Running back Lee Witherspoon enters transfer portal

Witherspoon played in all 11 games for MSU in 2020

One of Mississippi State's running backs is looking to move on from the Bulldogs.

Lee Witherspoon has entered the NCAA transfer portal sources confirmed to Cowbell Corner. The news was first reported by Matt Zenitz of AL.com.

Witherspoon played in all 11 games for MSU in 2020. The sophomore even drew his first career start this past season as he began the game against Auburn. In all, Witherspoon rushed six times for 35 yards this past season. He caught nine passes for 49 yards.

However Witherspoon was clearly State's No. 3 running back behind true freshmen Jo'quavious Marks and Dillon Johnson. It was Marks and Johnson who shouldered much of the Bulldog load at the position following Kylin Hill's opt out after three games.

Running back Lee Witherspoon has entered the NCAA transfer portal. (Photo courtesy Matt Bush-USA TODAY Sports)

Though Marks and Johnson rose past Witherspoon in Starkville, Witherspoon certainly has flashed enough potential to prove he could be an impact player for some team elsewhere. The Birmingham, Alabama, native first came to MSU after an amazing final season of high school football in which he broke Alabama High School Athletic Association single-season state records for rushing touchdowns (53) and total touchdowns (59) as a senior. He led the AHSAA with 2,846 rushing yards, averaging 19.2 yards per carry in 2018. 

That November, Witherspoon committed to the Bulldogs – then under the leadership of former head coach Joe Moorhead. He busted onto the scene as a true freshman for MSU in 2019 by playing in 11 games and getting 22 carries for 101 yards with a touchdown. He also caught three passes for 19 yards.

Then came 2020 under new MSU head man Mike Leach in which Marks and Johnson appeared to establish themselves as the running backs of MSU's future while Witherspoon's future will apparently no longer be in Bulldog maroon and white.

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