, Appalachian State.

The Bulldogs had another transfer out from the program as Koby Keenum decided to hit the portal. He’s the second backup center to enter the portal joining Brennen Smith.

Jan. 6 – The Bulldogs got a string of commitments on Tuesday afternoon after visits wrapped up. State landed rising sophomore corners Quentin Taylor (Iowa State) and Kaylib Singleton (Syracuse) and also pulled Florida State OL Mario Nash (Florida State).

Junior linebacker Montrell Chapman entered the portal. He played in five games this season after transferring in from Gulf Coast Community College.

Jan. 7 – Corey Bell stayed hot with his corners as the coach brings in Florida transfer Jameer Grimsley. Like Taylor and Singleton, he has three years of eligibility remaining. The Bulldogs also landed their first safety of the portal class in Hoover native and Rice veteran Marcus Williams.

Defensive tackle Kedrick Bingley-Jones is entering the portal from the Bulldogs. He is expected to get one more year of eligibility, but it will not be at State.

Jan. 8 – The Bulldogs landed another commitment on Thursday with Florida State offensive lineman Jaelyne Matthews joining the fold after redshirting in 2025. State also saw reserve corner Jayven Williams get in the portal.

Jan 9 – Zach Arnett continued to dip into the talent pool at Florida State as he added Amaree Williams as an Edge to the transfer class. Williams also played tight end for the Seminoles and has some versatility for the Bulldogs. State also added two other commitments on the line of scrimmage on Friday with DE Gus Cordova transferring from USC and OL LJ Prudhomme coming to State from Arkansas.

Jan. 10 – State grabbed a tight end commitment on Saturday morning as former Miami and Oregon State tight end Riley Williams left his visit to Starkville locked in with the Bulldogs. Williams played two seasons with Miami and contributed with the Hurricanes but missed most of this season due to an injury. He has two years to play.

Jan. 11 – Another speedy Oklahoma receiver is on the way to Starkville. After the success of Brenen Thompson, the Bulldogs are now going to have the services of sophomore Zion Ragins. He played as a true freshman and had 10 catches in 2024 but redshirted this year before entering the transfer portal.

Jan. 12 – Two SEC offensive linemen are on the board for the Bulldogs as State landed Mississippi native and OT Isaiah Autry-Dent from Oklahoma and LSU’s DJ Chester. Autry-Dent comes to Starkville with three years to play with Chester having two years remaining. Chester played multiple positions on the line of scrimmage but was the Tigers’ starting center.

More good news came for State’s secondary on Monday as former Oklahoma SAF Kendel Doby announced his transfer to Starkville, as did LSU SAF Jardin Gilbert. He has 68 tackles in his career with 8.0 TFL, seven pass deflections and two interceptions in three seasons. Gilbert has played significant snaps over the course of his five years inside the SEC including starting his career with Texas A&M. A couple of seasons lost to injuries should have him available for a sixth season of eligibility.

Jan. 13 – It was another huge day for the Bulldogs in the transfer portal as State landed two important linemen. Mississippi offensive tackle Tyler Miller is coming back home after spending a season with LSU. The Bulldogs won a big battle over Ole Miss for Miller and State also won a big battle over Tennessee for Texas A&M DT Dealyn Evans.

Jan. 15 – State added another lineman to the fold on Thursday as the Bulldogs earned a commitment from former Alabama and North Carolina offensive tackle Miles McVay.

On the other side of things, the Bulldogs lost a starting guard in Zack Owens has he entered the portal on the last day that it was opened.

Jan 16 – Just before the portal closed on Friday night, young receiver Ricky Johnson entered out of State. Johnson played sparingly in his first two seasons with the Bulldogs.

Jan. 20 – A late portal entry came on Tuesday as MSU returned from the Holiday. State is losing its starting left tackle in Jayvin James as he entered prior to the portal closing last week.

Jan. 21 – A day after James hit the portal, he landed on his feet at Alabama. The Bulldogs got their replacement for him as they’re bringing in UAB’s starting left tackle Brandon Sneh.