Bulldogs could have problem keeping Taylor off field in 2025

Mississippi State's longstanding commitment from Taylor worth the wait as he impresses throughout offseason work

Noxubee County's Kamario Taylor (1) looks for an opening against Choctaw County during the MHSAA 3A championship game in Hattiesburg, Miss., Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024. / Barbara Gauntt/Clarion Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

STARKVILLE, Miss. — Mississippi State true freshman quarterback KaMario Taylor has quite the future ahead of him while impressing coaches, fans this spring.

“KaMario [Taylor] has gotten better every single day,” coach Jeff Lebby said after the Maroon and White Spring Game. “The thing that I’m most proud about is he’s a guy who has been incredibly bought in to getting better, spending time in the building, and that’s been a huge piece of it.”

Check out these shots of former @NoxubeeFB QB, @KamarioTaylor, taking some snaps at Mississippi State's Spring Game pic.twitter.com/O9VmxHD2D1

— Carmen Corley (@carmcorley) April 20, 2025

The 6-foot-4, 215 pound quarterback has taken command of Lebby's offense this spring and his work for continual improvement has been the most noticeable part of his development in his short time at the college level.

He connected with Ole Miss transfer receiver Ayden Williams twice for first downs before throwing a 30-yard strike to SanFrisco Magee for a touchdown.

During the spring game, Taylor's performance was an admirable on as he completed 8-of-13 passes for 124 yards. One of his other better throws of the game was a first down completion to Georgia transfer Anthony Evans.

Shifty 🫣 #HailState pic.twitter.com/E5bEmiU3TD

— Mississippi State Football (@HailStateFB) April 10, 2025

Taylor's quick reads and compact release makes him a capable passer with impressive athleticism as a runner. During his high school career at Noxubee County, he earned Mississippi 3A Mr. Football to lead his team to an 11-3 record and third-straight appearance in 3A state championship game.

He completed 173-of-301 passes for 2,908 yards with 40 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. Taylor also dominated on the ground with 123 carries for 1,205 rushing yards and 16 scores.

Lebby never shied away from praising Taylor, a quarterback commitment he inherited from former coach Zach Arnett.

His football IQ and upside as an athlete is what made him a top-100 prospect nationally and No. 8 overall quarterback in his class, according to 247sports.

“[Taylor] can do it all. He can do things you can’t coach,” Lebby said during the Bulldogs' signing day press conference.. “He’s got his best ball ahead of him. The guy is incredibly intelligent, he plays the game the way we want him to play it, and he just has this bright light inside of him and gets the most out of all the guys who are around him, too. There are so many positives for him, but I love who he is as a young man.”

Mississippi State Bulldogs coach Jeff Lebby reacts before a game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium. / Caitie McMekin/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

The Bulldogs' 2025 signing class finished No. 31 nationally, according to 247sports and is led by Taylor, 4-star linebacker Tyler Lockhart and 4-star junior college safety Tony Mitchell.

“KaMario and his family, just incredibly appreciative of their support, their loyalty as we’ve gone through this,” Lebby said. “When you have a big-time, high-level quarterback in the early part of your class, you have the ability for him to create some relationships and make it really hard on kids to think about doing other things.”

How long Lebby will have Taylor learning from starting quarterback Blake Shapen is unknown at this point but he has to be encouraged by how well his true freshman passer is doing this spring.

Just from the excitement from his play over the past month, it's clear he could push to see the field some this fall.

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