The Mississippi State Bulldogs are well rested after enjoying a bye last week, and their freshness will come in handy in a crucial SEC West showdown with No. 6 Texas A&M on Saturday.

The Aggies will bring the SEC’s top scoring offense to Starkville to face the Bulldogs, averaging better than 51 points per game this season. Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen knows his team faces a difficult test in trying to counter that offense, and explained in his weekly press conference Monday that it will test his own offense as much as it’ll test MSU’s defense.

“You know you’re going to have to score,” Mullen said Monday. “They’re averaging 51 points per game. If they hit their average, it means we have to score 52. If you hold them just below the average, we’ll have to score 50. Offensively, you know you’re going to have to score points against them if you’re going to beat them.”

Mullen’s logic is sound. Even if Mississippi State holds Texas A&M to 10 points below its season average, the Bulldogs would still need six touchdowns to come away with a victory. No team has scored more than 28 points against A&M this season, often because playing from behind takes opposing offenses out of their comfort zones when trying to keep pace with Kenny Hill and company.

That’s why Mullen also preached the importance of controlling the tempo of the game, which Mississippi State can do with a stout rushing attack led by Josh Robinson and Dak Prescott. Both players went over 100 yards in MSU’s last game — a road victory over LSU — and a deliberate rushing attack that eats chunks of time off the clock could be the kryptonite to an otherwise lethal Aggies offense.

“You’re going to have to manage the game and manage the tempo of the game,” Mullen said, noting that A&M is keen on running as many plays as possible just like many other spread offenses across the nation. If the Bulldogs find success with the run against the SEC’s No. 10 rushing defense, it would be able to play keep away from Hill and the Aggies offense. And, of course, it’s hard to score when you don’t have the football.

When A&M does possess the ball, however, Mississippi State’s secondary could be in for a long day. No team in the SEC has allowed more explosive pass plays (completions of 30 yards or more) than Mississippi State this year, while A&M’s offense is first in the conference in that category.

Mullen credited the Aggies wide receivers for their explosiveness, saying they create “mismatches across the board,” but he explained the linchpin in the A&M offense is its nasty offensive line. The Aggies have only allowed three sacks all season to this point, and they almost exclusively rely on just their five offensive linemen to protect in the spread offense.

“By spreading the field they create a lot of one-on-one matchups around the field. Any time you can protect the quarterback, it’s a pretty quarterback-friendly offense, but when you can spread the field and create a bunch of one-on-ones, not have to max protect and protect with your five offensive linemen and give him great protection, it certainly helps a lot,” Mullen said.

The Bulldogs rank third in the SEC with 14 sacks as a defense, but it would be a huge risk to bring extra pass rushers against an offense that routinely sends out five pass-catching options on a given play.

Ultimately, Mullen said he is going to stick to what Mississippi State does best, which is a fine attitude to have if you’re the No. 12 team in the nation.

“We’re going to try to stick to what worked for us more than try to change towards Texas A&M,” Mullen said.

The Bulldogs like to run the ball to establish balance on offense, and like to play aggressive up front on defense to mask a suspect secondary. These traits match up well with A&M on paper, but executing them against one of the best offenses in the country is another story.