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2-minute drill: No margin for error for Prescott in Death Valley
By Ethan Levine
Published:
If Mississippi State hopes to upset No. 8 LSU under the lights in Death Valley Saturday night, it’ll need a career night out of junior quarterback Dak Prescott.
Prescott has led the Bulldogs’ offense as both a passer and a runner, and he’ll need to do plenty of both to beat a nasty LSU defense in Baton Rouge. The Tigers have yet to face a quarterback of Prescott’s caliber in 2014, but they played well against dual-threat quarterbacks like Prescott, Auburn’s Nick Marshall and Texas A&M’s Johnny Manziel last season (LSU was 3-0 in those games).
The Tigers have plenty of talent capable of containing Prescott, but there may not be a defense in America capable to stopping him altogether when he’s playing his best. Thus, Prescott must play mistake-free football in Death Valley if his Bulldogs are to score a statement win.
The LSU offense isn’t likely to put up huge numbers against a stout Mississippi State defense, so Prescott will not need to score 40-50 points to earn a victory. However, he will need to avoid turnovers and keep the defense off-balance with a healthy mix of run and pass. And while taking care of the ball will be crucial for Mississippi State, Prescott will also need to break a few big gains to swing the momentum in the Bulldogs’ favor.
Prescott is the man who sets this year’s Mississippi State team apart from Dan Mullen’s teams of years past, and he’ll need to show his explosive abilities against LSU if the Bulldogs are to have any chance at an upset win.
A former newspaper reporter who has roamed the southeastern United States for years covering football and eating way too many barbecue ribs, if there is such a thing.
