Mississippi State's Zach Arnett could be hot commodity this offseason, but says he loves Starkville

Defensive coordinator has helped Bulldogs far exceed expectations on that side of the ball this season

There might be no hotter topic surrounding Mississippi State this coming offseason than the status of defensive coordinator Zach Arnett. After taking over a Bulldog defense full of youngsters and depth issues, all Arnett has done is far exceed all expectations with his group in 2020.

Earlier this month, AL.com polled coaches and administrators around the Southeastern Conference to determine assistants whose stocks are on the rise this season and Arnett was among the group. It's no surprise at all given what Arnett has accomplished this year.

So what does Arnett's future hold? After what he has accomplished this season, could he be lured away from Starkville? That remains to be seen, but on Wednesday, Arnett responded to a question about his future at MSU and had nothing but good things to say about his time in maroon and white.

"I absolutely love it here," Arnett said. "First of all, I get to work with a fantastic head coach who’s a future Hall of Famer obviously. For a young coach to get to learn from him and the other guys on the staff who’ve got a lot more years experience and a lot more knowledge, the opportunity to learn from those guys is incredibly invaluable. There are great players in this program. Obviously there’s really good football players, but they’re even better guys. I’ve absolutely loved it here. And I’m married with two young kids and I don’t think there’s a better place to raise a family. I’ve got incredible neighbors. I’m going to give them a name drop here – David and Trish Jones, Trent and Bessie Smith – shoot they get me (unstuck) out of my front yard every time my zero-turn lawnmower gets stuck in the summer. So, yeah. They’ve kind of taken me under their wing and showed me some true southern hospitality."

Arnett, who was placed in the running for the Broyles Award on Tuesday which honors the nation's top assistant, will almost certainly have other opportunities in the not-so-distant future given what he has done to this point with the Bulldogs. But he doesn't appear to be in any hurry to find somewhere else to go.

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