Mississippi State Football is heading into the final stretch with the kind of injury report that stops being inconvenient and starts becoming a real roster problem. Jeff Lebby has already spent much of the season plugging holes with transfers, but that only goes so far when the list keeps getting longer by the week. Now, with Auburn set to visit Davis Wade Stadium next Saturday, the Bulldogs may be leaning on true freshmen in spots that usually demand patience.
That is the uncomfortable truth here: Mississippi State is 4-4, still alive in the bowl picture, and still has Auburn, FCS Tennessee Tech and the Egg Bowl at Ole Miss left to play. But the margin for error is shrinking fast. Before the Vanderbilt game, the Bulldogs ruled out Kamario Taylor, Isaac Smith, Jalen Smith, Derion Gullette, Diesel Moye and Trevion Williams. That is not a minor hiccup. That is depth being stripped away across the field, and it is forcing the staff to think differently about who is ready to play meaningful snaps.
Womack is no longer just a name for the future
One of the freshmen who could benefit from that reality is Womack, the No. 1 safety in the 2026 class and the No. 39 overall prospect. He flipped from Auburn on Dec. 1, 2025, one day after the Tigers hired Alex Golesh, after having been committed to Auburn for most of the fall. That is the kind of recruitment twist fans remember, but the more immediate question is simpler: can he help now?
So far, Womack has been used carefully. Through eight games this season, he has 18 tackles and one pass breakup while serving as the backup at strong safety. Those are respectable numbers for a freshman who was still in high school last winter, and they suggest Mississippi State has seen enough to trust him in a bigger role if the injury situation demands it. His own line about the decision to come to Starkville — “I’m playing for my home state” — only adds to the sense that this is a player the program wants to build around, not just borrow from for a week.
The real issue is depth, not hype
That is where the story gets interesting. Mississippi State does not need Womack to become a star overnight. It needs dependable bodies, clean assignments and enough resistance to survive a tough run-in. Auburn’s trip to Starkville now feels less like a measuring-stick game and more like a test of how much the Bulldogs can absorb without breaking. If Womack sees a larger role, it will be because the depth chart has been pushed into emergency mode, not because the staff is trying to force a storyline.
And that is probably the fairest way to view this moment. Freshmen getting opportunities is usually a sign of promise. Freshmen getting opportunities because injuries have hollowed out multiple position groups is a different matter entirely. Mississippi State may still find enough from its remaining roster to keep the season alive, but the injury report has made one thing clear: the Bulldogs are no longer choosing who plays next. They are letting the attrition decide for them.
If Womack and the other young players are ready, Mississippi State has a chance to survive this stretch with something useful for the future. If they are not, the last three games could get ugly in a hurry.
