Inconsistencies held Mississippi State University football back in their Southeastern Conference opener, as the Bulldogs left Tiger Stadium with a 31-16 loss against Louisiana State University this past Saturday.
The Bulldogs had many opportunities to pull away from the Tigers, but MSU could not find a way to put LSU away. If Mike Leach and the Bulldogs wanted to escape Death Valley with a win over the Tigers, the MSU defense had to find a way to contain LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels.
MSU’s defense contained Daniels for much of the first quarter, but the Bulldogs got fatigued later in the game – allowing the signal-caller room outside the hashes. Daniels’ accuracy increased as the game went along, and he used his speed to maneuver himself around the MSU defense, especially during the second half of the game.
Daniels ended the game going 22 for 37, 210 passing yards and one passing touchdown. He also rushed for 93 yards and a touchdown and has yet to throw an interception this season.
After Saturday’s loss, fifth-year senior linebacker Jett Johnson said the Bulldogs defense has to do a better job tackling and containing when facing quarterbacks like Daniels.
“He can scoot for sure, and he’s a slippery guy,” Johnson said. “He did a good job tonight, credit to him. We got to tackle better, contain better and do our job one play at a time.”
At points throughout the game, Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense turned into the ground raid.
Junior running backs Dillon Johnson and Jo’quavious Marks both set career-long runs in the game against the Tigers. However, LSU caught on to the Bulldogs scheme quickly and found ways to stop the run game. The Bulldogs were one for four on fourth down conversions in Saturday’s loss.
The Tigers’ defense started to come alive once they found ways to apply pressure on MSU’s offense. LSU’s pass rush sacked junior quarterback Will Rogers four times and found ways to make him uncomfortable – which also led to some bad decisions from the gunslinger in the long run.
The blame for Saturday’s loss against the Tigers was not limited to Rogers. The wide receiving corps for the Bulldogs dropped passes at times when the MSU offense needed it the most. As LSU continued to grind out the Bulldogs’ defense and force the MSU offense to make mistakes, the momentum started to swing dramatically in favor of the Tigers.
The inconsistencies that the Bulldogs showed on both sides of the ball ultimately led to their first loss of the season at the hands of Brian Kelly and the LSU Tigers.
After Saturday’s game, MSU head coach Mike Leach spoke to the media about the team’s inconsistencies and how he felt the team performed in Baton Rouge.
“I thought we were explosive but inconsistent,” Leach said. “If you just say, ‘how did you do one play after the next?’ We did pretty good, but then there would be a key play, and it went around to us offensively, defensively and special teams. We’ve got to coach consistency, starting with me.”
MSU football returns to Starkville for a three-game home stretch against Bowling Green, Texas A&M and Arkansas. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. this Saturday against the Bowling Green Falcons, and it will be televised on the SEC Network.