Cowbell Corner

What it means: Mississippi State lands another offensive lineman commitment

The Bulldogs added a fifth offensive lineman to its 2026 recruiting class since hiring offensive line coach Phil Loadholt, which is paying great dividends.
Taylor Hodges|
Mississippi State Head Coach Jeff Lebby during the 2025 Spring Game at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field in Starkville, MS.
Mississippi State Head Coach Jeff Lebby during the 2025 Spring Game at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field in Starkville, MS. | Mississippi State Athletics

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Mississippi State Bulldogs

Mississippi State’s decision to hire offensive line coach Phil Loadholt may turn out be one of the best things to happen to the program.

Over the weekend, the Bulldogs picked up a commitment from three-star prospect Camron Thompson and, in an article on On3, credited Loadholt with that decision.

“He’s just a great offensive line coach,” Thompson said in the article. “He’s been hard on me the last couple of months. He made me feel loved when I visited Mississippi State for camp.”

Thompson added later, “Coach Loadholt is real with it. He isn’t going to sugar coat anything. He is going to make sure you get it right and I know he will push me to greatness.”

Thompson chose the Bulldogs over other schools such as Ole Miss, Auburn, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, Louisville and Memphis. He also told On3 he’s on track to graduate from Jenkins High School in December, meaning he’ll be able to enroll at Mississippi State in January and be available for spring practices.

Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson (28) celebrates his 9 yard touchdown run against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson (28) celebrates his 9 yard touchdown run against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with tackle Phil Loadholt (71) in the second quarter at the Metrodome. | Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

Loadholt joined the Bulldogs’ staff this offseason after one season with Deion Sanders in Colorado. Before then he was an analyst and assistant at each school head coach Jeff Lebby served as offensive coordinator (UCF, Ole Miss and Oklahoma). Before that he played seven seasons in the NFL, starting 89 career games for the Minnesota Vikings, including Adrian Peterson’s historic 2012 season.

It’s hard not to notice the impact Loadholt has had and his appearance at Tuesday’s availability session will be well-attended. Since Loadholt joined the Bulldogs’ coaching staff, they’ve added five high school commitments to the incoming class and nine players via the transfer portal.

The transfer additions look good on paper and should be better than what the Bulldogs had last season that ended with just two wins. But the high school commitments may be more impressive.

Here are the five offensive linemen apart of Mississippi State’s 2026 recruiting class:

  • OT Charles Humphrey, 6-foot-7, 270 lbs., Bearden (Memphis, Tenn.)
  • OT Dylan Steen, 6-foot-4, 275 lbs., St. Thomas Aquinas (Miami, Fla.)
  • OT Jayden Ross, 6-foot-6, 315 lbs., Ocean Springs (Ocean Springs, Miss.)
  • OL Dalton Toothman, 6-foot-5, 290 lbs., Vancleave (Vancleave, Miss.)
  • OL Cam'Ron Thompson, 6-foot-3, 300 lbs., Gadsen Country HS (Havana, Fla.)

Steen is the younger brother of Blake Steen, one of the best transfer portal additions in the spring, and Thompson has an older brother that played at Georgia.

“It’s great because my brother played for Georgia,” Thompson told On3. “So he was in the SEC and we are just keeping that going. I know it is a hard conference and I know I have to work to start in that league.”

At every level of football, from youth all the way to the NFL, a good offensive line is crucial to being successful. It looks like Mississippi State is building a great one and Loadholt is a large reason why.

There is a downside to all of this, though. Loadholt is doing such a great job that some other school may try and poach him from Starkville.

But that’s what some would call a good problem to have.

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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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