STARKVILLE – Steve Spurrier Jr. doesn’t shy away from what’s obvious for his outside receivers unit: losing Makai Polk is a big deal.
The record-breaking receiver accounted for more than 100 of Will Rogers’ 505 completions last season. Without him, Spurrier and Mike Leach need to find a way to spread those out because the quantity of passes thrown in the Air Raid offense won’t be dropping.
Whether that comes from one player – perhaps transfer Justin Robinson, redshirt-senior Caleb Ducking or sophomore Rara Thomas – or an assortment of players is to be determined. But in the early parts of spring practice, Spurrier is seeing progress to give reason to believe the loss of Polk can be made up.
Thomas is the obvious name expected to shine because of the promise he showed in his freshman year. His pure talent led Thomas to 18 receptions – five for touchdowns.
For a player who didn’t play football until his junior year at Eufaula High School, it was an impressive welcome to the SEC. And the room for improvement is ground for excitement.
“He’s still very raw to the position,” Spurrier said. “Didn’t play a lot of receiver in high school.”
Ducking, a junior college product, caught nine passes last season for 83 yards. At 6-foot-5-inches and 205 pounds, it’s clear why MSU’s coaches and players speak highly of him.
In basic drills, Rogers is constantly motivating Ducking. Spurrier is often pulling the receiver aside and pushing him to improve on various fundamentals. Someone needs to take the next step in Spurrier’s room, and there’s belief Ducking could be that guy.
The leaping, juggling and contested grab he made along the sideline at Thursday’s practice is an example of why.
“It’s his time,” Spurrier said. “I think he recognizes that it’s his opportunity to go play and he knows he’s in a position where the ball is gonna come to him.”
Robinson’s frame is evident without the metrics. His stature among teammates in the huddle suggests his 6-foot-4-inch, 220-pound measurements on the team’s website could be selling him short.
The redshirt-sophomore came to Starkville from Georgia where he struggled to find the field in two seasons.
Leach considered Polk the ultimate transfer portal success story. The pitch to Robinson was an easy one to come help fill Polk’s shoes.
The same goes for Jordan Mosley, a transfer out of Northwestern. Along with Lideatrick Griffin, Spurrier has a plethora of options to choose from.
He said in a “perfect world” two players evenly divide the load at the two outside receiver spots. With Polk playing about 90% of the Z-WR snaps last season, he was an anomaly for Leach’s offense.
A return to the norm could be ahead this fall with the number of players Spurrier sees with ability to help make up for Polk.
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April 03, 2022 at 01:41AM
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How does Mississippi State make up for losing Makai Polk at outside receiver? - Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal
"make up" - Google News
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