Mississippi State Set to Travel to Knoxville

The Mississippi State Bulldogs (2-7) will head to Neyland stadium Saturday to face the Tennessee Volunteers (7-1) at 7 pm.

Searching for Momentum

The Mississippi State Bulldogs sit at last place in the SEC (16th), owning a 2-7 record, and are 0-5 against SEC opponents.

Despite beginning the season by routing Eastern Kentucky 56-7, the Bulldogs have lost seven straight games.

Mississippi State’s inability to come away with a win in the months of September or October can largely be attributed to its lackluster defensive performances. Averaging over 40 points allowed per game, Mississippi State surrendered 284 points over a seven-game span (9/7-10/26).

The Bulldogs have also struggled on the offensive side of the ball, as they can’t seem to build and hold onto momentum early in games.

Mississippi State has scored on its first drive of the game only twice (in their games hosting Eastern Kentucky and Texas A&M) through nine games this season. Moreover, in four of their games, the Bulldogs’ first drive has resulted in a punt without a first down. This has left Mississippi State trailing early and often, ultimately stunting any possible momentum.

Gaining Traction?

The Mississippi State football team got its second win of the season last Saturday as they defeated the University of Massachusetts 45-20.

Despite trailing 10-0 after the first quarter, the Bulldogs put up five unanswered touchdowns. With quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. throwing a touchdown and running for two more in the second quarter alone, Mississippi State gained some much-needed momentum to take down Massachusetts.

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Bulldogs head coach Jeff Lebby recognized his team’s strong performance last weekend, noting that he is proud of their ability to bounce back and play collectively to snag the victory.

Tennessee’s Dominance

The Tennessee Volunteers are third in the SEC with a 7-1 record and are 4-1 against SEC opponents.

After winning their first three games 69-3, 51-10, and 71-0 respectively, the Volunteers defeated their first SEC opponent in week four, as they bested SEC rival Oklahoma 25-15.

Tennessee’s only loss so far this season came against Arkansas on October 5.

A defensive showdown in Fayetteville left Arkansas leading 3-0 at the half after four unsuccessful Tennessee drives. However, running back Dylan Sampson exploded for two Volunteer touchdowns before the third quarter clock could even tick down seven minutes.

Despite the life shown by Tennessee’s offense in the third quarter, the Volunteers allowed two touchdowns and a second Razorback field goal to go unanswered. Leading 14-13 with under a minute and a half to go, the Tennessee defense gave up a rushing touchdown by Malachi Singleton (but stopped the two-point conversion) to give Arkansas a 19-14 lead.

While Nico Iamaleava completed a 42-yard pass to Dont’e Thornton Jr. to set the Volunteers up just outside the redzone with only 35 seconds left in the game, Arkansas was able to hold on to its lead, handing Tennessee its first loss of the season.

Since their loss to Arkansas, the Vols have gone 3-0 and defeated three straight SEC opponents (Florida, Alabama, and Kentucky).

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Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel is 5-0 at home this season and anticipates another Saturday night with a great environment for the Volunteers. Heupel also stressed the need for the Volunteers to improve weekly, especially because they head into an SEC matchup against an opponent that is coming off a win and has strong skill players like quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr.

Saturday

This weekend, the Volunteers will look to pick up their eighth win and remain undefeated at home.

Conversely, the Bulldogs will search for their first back-to-back wins since last October.