The Mississippi State Bulldogs made a huge move on Friday to bring in a quarterback through the transfer portal, a move that Bulldogs’ fans are hoping will help return their team to prominence in the SEC.
Mississippi State particularly struggled in conference play this past season, Its lone conference victory of the year came against Arkansas, a team that equally struggled to a 1-7 record in SEC play.
Bulldogs quarterback Will Rogers opted to enter the transfer portal last month, creating a huge need that the program had to address — which it might have done.
According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, former Baylor Bears quarterback Blake Shapen has officially announced his decision to transfer to Mississippi State.
Former Baylor quarterback Blake Shapen (@BShapen)has committed to Mississippi State, he tells ESPN. Shapen started 23 games for the Bears over three seasons and has thrown for 5,574 career yards and 36 career touchdowns. pic.twitter.com/O8v426Peoo
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) December 8, 2023
Shapen started each of the last two seasons at Baylor. In his time with the program, Shapen threw for 5,574 career yards and 36 career touchdowns.
While those individual statistics aren’t all that bad, the team success at Baylor simply hasn’t been there since the junior quarterback took over as their starter. The team has just a 9-16 record each of the last two years under Shapen.
That isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement of how the Bulldogs could fare next season if Shapen is indeed their starting quarterback. But at the very least Shapen is an experienced quarterback that can add some depth at the position for Mississippi State.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.