Mississippi State, Jeff Lebby Open the Floodgates Against Eastern Kentucky in Home Opener

Despite poor weather conditions throughout virtually the entire game, the Mississippi State offense lit up the scoreboard in the first game of the Jeff Lebby era at MSU.

Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Jeff Lebby walks down the sideline during the first quarter against the Eastern Kentucky Colonels at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. / Matt Bush-USA TODAY Sports

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Blake Shapen led his Mississippi State offense to a 56-7 victory over Eastern Kentucky in the Baylor transfer's first start for rookie head coach Jeff Lebby.

The former Bear slung it for 247 yards and three scores in his first action for Mississippi State and added 44 yards and one touchdown on the ground. Jordan Mosely led the way in receiving for MSU with 104 yards on five receptions for a touchdown grab.

Shapen might have controlled the pass game, but Mississippi State only ever had to drive about half of the field before finding the end zone due to the electric punt return ability of transfer wide receiver Kevin Coleman.

Coleman finished with 117 punt return yards on only five attempts - good enough to earn MSU an average starting field position of Mississippi State's own 41 yard line. The Louisville transfer also added 88 receiving yards and a score through the air to his resume' on the night.

On the defensive side, Mississippi State got big time production out of sophomore safety Isaac Smith. The former Itawamba AHS standout finished with 11 tackles on the day, which was good enough to lead the team. Five of those tackles were assigned as solos.

Eastern Kentucky's rushing attack proved to be stronger than many Bulldog fans anticipated, although MSU managed to hold EKU to under 4 yards per carry as a team. Joshua Carter finished with 75 yards on 19 carries to lead the Colonels' offense.

Coming into the contest, Lebby was adamant that Mississippi State would have to stop the Eastern Kentucky passing attack. The Colonels managed to find small bursts of success, but were bottled up for the majority of the contest, as quarterback Matt Morrissey completed 22 of 38 passes for just 169 yards and a single touchdown pass.

MSU added a few scores late with a blocked punt that was picked up by Mario Craver for a touchdown and a pick six late in the contest by Elijah Cannon.

The Skinny

For Mississippi State fans that felt a hole in their heart for a lack of offense, Saturday delivered in the best way possible. Lebby's crew was fun to watch, dynamic and tried to take the top of the defense at every worthwhile opportunity.

For the past few seasons, Bulldog teams either lacked true down field weapons or the quarterback required to get it to them. In Shapen, Lebby has found someone with the legs to extend plays and has paired him with a receiving corps that has the speed to beat a defense over the top.

Yes, EKU is an FCS opponent, and Arizona State will be a much different animal. However, if you're a Bulldog fan, watching the offensive firepower that Mississippi State has miraculously found in just one offseason has to create a small sense of confidence heading into that road matchup. That's something that was missing all last season, and is a marked improvement.

This story will be updated throughout the conclusion of post game media availabilities.