Cowbell Corner

Mississippi State Building Early Relationship With Top-Rated 2028 Tupelo LB

Elite 2028 linebacker Kaiden Buchanan has more than 30 offers and will visit Mississippi State on March 21 as part of a busy spring recruiting tour.
Taylor Hodges|
Mississippi State Bulldogs mascot Bully runs onto the field prior to the game against the Texas Longhorns at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field.
Mississippi State Bulldogs mascot Bully runs onto the field prior to the game against the Texas Longhorns at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

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Mississippi State Bulldogs

Recruiting is in full swing for the Class of 2027, but programs will get left behind if they’re not looking ahead. That’s why Mississippi State will be hosting one of the top linebackers in the Class of 2028 later this month.

Tupelo (Miss.) High School linebacker Kaiden Buchanan has racked up more than 30 scholarship offers after just two years of high school football. As a freshman, he posted 108 tackles, 11.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery. He followed that with 75 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries as a sophomore.

This spring, Buchanan will hit the road to visit many of the schools that have already offered. He told 247Sports’ Tom Loy that he’ll be at Mississippi State on March 21.

“I went to Junior Day at Mississippi State and felt the family atmosphere. It's right up the road, and I've been there multiple times over the past couple of years,” Buchanan said. “I like what they are building. I like how the staff talks about development over time. I plan to attend a couple of practices to continue building that relationship.”

He’ll make several other visits this spring, including:

  • March 8 – Alabama
  • March 10 – Florida
  • March 12 – Georgia Tech
  • March 24 – Ohio State
  • March 28 – Miami
  • April 4 – LSU
  • April 7 – Kentucky
  • April 11 – Georgia
  • April 18 – California

247Sports’ scouting report describes Buchanan as “one of Mississippi's most physically advanced and instinctive defenders in the 2028 class, blending a sturdy frame with multi‑sport athleticism and rapidly rising production. He already shows the build of a college-ready linebacker, and his background in track translates to explosive closing speed and functional strength on the field. Buchanan's sophomore season at Tupelo highlighted many traits that colleges covet, including his downhill aggression and his ability to disrupt plays behind the line of scrimmage. His blend of burst, leverage, and motor has already drawn attention from major programs, signaling his trajectory as one of the region's premier young defenders.”

For Mississippi State, this is the kind of early relationship you want to nurture. Buchanan is local. He’s elite. And he’s already bought into the idea of development, something this staff has emphasized since the day it arrived.

No one’s crowning anything in March of a kid’s sophomore year. But if you’re Mississippi State, you absolutely want to be in the room early for players like this. And right now, the Bulldogs are exactly where they need to be.

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Taylor Hodges
TAYLOR HODGES

Award-winning sports editor, writer, columnist, and photographer with 15 years’ experience offering his opinion and insight about the sports world in Mississippi and Texas, but he was taken to Razorback pep rallies at Billy Bob's Texas in Fort Worth before he could walk. Taylor has covered all levels of sports, from small high schools in the Mississippi Delta to NFL games. Follow Taylor on Twitter and Facebook.

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