With 45seconds to go in the first quarter, Chris Relf ran the ball in from the 6 to give the Mississippi State Bulldogs a 10-0 lead. And that’s all the Bulldogs needed to pull off a surprising 10-7 upset of the Florida Gators at The Swamp.
I figured Manny Diaz and Chris Wilson would turn out to be good hires, but what they have done with this defense is absolutely amazing. Let me say it again: Mississippi State held Florida to seven points on the road! The last time Florida was held to seven points at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was 2002.
With the exception of the LSU loss this season, in which five interceptions repeatedly gave the Tigers a short field, the Bulldog defense has held each opponent to less than their average points per game. Although sometimes the defense gives up more yards than the fans hope for, the bend-but-don’t-break mentality has prevented big plays, forcing the opponents to run play after play.
Detractors will say Florida gave the game away, but don’t overlook what the defense did. Yes, Jeff Demps’ fumble in the fourth quarter was a huge blow to the Gators, but give Fletcher Cox and Cameron Lawrence credit for forcing it. Yes, Florida’s backup kicker Chas Henry missed two field goals, but credit the MSU defense for making the third down stops that set up longer field goal attempts than Florida would have wanted.
The only complaint I have about the defense is not always coming up with the interception. The Bulldogs have intercepted six passes, good enough for a tie for 52nd in the FBS. (For comparison, Florida and Alabama lead the FBS with 13 interceptions.)
Remember, a dropped interception against Auburn may have been returned for a touchdown and flipped the score, and K.J. Wright had three dropped interceptions against Georgia. Twice against Florida, the defense dropped an interception, including a gut-wrencher on Florida’s final drive that three defenders could have possibly caught.
While the defense was the story of the day, I have to give compliment to the offense as well. The coaching staff has finally accepted that the team’s strength is running the ball. After a three-and-out with three incompletions the second quarter, Chris Relf didn’t even attempt another pass for the whole rest of the game aside from a busted shovel pass to Vick Ballard near the end.
It would not be possible for me to praise the offensive line here as much it deserves. Of the 58 total plays the Bulldogs ran, 49 of them were runs, and at one point, we ran 24 consecutive running plays and kept moving the ball. Most of these weren’t quick runs to the outside or anything; our offense line stood tall, dominated Florida’s highly-touted defensive line, and created holes to run between the tackles.
Two years ago, we barely averaged 100 rushing yards per game, good enough for 106th in the FBS. Now we average 211.9 rushing yards per game. What a job by offensive line coach John Hevesy.
Speaking of amazing jobs by the coaching staff, think back to the 2008 Egg Bowl debacle (if you haven’t blocked it out of your mind completely). Relf, then a freshman who had sat on the bench the whole year other than a couple mop-up series against Southeastern Louisiana, came in for the fourth quarter to awkwardly complete two of eight passes for 13 yards and rush for -17 yards. He looked awful. Would you have ever dreamed that less than two years later, that same guy would go down to Florida and win?
And we’re not winning like LSU (i.e., winning in spite of the quarterback). Relf ran the ball himself 22 times for 82 yards and scored the game’s only touchdown. Three times, he kept drives alive by converting third downs on the ground. Most importantly, he knew when not to pitch it and go down rather than risking turnovers.
We all knew Mullen was a great quarterback developer with Josh Harris, Alex Smith and Tim Tebow, but his job with Relf may top them all. Suddenly, the guy is a legitimate SEC quarterback, and I won’t be surprised if he gets consideration for All-SEC next year.
I also have to give props to Ballard, who rushed for 98 yards on 20 carries himself, including converting two third downs. I’m certainly not going to say we don’t miss Anthony Dixon anymore because we have him, but Ballard has stepped it up (351 rushing yards in the last three games) and eased the transition. We’ll need him to continue to play like this if we want to have a chance against Alabama and Arkansas.
The Bulldogs are now ranked No. 24 in both polls and in the BCS standings. While I’m thrilled to see a number beside our name for the first time in over nine years, I can’t help but wonder what the pollsters were thinking ranking us so low.
You’d think 5-2 with two losses to 7-0 teams, one of which was only by three points, would get the team ranked somewhere in the teens. Nonetheless, as long as the team keeps winning, the ranking will surely rise.  The next two games are home games with UAB and Kentucky, and while both are decent teams the Bulldogs can’t overlook, there’s no excuse not to be 7-2 going into Tuscaloosa.
Even if the Bulldogs lose to Alabama (which certainly isn’t a given), an 8-4 or even 9-3 season is realistically in reach, as is a major January bowl bid (Capital One, Cotton, Outback or Gator).