The Mississippi State Bulldogs will try to defeat the Arkansas Razorbacks for the first time in a decade Saturday at 1:30 p.m. at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field.
The Bulldogs lost 32-7 to Alabama last week to drop to 3-7 (1-5 SEC). This assures that the Bulldogs will not be making a return trip to a bowl after last year’s Liberty Bowl victory.
“We’ve had lot of things happen. Some things have not gone our way, and we’ve created some misfortune for ourselves,” MSU head coach Sylvester Croom said. “It’s just been a struggle from start to finish. But I’m proud our guys have competed all year and that’s a positive. It’s going to be real important that we finish strong here and continue to prepare well.”
The players have also felt the sting of not qualifying for a bowl this season.
“It hurts not being able to go to a bowl game like we did last year,” senior guard Michael Gates said. “But at the same time, it’s all about finishing. That’s one thing Coach has always harped on and drove home to us. We have to finish. If we don’t finish, we really can’t feel good about ourselves.”
A major weakness for the Bulldogs this season has been the offense, which is ranked 112th in the FBS with 283 yards per game. Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino, however, isn’t going to take it lightly.
“As far as the offense goes, the biggest concern that we have is their ability to run the ball. You add option to the package and their quarterback can do two things: he can throw the ball deep and scramble around,” he said. “We have a challenge to make sure we can keep him in the pocket and defend the deep pass.”
On the other hand, the Bulldog defense is ranked 19th in the FBS, allowing only 302.7 yards per game.
The Razorbacks (4-6, 1-5 SEC) have to win out to be bowl eligible themselves. Their lone SEC win was a 25-22 upset at Auburn in October, and they beat previously undefeated Tulsa Nov. 1. Last week, they had a bye, and they lost 34-21 at South Carolina on Nov. 8.
The Razorback offense is led by senior quarterback Casey Dick. Dick has completed 187 of 328 passes this season (57.0 percent) for 2,389 yards (second in the SEC) and 11 touchdowns. He has also thrown the second-most interceptions in the SEC with 14.
Dick suffered a concussion and may not be able to start. If not, his younger brother, redshirt freshman Nathan Dick will draw the start. Nathan Dick made his first appearance as a Razorback against South Carolina, completing four of eight passes for 38 yards.
“We’re going to have to wait and see how [Casey Dick] reacts to everything and see how the week of practice goes. Whether he’ll be the starter or Nathan will be the starter we certainly feel confident with either one of them starting,” Petrino said.
Leading the Razorback running game is junior running back Michael Smith. Smith passed the 1,000-yard mark against South Carolina and is currently fourth in the SEC with 1,012 yards.
Sophomore tight end DJ Williams is the Razorbacks’ leading receiver. Williams is fifth in the SEC with 613 yards and two touchdowns.
“[Williams] has had a very good year for us. He’s been our go-to guy and he’s the guy who has had the big plays and a lot of third down conversions,” Petrino said. “He has great hands and the thing he’s shown throughout the year is his ability to run after the catch. He can break tackles and make big plays.”
The Razorback offensive line features last year’s First Team All-SEC center Jonathan Luigs and Second Team All-SEC guard Mitch Petrus. Despite their presence, Dick has been sacked an FBS-leading 33 times this season.
The Razorback defense is statistically the worst in the SEC, allowing 375.3 yards and 31.3 points per game.
“It’s going to be another all-out SEC war. I don’t know how it’s going to end, but I know we’re going to go out there and fight ’em like we still got a chance to play in a bowl game,” junior running back Anthony Dixon said. “I’m going to be out there trying to win. That’s all I’m thinking about.”
The Bulldogs are 5-12-1 alltime against the Razorbacks. The last meeting was a 45-31 win for Arkansas last year in Little Rock and the Razorbacks have won nine in a row since a last-second field goal gave the Bulldogs a 22-21 win and first place in the SEC West in 1998.
“We haven’t beaten them in a long time. But what’s happened the last nine years isn’t going to have an impact Saturday,” Croom said.