Five-Star Special Teams Athlete Gabriel Plascencia Commits to Mississippi State
Mississippi State has received a commitment from five-star junior college kicker and punter Gabriel Plascencia after the Bulldogs struggled all season on special teams.
Plascencia chose State over the University of California on Sunday evening. The kicker out of the College of San Mateo in California was given an offer as a preferred walk-on for the Bulldogs earlier this year. He will transfer to the university in January to begin working with the team as soon as possible, according to the Clarion Ledger. There's no doubt that Plascencia will provide a breath of fresh air for a Mississippi State team that left plenty of points-- and wins-- off the board this past season due to errant kicking.
The 6-foot-1, 210-pound athlete struggled at the beginning of the season but quickly improved. Plascencia made 14-of-21 field goals and 57-of-58 extra-point attempts in the 2021 season. He was 2-of-7 from field-goal range through the first four games of the year, but that all changed after he made each of his six field goals against Modesto on Oct. 2-- including one from 51 yards out. Plascencia only missed two field goals in the remaining six games and tacked on kicks from as far as 41 yards away. By the end of the season, he had added 99 total points for the high-scoring San Mateo offense.
Although he does not have any punting statistics from his time at San Mateo, Plascencia is listed as an athlete that can also punt the ball well. Archer Trafford has handled punting duties well for Mississippi State, but extra depth at that position might be needed.
The MSU coaching staff seems to hope that Plascencia can come to Starkville and be able to produce consistently. Former Bulldogs kicker Brandon Ruiz, who spent much of the 2021 season injured, declared for the NFL Draft a few weeks ago. The team's other starting kicker, Nolan McCord, was a consistent extra-point kicker but struggled immensely from field-goal range. Head coach Mike Leach grew frustrated with both kickers towards the end of the season and even held kicking tryouts that were open to the public.
Hopefully, Plascencia will be everything that coaches and fans hope he will be. The 2022 season sits in the distant future, but the Bulldogs have already given themselves an even better chance of having a once-in-a-lifetime year.
