Mississippi State got back to its roots two Saturdays ago, piling up yards on the ground in its 23-9 win over Auburn. The final tally saw the Bulldogs rush the ball 57 times to only 17 passes, a clear shift away from the more balanced scheme the Bulldogs relied on in back to back losses to Florida and Kentucky. Will the Bulldogs keep that gameplan facing a tough LSU defense this weekend? Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said it’s about finding the right formations and play calls to keep the defenses off balance.
Senior offensive guard Deion Calhoun said one of his unit’s focus is the pre-snap penalties, knowing the Tiger Stadium environment is one that will be difficult to navigate.
When we spoke with quarterback Nick Fitzgerald, he echoed some of those comments, saying that even the addition of loudspeakers to the Bulldogs’ practice isn’t close to what he expects to hear from the LSU faithful Saturday night. Fitzgerald seemed anxious to get back on the field after the open date.
It appears to be a confident group of Bulldogs on the offensive side of the ball, and there will definitely be a tough task in front of them if they want to leave Baton Rouge with their fifth win of the season. This LSU defense is strong up front and even stronger in the secondary, where cornerback Greedy Williams and safety Grant Delpit are likely future first round picks. Mississippi State will have to improve upon what it did against Auburn if it wants a similar outcome against the Bayou Bengals.
