Mississippi State finally got its second win, taking down UMass 45-20. Any win should feel good for the team. After all, they lost seven in a row before Saturday, and their only other win came in the opener with an opponent similar in caliber to UMass. That win, against Eastern Kentucky was similar, routing them 56-7. But, they have yet to win against an SEC opponent, going 0-5 in their initial conference games. Their final three games are against SEC opponents, three of which are now nationally ranked. Therefore, should the Bulldogs feel good about beating UMass? The answer is that they should relish the feeling of this win because it’s probably the last one this season.
The Minutemen left with a 2-7 record. Ironically, State is also 2-7 after the win. However, besides the win, some other good things came out of the game, related to building a team, basically from the ground up. Remember, this was head coach Jeff Lebby’s first time at the helm of a team. He saw winning as another brick in what he is trying to build at State. “Just a happy locker room,” Lebby said in his press conference after the game. “Could not be more proud of our togetherness, the team we are creating, the foundation that’s being built. For those guys, being able to feel victory is important, so proud of that.”
Dawgs’ Start Wasn’t Pretty
The clang of the cowbells was muted as the UMass game started Saturday. Mississippi State’s defense lived up to their previous billing by giving up over 100 yards in the first two drives by the Minutemen. Boos could be heard from Bulldog fans, a crowd that was the second lowest in attendance this season at 48,617. By the way, it was homecoming, which may be a telling tale of how fans feel after losing seven straight.
Blowing Out the Carburetor
As the second quarter began, something happened to both sides of the ball for State. It was akin to starting an old car that sputters for five minutes before the engine finally starts to hum smoothly after a final backfire.
In the quarter’s first thirty seconds, quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. finished a drive they started at the end of the first quarter with a four-yard touchdown run. From that point on, the Bulldogs were firing on all cylinders. The defense held UMass to zero points for the remainder of the first half as the offense added two more touchdowns to go up 21-10 at the midpoint. In the second half, the Dawgs would go on to score an additional 14 points, with UMass scoreless. That was 35 consecutive points for the Dawgs, until the Minutemen settled for a field goal with 12:05 left in the fourth quarter. The defense had finally found their groove, holding the line for five scoreless drives. Also, the offense showed a very balanced attack, especially the running game.
Lebby felt they showed something intangible by not quitting when they were down in the first quarter. “Certainly proud of how we came back,” Lebby said. “Obviously, the way we started was not what we wanted at all on both sides of the football. I was incredibly proud of our guys just continuing to play the next play and finding a way to create some momentum and being able to keep momentum.”
The Players Believe
This team showed progress against incredible odds, playing ranked teams like Texas, Georgia, and Texas A&M. Following the losses to Arizona State, Toledo, and Florida, the team and fans alike seemed to take solace in these improvements, even in the face of losses. On their way after this progress, they took a nose-dive against unranked Arkansas, losing big 58-25.
After losing seven games in a row, some teams would have given up on the season or in their coach. That doesn’t seem to be the case as linebacker Stone Blanton professed a belief in the program following the UMass game. “Coach Lebby is a great leader and he’s telling us, he’s teaching us and he’s leading us to keep fighting, keep playing,” Blanton said. “It’s not going our way, good. We just got to keep battling it out and keep doing it. There is a reason that this is happening. There is a lesson out of anything, no matter how bad it is.”
The Way Forward
When this season started, Lebby was tasked with rebuilding a program that had suffered the trauma of the sudden death of their head coach, and a dismal season in the aftermath. He had a whole new coaching staff, who had never worked with each other, much less any of the players. Then, the roster went through a complete revamp with only two starters returning, a patchwork quilt of transfers, new recruits, and existing players. Add to that one of the toughest schedules any team faced, much less a rebuilding team. It’s amazing their attitude is so upbeat.
The remainder of the season is made up of games against three teams that the first College Football Playoff (CFP) committee has just ranked in their top 25. They will be competing for slots in the first 12-game playoff scenario. This weekend, it’s a trip to Knoxville to play No. 7 Tennessee and Lebby’s friend and former boss Josh Heupel. Then. No. 24 Missouri comes to Starkville, first jumping into the top 25 with the committee’s selection. Finally, the Dawgs head to Oxford for the Egg Bowl, facing off with cross-state rival No. 16 Ole Miss. The likelihood that the Bulldogs could pull off a win against any one of these is remote. However, if they show improvement and play those teams hard, the same as they played the other ranked teams earlier, that may be enough to set the tone for next season. Therein lies the hope for this Bulldog program in the future.
