Mississippi State's Marcus Murphy announces he's opting out of playing rest of season

A starting safety, Murphy has been a key piece of MSU's strong defense in 2020

Mississippi State's defense has been one of the Southeastern Conference's best units this season but on Thursday, the group took a major hit. MSU starting safety Marcus Murphy took to Twitter and announced he is opting out of playing the rest of this year.

After careful consideration of what is best for me and my family moving forward, I have decided to opt out of the 2020 football season. I appreciate the love and support I’ve received during my time at Mississippi State University......... #7

— Marcus Murphy (@_2ERA_) November 12, 2020

"After careful consideration of what is best for me and my family moving forward, I have decided to opt out of the 2020 football season," Murphy posted. "I appreciate the love and support I've received during my time at Mississippi State University."

Murphy is only a junior. He could, in theory, return to the Bulldogs next season. However it is unclear at this time if he'll elect to do so.

So far this year, Murphy was MSU's fourth-leading tackler. He had 34 total tackles, including one tackle for loss. He just had his best showing of the year, in terms of tackles, as he tallied 10 against Vanderbilt this past Saturday. However the contest against the Commodores ends up being Murphy's season finale.

Murphy becomes the latest in a series of personnel losses for State this season. In the last few weeks alone, MSU has seen multiple players enter the transfer portal, including quarterback/wide receiver Garrett Shrader, wide receiver Tyrell Shavers and others. Running back Kylin Hill announced last week he has opted out. Now Murphy joins them all as Bulldogs who won't be back on the field for State in 2020.

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