100 Day Bulldog Countdown: Gameday – No. 0, WR Brenen Thompson and LB Fatt Forrest

Year two of the Jeff Lebby era has arrived and the Mississippi State coach is back to work.

After a disappointing first season, the coach and his staff are doing what they can to get things back on track in Starkville. The players on the field will be the difference for State this season if they are to make a return and we’re going to discuss every single one of them.

As we do every year, we’re counting down 100 days until State’s first game at Southern Miss in Hattiesburg on August 30. Over this period of time, we’ll breakdown every scholarship player on the roster, look back at great moments in MSU history and even talk about legends that have come before the current Bulldogs.

It’s gameday and we’re closing out this 100-day countdown with the final players on the roster.

Gameday: No. 0, Sr. Wide Receiver Brenen Thompson             

When the Bulldogs lost the top two playmakers at wide receiver in the offseason, the goal was to find gamebreakers at the position and Lebby believe he has one in Thompson.

The Spearman, Texas, native played a season with the Texas Longhorns before Lebby picked him up for his offense at Oklahoma. After catching seven passes for 241 yards and two long touchdowns, Thompson looked the part of a big play receiver. When Lebby left, the opportunities went up but the big plays went down for the Sooners. Thompson caught 19 passes for 230 yards and two more scores though the Sooners couldn’t get the ball to him down the field as much as they could in Lebby’s offense with Dillon Gabriel.

Now that he’s with Lebby again, the goal for the Bulldogs is for Thompson to have far and away his best season yet. He was one of the top wide receivers in the nation out of high school ranked as a four-star and the No. 131 player in the country and No. 20 wide receiver.

During his career at Spearman High, Thompson had 6,000 yards all-purpose and 58 total touchdowns. The potential is there for this to be exactly how Thompson wants to go out in his career. After immediately entering the room and becoming one of the team’s best leaders he’s well on his way to showing it. His work on the field will determine whether or not it comes to fruition.

No. 0, RFr. Linebacker Fatt Forrest     

Many people searched the roster looking for Fred Clark this season only to come away disappointed. That’s until fans were able to figure out a name change came into play.

Affectionately known as “Fatt” to his friends and family, Forrest has a new name on the roster and a new attitude that he’s bringing to the field this year. After a year of getting acquainted to life in the SEC, Forrest is ready to contribute.

Just a couple of years ago, Forrest was a star linebacker for the Winona Tigers and was stuck in a recruiting battle with the instate schools. The Bulldogs had become an early favorite to land Forrest before he committed to the Rebels during his junior year, but he would ultimately flip that commitment to State during the summer.

After being committed to State and putting his recruiting process behind him, Forrest began to focus on what would be a special season in 2023. The Tigers were led by three future Bulldogs in Forrest and TJ and Tyler Lockhart. Those three would help spearhead the school’s first ever state championship when they beat Kamario Taylor and Noxubee County.

Forrest finished the season as a member of the Army All-American team and was selected to the first-team All-State list in 3A. Winona was 15-0 and cemented themselves as legendary figures at the school moving forward.

After playing three games and redshirting last year, Forrest has been competing for reps in the spring and summer this year. He’s competing with veteran Nic Mitchell and newcomer Jalen Smith at middle linebacker this year and should get some playing time on defense as well as special teams.