STARKVILLE — There are times when Dan Mullen scratches his head when he sees his team play.
The Mississippi State football coach admits it has been frustrating to see so much inconsistent play through seven games.
Mullen said his team’s 40-38 loss to Kentucky last week is a perfect example of the up-and-down play. The Bulldogs had 281 yards rushing and scored all their points in the final three quarters. In the first quarter, MSU fumbled the ball twice, had 19 yards, and had four three-and-outs.
Mullen will look for more consistency at 2:30 p.m. Saturday (SEC Network) when MSU (2-5) plays host to Samford (6-1) on Homecoming at Davis Wade Stadium.
“I think a lot of things we do we hurt ourselves,” Mullen said Monday at his weekly news conference. “When you have young players and guys that are growing and developing, when you really hurt yourself, that’s sometimes harder to overcome. When you have a veteran team a little bit, it’s sometimes easier. You make a mistake and hurt yourself, guys shake it off quickly and they understand the situation they’re in.”
MSU is outscoring opponents 61-43 and 51-42 in the second and third quarters. MSU has been outscored 42-24 and 58-44 in the first and fourth quarters.
The Bulldogs have produced 18 first-time starters — nine on offense and nine on defense. Four redshirt freshmen (linebacker Leo Lewis, wide receiver Keith Mixon, offensive lineman Michael Story, and tight end Farrod Green) and one freshman (defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons) have started.
“Your seniors have got to do a good job of setting the tempo for the guys on the team and setting the standard for everybody,” Mullen said. “There are guys working at that, but we’ve had a lot of injuries with the senior class, and that leads to some inconsistencies.”
The Bulldogs have allowed 388.9 yards per game (154.1 rushing, 234.7 passing). The Bulldogs lost their two starting cornerbacks before the season started. Senior Tolando Cleveland (torn anterior cruciate ligament in left knee) is out for the year, while senior Cedric Jiles (broken right arm) missed four games before returning Oct. 8, against Auburn. MSU also has a new coaching staff on defense — coordinator and linebackers coach Peter Sirmon, defensive line coach Brian Baker, cornerbacks coach Terrell Buckley, and safeties coach Maurice Linguist.
“It adds up,” Mullen said. “The nice thing, I see a lot of improvement out of guys. You see a lot of really good things, then there’s head scratchers. We’ll go turn on the film and I’ll show you four plays of them running the same play against the same defense. I’ll show you two tackles for loss and two 30-yard gains. Sometimes we’re making great plays and getting off blocks and winning at the line of scrimmage, other times I just don’t know why. It’s just young guys and sometimes they’re executing and sometimes they’re not.”
Williams doing fine
Mullen said redshirt freshman offensive lineman Darryl Williams is doing fine after leaving the game against Kentucky in the third quarter.
Williams suffered a neck/lower spine injury on a point-after attempt. He was taken off the field on a stretcher and examined to a local hospital. He had movement in his extremities after the hit.
“We don’t expect him to be able to play this week, but he should be back after that,” Mullen said. “I thank everybody had their prayers for him during the course of the game. We expect him to have a full recovery, and hopefully be back by next week’s game.”
Williams stayed in Lexington, Kentucky, on Saturday night. Mullen said assistant athletic trainer Thomas Callans stayed with him and flew back in the morning. Mullen said Assistant Athletic Director of Football Operations Jon Clark kept Williams’ mother, Satonya Parker, updated on his status.
Sophomore offensive lineman Deion Calhoun (ankle) left in the first half against BYU on Oct. 14 and didn’t play last week. Mullen said he is questionable.
Senior running back Brandon Holloway and senior safety Kivon Coman have missed the last two games with undisclosed injuries. They haven’t practiced in the last two weeks and Mullen said he is unsure if they play this week. If they do, Mullen said they will be cleared later in the week.
Times set for Nov. 5 games
For the third time, MSU will play before noon.
MSU will play host to Texas A&M at 11 a.m. Nov. 5 at Davis Wade Stadium on ESPN, ESPN2, or SEC Network), the SEC announced Monday. The television network will be determined after this week’s games.
Kickoff for Alabama’s game Nov. 5 game at LSU has been set for a 7 p.m. WCBI will broadcast the game live.
Also that day, Ole Miss will play host to Georgia Southern at 11 a.m. ESPNU will broadcast the game live.
Ole Miss and Georgia Southern, a member of the Sun Belt Conference, will meet on the gridiron for the first time.
Alabama and LSU will meet for the 81st time in series history. Alabama holds a 50-25-5 advantage, including a 27-9-2 mark in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
This and that
n Alabama’s Allen named SEC Defensive Player of the Week: At Birmingham, Alabama, Alabama senior Jonathan Allen was named the Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Week for his performance Saturday in Alabama’s 33-14 victory against then-No. 6 Texas A&M.
Allen had one sack and a career-high four quarterback hurries. He had six tackles, three solo , and added his second defensive score of the season, a 30-yard fumble return late in the third quarter.
n Alabama’s Fitzpatrick named semifinalist for Jim Thorpe Award: At Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Alabama sophomore defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick was named to the list of 16 semifinalists for the prestigious Jim Thorpe Award, the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame announced Monday. The Jim Thorpe Award is presented annually to the nation’s top defensive back.
Fitzpatrick leads the Crimson Tide in interceptions (three), pass breakups (five), and sacks (one-and-a-half).
Three Thorpe Award finalists will be named Monday, Nov. 21. The winner will be announced at the live Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Dec. 8 on ESPN. The winner of the 2016 Thorpe Award will be honored at a banquet in Oklahoma City on Feb. 7, 2017.
n In related news, Alabama coached recognized the performances of Bradley Bozeman, Damien Harris, and Cam Robinson on offense, Jonathan Allen, Reuben Foster, and Marlon Humphrey on defense, and Keith Holcombe, JK Scott, and Mack Wilson on special teams following the 33-14 victory against then-No. 6 Texas A&M.
n EMCC remains at No. 3, ICC up to No. 15: The East Mississippi Community College football team remained at No. 3, while the Itawamba C.C. Indians moved up to No. 15 in the latest National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) poll.
ICC climbed three spots after defeating Mississippi Delta C.C. 49-7 Saturday.
Northwest Mississippi C.C. stayed at No. 5, while Northeast Mississippi C.C. is at No. 10. Holmes C.C. jumped back into the rankings at No. 19.
Golf
n Bell, Bibbs pace MSU men at Quail Valley Collegiate Invitational: At Vero Beach, Florida, Ross Bell and Taylor Bibbs are tied for 17th after firing 1-under-par 143s Monday to lead the Mississippi State men’s golf team to an eighth-place finish (575) entering today’s final round.
Freshman Garrett Johnson shot an opening-round 71 before finishing the day with a 144 to tie for 28th.
Jackson Dick shot a two-round total of 147, tying the senior for 48th with Tyler Grant.
Michigan State leads the team standings, while Middle Tennessee State’s Ilari Saulo sits atop the leaderboard with 18 holes remaining.
n Peng in third place, keeps MSU women in top five: At San Antonio, Texas, Senior Jessica Peng fired a season-best 69 Monday to move into a tie for third and lead the Mississippi State women’s golf team to fifth place after two rounds of the Maryb S. Kauth Invitational.
Peng wrapped the day one shot out of second. Arkansas’ Alana Uriell remained the individual leader at 11-under 133.
Ginger Brown-Lemm’s squad fired a 292 to end 36 holes tied for fifth with an even-par 576. MSU enters today’s final round six shots out of second. Arkansas used a 274 to move into the clubhouse lead with a 562 total.
Freshman Teri Doss enters the final round tied for 14th with a 144 after carding a 74.
Ji Eun Baik carded a 77 and is tied for 22nd with a 145, while sophomore Katie Holt shaved four shots off her opening round, notching a 72 to sit in a tie for 31st at 148.
Rookie Athena Yang tallied a 77 to head into the final round tied for 59th at 153.
Playing as an individual, Kendall Wisenbaker followed an opening-round 79 with a 78. She is tied for 66th.
Soccer
n Six ICC players selected as MACJC All-Stars: At Fulton, Six Itawamba Community College soccer players were named to the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) Men’s and Women’s All-Star teams. The players will represent the North All-Star team in the fourth-annual All-Star game Saturday, Nov. 12 at Freedom Ridge Park in Ridgeland.
Hope Burton (Caledonia), Caroline Muller (New Albany), and Alyssa Stanford (Tupelo) will represent the ICC women’s team, while sophomores Josh Bartlett (Chelsea, Alabama), D’Antae Bush (Starkville), and Michael Kiser (Olive Branch) will represent the men’s team.
The women will take the pitch at 2 p.m. The men will follow at 4 p.m.
Volleyball
n Alabama’a Rivers named SEC Offensive Player of the Week: At Birmingham, Alabama, A strong weekend on the road allowed Alabama senior Krystal Rivers to earn her fourth Offensive Player of the Week accolade of the season from the Southeastern Conference, it was announced Monday.
The honor is her fourth of the season and the seventh of her career, the most weekly conference honors of any player in program history. This past week, she led the team in kills (56), hitting percentage (.425) and aces (6). Her 31 kills on Sunday against Ole Miss marked her fifth match this season with 30-plus kills and the sixth of her career, the most for any player in program history. She also added 11 digs against the Rebels for her sixth double-double of the season. On Friday against Arkansas, her 25 kills was just two shy of the entire Razorback offensive output and her four aces tied a season high. She now has 1,960 career kills, just 130 shy of Erin Heffner’s (2001-04) career record of 2,090.
Alabama will play host to Tennessee (13-8, 3-5 SEC) at 6 p.m. Friday (SEC Network).
Staff Reports were included in this story.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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