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3 things I liked, 3 things I didn’t like about Mississippi State’s win
By Les East
Published:
Mississippi State kept flirting with blowing open its late-night game at Arizona on Saturday night.
The Bulldogs grabbed a 15-7 lead by the end of the 1st quarter and never let the Wildcats catch up.
But they did let them hang around.
Each time State seemed poised to remove any doubt about the outcome, it allowed some doubt to creep in.
Eventually the Bulldogs came away with a 39-17 victory that improved them to 2-0 going into the SEC opener at LSU next Saturday.
There was more to like than just the outcome, but the outcome didn’t change the fact that there was stuff not to like as well.
Here are 3 things that I liked:
The running game – in the first half
In the first half, the Bulldogs ran the ball well. They ran it more often than they often do. They were consistent.
Jo’quavious Marks ran 9 yards for a touchdown on State’s first possession of the game.
Head coach Mike Leach kept both Marks and Dillon Johnson involved and together they averaged more than 6 yards per rush – combining for 98 yards on 15 first-half carries.
If the Bulldogs are going to run the ball often enough and consistently well enough to keep defenses off balance, it’s going to make Will Rogers’ job a lot easier.
The defense after the first possession
The first possession of the game did not go well for State.
Arizona marched 75 yards in 6 plays, finishing with a 34-yard touchdown run.
Just like that Arizona led, 7-0.
Then defensive coordinator Zach Arnett shored things up.
First Jalen Green made an interception, then came back-to-back 3-and-outs, then a total of 2 yards allowed on 4 plays.
The Wildcats moved the ball on their last 2 possessions of the half, but their 36-yard advancement led only to a punt and their 28-yard advancement ended when a Hail Mary pass to the end zone fell incomplete as time expired.
The defense wound up with 3 interceptions, including 1 that turned an Arizona scoring threat into an opportunity that led to a State touchdown.
The Bulldogs led by just 8 points as the Wildcats reached the State 30 late in the 3rd quarter. Tyrus Wheat deflected a Jayden de Laura pass and Nathaniel Watson intercepted and returned 51 yards to the Arizona 11.
That led to Rogers’ 4-yard touchdown pass to Austin Williams on 4th and 3 for a 32-17 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Three times down the stretch the defense got fourth-down stops in its territory.
Ben Raybon’s kicking
Raybon made both of his first-half field-goal attempts – from 39 yards for a 15-7 lead and from 22 yards for an 18-10 lead.
In the second half he took over the extra points and hit all 3 of his attempts.
Here’s what I didn’t like:
Massimo Biscardi’s kicking
Biscardi, like Raybon, was brought in through the transfer portal to upgrade the SEC’s worst place-kicking last season.
The belief was that having two experienced kickers was better than one. If either emerged as a clear-cut leader, so be it. If they both proved to have different strengths and wound up sharing the position, so be it.
It’s just 2 games into the season, but for the time being at least, it appears Raybon will be handling all the placements as well as kickoffs.
The turnovers
State appeared on the verge of taking command during the 2nd quarter and again during the 3rd quarter.
Both times a turnover changed things. Both times it was a miscue by a wide receiver that was the culprit.
In the 2nd quarter a Rogers pass hit Caleb Ducking in both hands, but he allowed the ball to bounce off him and it went right to a defender and Arizona took over at the State 28.
The defense allowed just 2 yards in 3 plays, but the interception still produced 3 points for the Wildcats.
The Bulldogs held a 25-10 lead and had all the momentum after an Emmanuel Forbes interception gave them the ball near midfield early in the 3rd quarter.
Rogers connected with Jamire Calvin for a 7-yard gain but Calvin fumbled and Arizona’s Jaxen Turner recovered and returned 47 yards to the State 4.
That led to a touchdown that reduced the lead to one score and brought the crowd to life.
State finally took command midway through the 4th quarter, but it could have happened much sooner.
The disappearance of the running game
The offensive balance vanished in the second half, mainly because State just stopped trying to run.
After the productive 1st half on the ground, the Bulldogs ran the ball just 9 times for 8 yards in the 2nd half.
Les East is a New Orleans-based football writer who covers LSU for SaturdayDownSouth.com. Follow him on Twitter @Les_East.
