Mississippi State is struggling. How’s that for an understatement? All of the confidence that was built from the season-opening win is completely gone after getting shut out by Alabama, 41-0, in Tuscaloosa on Saturday evening. That was the 2nd time in 3 games that Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense failed to produce any points.

Offensively, State is going absolutely nowhere fast. The Air Raid put up just 200 total yards — 163 of that through the air — against the Crimson Tide. That is the lowest total yards for a Mike Leach offense since 2018 against Washington when the Huskies solved Gardner Minshew and that explosive bunch, holding Washington State to 237 total yards.

If Leach could handpick an opponent for this week’s game, he might not be able to pick a better one than Vanderbilt.

How bad have the Commodores been? Try giving up 499 total yards per game, good for 97th out of 103 in the FBS and allowing 38.3 points per game.

The struggles don’t just come on that side of the ball. Todd Fitch’s offense has scored just 47 points in 4 games combined.

The point is, if Leach and the Bulldogs are going to break out of this slump, it must come Saturday. For all the off-the-field action happening in Starkville with the opting out and transferring of players, it is difficult to remember that State still has half the season to go. How Leach, his coaching staff and the players respond will be a huge factor. If they can cut out the outside noise and focus on improving, a couple of wins are a possibility, including in the Egg Bowl.

To right the ship, though, it might come down to the simple things that you can work on in a game against Vanderbilt. If Will Rogers is your quarterback for the future, let him play against a defense that is almost dead-last in passing yards allowed per game. If Leach wants to stick with KJ Costello, maybe go to a simpler game plan including focusing on getting the ball to Jo’Quavious Marks on short dump throws out of the backfield. Heck, just line up and run right at Vanderbilt with Marks and company. The chance that Vanderbilt is going to stop any offense is slim to none.

This game could salvage the season and build momentum. For Leach, it is about getting those guys who want to be a part of his program confidence, something that has been lacking the last few weeks. When your offensive system isn’t working, it is hard to remember what it was like to taste success by reaching the end zone. Vanderbilt provides an opportunity for the Bulldogs to do just that, no matter who is behind center.

The schedule doctor ordered up the exact right game at the exact right time for Leach in his first year in Starkville. He’s been around long enough to know that he can use this game not just for a win but to see who he wants around in the future. He’s also aware that a loss would be absolutely damning.

State must take advantage of this overmatched opponent. Otherwise, a bad season just became a terrible one.