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SEC Kickoff: Everything you need to know about Texas A&M at Mississippi State

Ethan Levine

By Ethan Levine

Published:

Here’s everything you need to know about today’s marquee SEC West matchup between Texas A&M and Mississippi State in Starkville.

When: Today
Where: Starkville, Mississippi
Game Time: Noon ET
TV: ESPN
Current Line: Mississippi State (-2.5)

Game Buzz: Alabama and Ole Miss unbeaten entering an October showdown? No surprise there. But how many expected Texas A&M and Mississippi State to enter this game a combined 9-0 with a combined three SEC wins, including two road upsets? The winner of this game can start to dream about the College Football Playoff, though Alabama and Auburn still stand in the way — not to mention a trip to New York for its star quarterback. Each team fields a flawed defense and a prolific offense, though Mississippi State’s front seven is fierce and Texas A&M’s passing game is more feared. This is one of those hidden gems of a matchup that we couldn’t have foreseen, but that we’ll enjoy the you-know-what out of.

SATURDAY DOWN SOUTH PREVIEWS

NO. 6 TEXAS A&M AGGIES

Players to watch:

  • QB Kenny Hill
  • WR Malcome Kennedy
  • WR/KR Speedy Noil
  • DE Myles Garrett
  • LB Shaan Washington
  • CB Deshazor Everett

Keys for Texas A&M:

  • Exploit the Mississippi State secondary. Before Arkansas, defenses allowed A&M’s receivers to operate freely underneath, choosing to eliminate big plays as much as possible. The Razorbacks shunned that broken model and provided a workable plan for defenses going forward, pressing up on the receivers, pressuring Hill and forcing the Aggies to make big plays over the top. It took a couple quarters for Texas A&M to try and another quarter and a half for them to connect. That’s got to happen sooner against a bad secondary, or A&M will allow the stout MSU front seven to take advantage.
  • Control Dak Prescott. If the quarterback drops back to pass, the Aggies need to get in his face. If he runs a read option, the defense needs to smack him and force him to pitch the ball. If he keeps it, there shouldn’t be room to run. Prescott may get passing yards and Josh Robinson may get rushing yards with this approach, but A&M can’t allow Prescott to single-handedly control this game.
  • Find motivation. It’s tough to get up for a noon ET road game a week after an emotional neutral-site win in overtime. A&M has to be sore after contending with Arkansas for more than 60 minutes. This is the biggest game in Starkville, Miss., since Dan Mullen has been the head coach. Slow starts have been an issue at times this season for the Aggies. That can’t be the case today. The team needs to make sure it’s emotionally ready for a peak performance.

Aggies’ glaring weakness to watch: Run defense — If Prescott and Robinson spend the entire game getting six or seven yards on first down, it’ll be trouble. Mississippi State will keep Hill and his teammates on the sideline, score in the 30s or higher and have a great chance to win.

Most interesting part of the game: The Aggies defense has been inept at forcing turnovers, but the offense has taken pretty good care of the ball. Can either team get a huge takeaway that will turn this game?

Team Buzz: Most are willing to dismiss the fact that Texas A&M needed an Arkansas tripping penalty to prevent a Razorbacks touchdown and a 35-14 fourth-quarter deficit. That’s because Hill and the passing game came alive in the fourth quarter and the run defense stuffed Arkansas late, including a fourth-and-1 in overtime. But the team hasn’t looked quite as impressive since a season-opening win at South Carolina. Can Hill really keep the offense producing as well as it did under Johnny Manziel? And has the defense really made huge strides? This game should provide answers.

NO. 12 MISSISSIPPI STATE BULLDOGS

Players to watch:

  • QB Dak Prescott
  • RB Josh Robinson
  • WR De’Runnya Wilson
  • WR Jameon Lewis
  • G/C Ben Beckwith
  • DE Preston Smith
  • DT Chris Jones
  • LB Benardrick McKinney
  • LB Beniquez Brown

Keys for Mississippi State:

  • Establish the run early. Mississippi State relied heavily on its rushing attack in its win over LSU two weeks ago, and it’ll need to do the same against Texas A&M on Saturday. If the Bulldogs are running the ball well, it opens up the entire playbook to air the ball out against loaded defensive fronts, and to run some play-action fakes or even a trick play or two. Josh Robinson is a workhorse in the backfield, and he’ll get a steady diet of carries early in the game to try and establish the run and open up opportunities for Dak Prescott as both a runner and a passer. The Aggies have struggled against dual-threat quarterbacks this season, and if Prescott has a big day with his legs it would create opportunities down the field with the pass as well. Lastly, running the ball effectively will swing time of possession into Mississippi State’s favor, which will be critical against a team that operates as quickly as A&M likes to.
  • Get pressure on Kenny Hill with the front seven. The Mississippi State secondary has been exposed by passes over the top all season, and the best way to counter that against a spread offense is to apply pressure on the quarterback, forcing him into quick decisions and poor throws. If Hill has time to sit back and pick apart the Mississippi State defense, it won’t matter if the Bulldogs have eight guys in coverage. State must pressure Hill and play aggressive in the secondary, hoping he is not able to connect on more than one deep shot all game. This A&M offense will hit its numbers no matter what Mississippi State does, but if the Bulldogs want to avoid allowing a half-dozen 10-12 play drives, it’ll need to bother Hill in the backfield all game.

Bulldogs’ glaring weakness to watch: The Mississippi State offensive line will be playing without senior center Dillon Day, who has anchored the line and called out most of the protections this season. Ben Beckwith will slide inside from guard to center in Day’s place, and while Beckwith is another reliable veteran, the shakeup on the line and the absence of its vocal leader will hinder the MSU offense. Texas A&M enters this games with one of the most accomplished defensive lines in the SEC, ranking near the top of the conference in sacks and tackles for loss. If the Bulldogs lose the battle in the trenches, they’ll have a hard time establishing the run and protecting Prescott, which is not a recipe for Mississippi State success.

Most interesting part of the game: Mississippi State beat a top 10 team in LSU (No. 8 at the time) two weeks ago, then got a week off last week to prepare for back-to-back games against two more top 10 teams: A&M and Auburn. MSU head coach Dan Mullen has struggled historically against ranked opponents, but he beat one under the lights in Death Valley his last time out and is actually favored against the Aggies despite sitting six spots lower in the polls. The nation has taken notice of the Bulldogs, and it will be fascinating to see how Mullen and his veteran program handle that against A&M on Saturday.

Team Buzz: The Bulldogs enter this game with a great deal of confidence after the road win in Baton Rouge, and the atmosphere should be electric with SEC Nation’s visit to The Junction this weekend. Mississippi State has a lot to gain and a lot to lose in this one, and in the blink of an eye the Bulldogs can go from being the dark horse of the SEC West back to the team considered a cut below the elites of the conference. This is the biggest weekend of football in the Magnolia State in history, and State can either capitalize or disappoint on a grand stage.

Ethan Levine

A former newspaper reporter who has roamed the southeastern United States for years covering football and eating way too many barbecue ribs, if there is such a thing.

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