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One-hit wonder or SEC threat? Kirk Herbstreit weighs in on Mississippi State after LSU upset
By Adam Spencer
Published:
The Mississippi State Bulldogs pulled off the upset of the weekend in college football, taking down reigning champion LSU 44-34 in Baton Rouge.
QB K.J. Costello set an SEC record with 623 passing yards, but it’s worth wondering if SEC defenses will soon catch up to Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense.
On Monday’s episode of the CFB Podcast with Herbie, Pollack & Neghandi, ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit weighed in on the Bulldogs. Are they legitimate contenders for an SEC title or a team prone to being knocked down a peg soon? Here’s what Herbie said (via 247Sports):
“The first thing that I start to think about is … Mike Leach and Mississippi State — their history is do that, lose to Arkansas or lose to Kentucky or, ‘Get up for Alabama, we’re going to Tuscaloosa, we’re going to show them,’ and then lose to Vandy when they play Vandy or Ole Miss, those kind of games,” Herbstreit said. “So let’s get excited for ’em. I can’t wait to watch their next game at home against Arkansas. It’s going to be great. But I don’t know if this is a team that is just going to go right through the SEC, you know what I mean? That’s not, I think, where we are right now.
“I’m excited for them and, respectfully, their quarterback and their offense. But let’s see where they go from here, as far as handling the exposure and the big lights and everybody bragging about ’em. Are they a threat in the SEC? With that offense, they’re on of those teams that’s a threat every week. But do they have staying power to get through the gauntlet? I don’t think they do.”
Taking on Arkansas this weekend, we’ll see if the Bulldogs can avoid a letdown. For now, though, optimism is sky high in Starkville.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 14 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.