lebby had briles at a klanaggy practice in august as 'family' and said briles would continue to be welcome....
cdispatch.com
Lebby doubles down on ‘family’ talk amid Briles questions
Colin Damms
~4 minutes
By Colin Damms • August 12, 2025
• 3 mins to read
Lebby doubles down on ‘family’ talk amid Briles questions
Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby responded to a question on Sunday about the presence of disgraced former Baylor head coach Art Briles at MSU open practice last week. Lebby’s Sunday press conference after a team scrimmage at Davis Wade Stadium was his first media session since the practice.
Lebby
Briles, Lebby’s father-in-law and coaching mentor, was present at the Seal complex in MSU gear last Monday during the open portion of practice.
The Dispatch asked Lebby directly about any specific guidelines around Briles and his proximity to the program, and the MSU head coach gave a similar answer to the university spokesperson last week, treating Briles the same as any other family member attending an open practice.
“(Briles) being here as family, I think that was addressed, and we want family at practice,” Lebby said on Sunday. “We want family at scrimmages. That for me is special, and that’s how it’s going to continue to be.”
Briles
Briles was fired by Baylor in 2015 for his role in an administrative cover-up of sexual assault allegations against football players. A 2017 lawsuit alleged at least 52 acts of rape by more than 30 Bears football players over several years.
Lebby, who was an assistant coach at Baylor from 2008 to 2016, was named by former Baylor student Dolores Lozano in a federal court filing as one of the coaches who failed to take action against running back Devin Chafin after he was reported for three instances of physical assault.
There was controversy at Oklahoma in 2023 when Briles was seen with then Sooners offensive coordinator Lebby and his family on the field after a win over SMU, followed by Lebby changing his social media profile picture to one of him and Briles together.
Oklahoma head coach Brent Venables and athletic director Joe Castiglione both said that they were caught off guard by the situation. Castiglione issued a statement after the game saying that the incident should not have happened based on boundaries that had been set.
Lebby later issued an apology, saying, “Joe Castiglione, Coach Venables both have addressed concerns with me, have talked to me about it, and again, can make sure that everybody understands that this is something that will not come up again.”
Briles has had multiple jobs working in football since his dismissal by Baylor. He was the head coach of Italian Football League team Estra Guelfi in both 2018 and 2022 and was head coach at Mount Vernon High School in Texas from 2019-2020.
Briles was hired as offensive coordinator by the Canadian Football League team Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 2017, but the offer was quickly rescinded. He was hired for the same role at Grambling State in 2022 only to resign a few days later after public backlash to the news.