TROY, Ala. — The statistics show Mississippi State University senior wide receiver Chad Bumphis would be much better off suiting up only against non-conference opponents.
Bumphis made the most of his chance to be a target in the vertical passing game, amassing a career-high 180 receiving yards and catching two touchdowns Saturday in a 30-24 victory against Troy University.
In the second quarter, MSU quarterback Tyler Russell found Bumphis on a screen pass and the Tupelo native found a hole down the middle of the field for a 72-yard pitch-and-catch that gave the Bulldogs a 16-7 lead.
“Chad had a pretty good day,” MSU coach Dan Mullen said. “It’s hard to fault Tyler for 11-for-26 because that’s terrible but after (six) drops, he would’ve had a huge day.”
One play after an interception by senior defensive back Darius Slay, Russell used a beautifully executed play-action fake to hit Bumphis for a 58-yard touchdown strike to give the Bulldogs a 16-point halftime advantage.
Bumphis’ career has been defined by performances in games where MSU is a big favorite and less-than-stellar efforts against the top schools in the Southeastern Conference’s Western Division.
After this game, 54 of Bumphis’ 111 catches (47 percent) have come against non-conference opponents. The senior has 934 of his 1,587 receiving yards (59 percent) against non-SEC schools and 14 of his 17 touchdowns are in 14 career non-league games.
“I’m excited about it because I was talking to (Johnthan) Banks about it (and) he was saying his best games come against SEC teams and he told me to match him, so we’re going to see how it goes,” Bumphis said.
On the most critical play of the game, Russell rolled to his left and saw Bumphis streaking down the middle of the field on a fourth-and-short situation and fired a do-or-die pass to the back of the end zone.
“Chad had one drop on the day, and I know he remembers that, but he had some big plays at critical times,” Mullen said. “Those are some big numbers from a big-time player.”
It was a gamble that left the MSU offensive coaches breathing heavy for a moment and then while the touchdown catch was reviewed in the replay booth.
“You kind of read it out and Tyler had confidence in Chad,” MSU offensive coordinator Les Koenning said. “I actually turned to the people next to us in the booth and said, ‘Thumbs up or thumbs down’ and they said they didn’t know.”
Bumphis’ day started the way most of the receivers’ day did: with a dropped pass. Bumphis’ drop of a sure touchdown was one of six drops by MSU receivers, which caused Russell to be a less than impressive 11-for-26 for 244 yards and three touchdowns.
The Russell-Bumphis combination got started on a screen pass he took and went nearly untouched for a 72-yard touchdown.
After a turnover near midfield, Bumphis knew late in the second quarter that the offense was going to take a shot deep and immediately got excited.
“Tyler told me on the sidelines we were going to run (the deep route) and with the way their safeties play, it was going to be open no matter when we ran it,” Bumphis said.
Russell put a 58-yard touchdown strike on Bumphis’ hands behind the defense.
After the game, Bumphis’ one drop forced him to stay humble about his career night because he knew the coaches weren’t thrilled with the mental mistakes mixed in with MSU’s big-play offense.
“The wide receivers tried everything we could to lose it tonight,” Bumphis said. “We just got to keep our heads up because they’re going to keep coming to us down the road. We want the ball but after all these drops, I don’t know how easy it’ll be.”
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