The last time Steve Spurrier came to Starkville, the game ended as an offensive slugfest. This time, however, the defenses stole the show as the South Carolina Gamecocks defeated the Bulldogs 15-0 in front of a crowd of 50, 277 at Davis Wade Stadium.
Neither offensive line was able to stop the opposing blitz packages with any degree of regularity, but it was MSU who was hurt the most by the brutal nature of the game.
After struggling through a 2 for 8 start, Mississippi State starting quarterback Mike Henig left last night’s game with a broken left collarbone just before the end of the first half.
“Offensively we were starting to move, and the injury to Mike really hurt us,” Croom said. “We made some mistakes, but I didn’t expect us to play perfect in this first game. All I wanted was for us to play hard and to play with some heart and compassion. They did that.”
Redshirt freshman Tray Rutland took over in Henig’s absence, going 6 for 15 with two interceptions.
The majority of the Bulldogs’ offensive production came from two surprising sources: freshman running back Anthony Dixon and junior Lance Long.
Long had five receptions for 41 yards, while Dixon paced the Bulldogs on the ground with 68 yards on fourteen carries.
“Lance is out there because he makes plays,” Croom said. “He’s a small guy, but he makes plays. Dixon is just a freshman, but he did some good things out there.”
The first half of the game was a proverbial chess match, with neither team reaching the 100 yard mark in total offense.
“Give Mississippi State credit, they zigged and zagged with us,” Gamecock head coach Steve Spurrier said. “Our offense was worse than I expected. Obviously we didn’t block their defensive end.”
The lone score of the half came on a 39 yard field goal by South Carolina’s Ryan Succop, with 12:11 left in the second quarter.
The Bulldogs would come out flat to start the second half, earning one first down before punting to the waiting offense of South Carolina.
The Gamecocks would put together a 13 play drive, and narrowly missing a touchdown pass to All-SEC wide receiver Sidney Rice.
“The corner came off and made a play,” Croom said. “I think if he had made that play it would have helped him a lot, confidence-wise. And Keon almost came up with it, still.”
The pivotal moment in the game, according to Croom, came at the start of the fourth quarter. The Bulldog offense had stalled at midfield, and were facing a fourth-and-one situation when Croom called for the offense to stay on the field. The South Carolina defense held firm, and the Bulldogs gave Spurrier the field position he had been looking for all night.
“I made a critical error in going for it on fourth and one,” Croom said. “Had I made the right choice I think it would have gone right down to the end. This loss falls squarely on my shoulders, and they’re big enough to carry it.”
The Bulldogs will move on to their next challenge one week from Saturday, as the nationally ranked Auburn Tigers come to Starkville for an afternoon contest.
“This is a disappointing loss,” Croom said, “but we’ve got eleven more game to play.”