Texas vs. Mississippi State. What is the state of Bulldogs football?
Now with the Statesman as Longhorns Insider, David Eckert previously covered football in Mississippi.
After years of discussion, planning and anticipation, Texas football finally starts SEC play.
Can the Longhorns, ranked No. 2 by the US LBM Coaches Poll and No. 1 team in the Associated Press poll, its nonconference momentum into the nation’s toughest football conference? Will it be Quinn Ewers or Arch Manning taking snaps vs. Mississippi State?
Here’s a full scouting report for the Texas Longhorns vs. the Mississippi State Bulldogs:
ANALYSIS: Why this SEC opener may look a lot like the Big 12 the Longhorns just left
No. 2 Texas (4-0) vs. Mississippi State (1-3)
When: 3:15 p.m. Saturday.
Where: Royal-Memorial Stadium in Austin.
TV/radio: SEC Network, 1300, 98.1, 105.3 (Spanish).
Line: Texas is favored by 38 ½.
Weather: It’s still warm and still very sunny, so wear a hat and lather up. Temperatures will be in the low to mid 90s at kickoff, but there may be a hint of a pleasant breeze from the north.
WATCH TEXAS VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE HERE
Texas history vs. Mississippi State
All-time: Series tied 2-2
Last meeting: Texas 38, Mississippi State 11 (1999)
Most memorable meeting: Texas 38, Mississippi State 11 (1999). The only bowl meeting between the programs and the first bowl game at Texas for coach Mack Brown served as a fond farewell for Texas Heisman Trophy winner Ricky Williams, who rushed for 208 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries.
The win gave the Longhorns their first New Years Day Bowl win since 1981, and it helped jumpstart a decade of dominance for Brown at Texas.
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Know the foe: Mississippi State
Last week: Lost to Florida 45-28.
Players to watch: Freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. will get the start for former Baylor quarterback Blake Shapen, who suffered a season-ending shoulder injury last week. Van Buren came into the game against Florida in the fourth quarter and led a touchdown drive on his first series and then marched MSU down the field in his second series before the game ended. He finished 7-of-13 passing for 100 yards.
Junior receiver Kevin Coleman Jr. has emerged as the Bulldogs’ top weapon with 22 catches for 287 yards and three TDs.
Sophomore safety Isaac Smith leads the SEC with 51 total tackles.
Central Texas connections: DB Tanner Johnson of Lehman, a redshirt sophomore, didn’t play in his first two seasons but had four tackles in the season-opening win over Eastern Kentucky.
When Texas has the ball
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian says starting quarterback Quinn Ewers is “day to day” with an abdominal strain, which means he could be a game-time decision unless Sarkisian makes a call late this week. In the win over ULM, backup quarterback Arch Manning showed he’s ready and willing to throw it deep; he averaged 17.2 yards a completion in his first career start against ULM.
There may not be many passes by Texas, based on Mississippi State’s inability to stop the run. The Bulldogs allow 216.8 yards rushing a game, which is second to last among all Power Four conference teams. Texas running back Jaydon Blue had a career-high 25 carries last week and could get another heavy workload if backups Jerrick Gibson and Quintrevion Wisner remain limited by injuries.
The Bulldogs have allowed an average of 478.5 yards and 43 points a game over the past two weeks in losses to Toledo and Florida.
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When Mississippi State has the ball
First-year coach Jeff Lebby, a 40-year-old West Texan from Andrews who previously served as Oklahoma’s offensive coordinator, comes from the coaching tree of Art Briles, who happens to be his wife’s father.
The Briles offense likes to run tempo, spread out a defense and take advantage of the space created by wide splits to create an effective running game. That running game has yet to get on track and ranks 13th in the 16-team SEC. In comparison, the Texas defense ranks sixth in the SEC with 95.6 yards rushing allowed per game.
The Bulldogs rank fifth in the SEC with 191 offensive snaps, a testament to their preferred tempo. Expect another heavy rotation up front for Texas.
Van Buren, a three-star recruit from prep powerhouse St. Francis Academy in Baltimore, is just 6 feet, 1 inches and 195 pounds and doesn’t run much but has good accuracy and a quick release.
The key matchupTexas safeties Michael Taaffe and Andrew Mukuba vs. Mississippi State quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr.
The two Longhorns each have an interception this season, and they’ll try to bait the inexperienced Van Buren, who’s making his first career start, into poor decisions.
Texas vs. Mississippi State predictions
Danny Davis: Texas. Unfortunately, we aren’t allowed to fast-forward two weeks to when things actually get interesting on the Texas schedule. So, while everyone in Austin waits for Oklahoma and Georgia, expect another blowout before Texas gets to enjoy a bye week.
Cedric Golden: Texas 54, Mississippi State 13. It won’t matter who is playing quarterback because the Longhorns are on the short list of most complete rosters in college football. Texas makes a statement in its SEC debut. The Horns are the team to beat.
Thomas Jones: Texas 63, Mississippi State 14. It will be an anticlimactic start to the SEC against a banged-up and overmatched Bulldog squad, but things will get more challenging in the coming weeks. Promise.
David Eckert: Texas 50, Mississippi State 10. A Mississippi State squad that got demolished by Toledo and has since lost its starting quarterback for the season will not be the first team to challenge Texas — whether Quinn Ewers can go or not.
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Publish date : 2024-09-26 02:02:00
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