(Sports Network) The 13th-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks and the Mississippi State Bulldogs are slated to square off in Starkville in what promises to be a highly competitive SEC contest.
No. 13 Arkansas Vs. No. 22 Mississippi State: Sorting Out The SEC West
Last weekend, Arkansas took a break from SEC play to battle Texas-El Paso, and the result of that mismatch was a 58-21 victory. The Razorbacks now own a four-game win streak that has enabled them to move to 8-2 overall and 4-2 in SEC action.
Mississippi State entered last weekend’s showdown with Alabama sporting a six- game win streak, the longest for the program since 1999. Unfortunately, that contest was rather lopsided, as the Bulldogs fell in Tuscaloosa by a 30-10 final.
“We did not follow our recipe of what has gotten us here, which was take care of the football, make plays when we need to make them on both sides of the ball and the kicking game,” said Bulldogs’ head coach Dan Mullen. “We were sloppy. One thing you get worried about coming off a bye week and the disadvantage of coming off the bye week is getting back into the speed of things again. We need to learn from this and our young players need to learn from this. These environments are places you have to learn to come in and win at if you’re going to build a championship football program.”
Arkansas owns a 13-6-1 series lead over Mississippi State, including a 42-21 victory over the Bulldogs last season.
The Razorbacks are one of the most explosive offensive football teams in the nation. They are currently averaging 37.9 ppg and 491.9 total ypg, and it all starts with star quarterback Ryan Mallett. Through 10 games, he has completed 67.3 percent of his passes for 2,967 yards and 24 touchdowns against eight interceptions, and while not a threat to break a long run, the big signal caller has four rushing scores to his credit as well. Leading receiver Greg Childs is out for the season with an injury, but D.J. Williams, Joe Adams and Jarius Wright are all talented targets. As for the ground attack, Knile Davis leads the way with 844 yards and 10 scores.
Mallett was masterful against UTEP last weekend, completing 19-of-26 passes for 215 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions. Williams scored twice, and Davis racked up 182 rushing yards and one touchdown on only 11 carries.
"This might have been the first time this year that we've rushed for more yards than we passed for," said Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino after the win. "Our offensive line has been getting better and better as the year goes on."
Opponents are scoring 21.9 ppg against Arkansas, which is yielding 329.7 total ypg. The Razorbacks are rather mediocre against the run, permitting 4.1 yards per carry and 152.7 ypg. While they are giving up 13 yards per pass completion, it should be pointed that they have as many interceptions (11) as passing touchdowns allowed. Jerry Franklin leads Arkansas with 70 total tackles, including 10.5 TFLs and 5.5 sacks.
Although Arkansas did permit three touchdowns to UTEP, one came on a 100-yard kickoff return, and another came in the fourth quarter long after the outcome had been decided. Therefore, the Razorbacks deserve praise for their defensive effort.
“We knew that UTEP wasn’t a team to just blow off and mess around with,” said Arkansas defensive end Jack Bequette. “They have a good team with some good backs. We knew from a defensive standpoint that we had to play 60 minutes of solid football, and that’s what we did.”
The Mississippi State offense struggled against Alabama, a statement that isn't surprising considering the 30-10 final score. Chris Relf connected on 8- of-16 passes for 70 and was intercepted once before being relieved by Tyler Russell, who went 4-for-7 for 80 yards and a touchdown for the Bulldogs. They finished with 299 total yards and permitted five sacks, overshadowing a 9- of-18 effort on third down conversion attempts.
Mississippi State permitted 452 total yards to Alabama on Saturday, including 277 passing yards on just 14 completions. Of the three touchdowns scored by the Alabama offense, two came through the air.
“We made a couple good plays in the first half but we just gave up a lot of big plays and that’s what really hurt us on defense,” said linebacker Chris White. “You can play well on 85 percent of the plays but if you don’t play well on the other 15 percent, then you aren’t going to be a good team.”
Overall this season, MSU is averaging 26.3 ppg and 374.8 total ypg, and Mullen has used both Relf and Russell in several games. Neither quarterback has been overly impressive throwing the football, but Relf has run for three scores. Chad Bumphis paces the receivers with 38 catches for 545 yards and five touchdowns, while Vick Ballard leads the ground attack with 699 yards and 12 scores.
MSU has been a solid defensive team for the most part, limiting opponents to 18.3 ppg and 348.3 total ypg. The Bulldogs are particularly tough against the run, holding foes to 121.2 ypg at a clip of 3.6 yards per carry.
Expect this game to be decided in the fourth quarter and give a narrow edge to Arkansas, which clearly gets an edge at the quarterback position.
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